Christmas time is possibly one of the biggest events in the calendar which is celebrated by people across the globe. The season itself is supposed to be centred around warmth and kindness, but we can often find ourselves in situations which could affect our physical and mental health. Therefore, within this article we are going to cover a few tips and tricks on how to keep yourself level-headed and active this festive season.
Don’t Give in to the Overindulging Temptation
From mid-November the adverts on the TV are showcasing large tables full of food which leads people into thinking that they need to buy a certain amount of food to make the table look as luxurious. However, in actual fact, most households over make a lot of food which in turn makes you feel like you need to help finish it off and eat more than you are comfortable with. Because why not, ‘it’s Christmas’. But this mind set could lead you to feeling unwell as you have over-indulged on food.
This is also the case for alcohol too which can be very dangerous when it comes to alcohol poisoning and causing tension at the dinner party with other guests who you don’t tend to get on with as much or haven’t consumed as much alcohol as you. Alcohol can also influence your judgment and could unfortunately lead you to want to get behind the wheel when you could cause serious damage to yourself and others. Therefore, when you are enjoying a drink this Christmas, just be aware of your limit.
Get Outdoors as Often as You Can
Christmas time sees families coming together for the break and stopping over which increases the crowded feeling of some places, and as much as you love spending time with everyone, sometimes you just need a breather by yourself and we get that. Therefore, when you feel like tension is high, why not get outdoors for a brisk walk to enjoy the cool fresh air to blow the cobwebs off to give you a chance to be mindful.
You can also get the family involved and go on walks to help burn off the dinner or play around with your children’s new toys. This gives you a chance to continue the festive feeling in a positive environment rather than all being trapped indoors. It also ensures that you and the family can remain active and avoid giving in to the festive slump.
Put Your Mental Health First
Christmas is supposed to be a happy and positive time of year where you get to spend time with loved ones, however we all know that this could end up putting us in stressful and tense situations. Therefore, if you are struggling to maintain a positive mental attitude with certain family and friends, you would find removing yourself from the situation would be the best thing to do rather than engaging in confrontation. Simply taking yourself outdoors for a mindful walk or talking to a loved one is guaranteed to take your mind off the stress.
If you are the one in charge of cooking dinner, you don’t need to stress yourself out by trying to make a million different dishes for the family. By trimming the number of dishes down to a few staples, you are sure to make your life easier when it comes to spending time in a hot kitchen. At the end of the day, your loved ones are there to spend time with you, not judge your cooking skills.
One of the main worries of the festive season is the shopping for loved ones. We are under an immense pressure to make sure that we buy the perfect gift and a lot of them at that to spoil our family and friends.
Mutual friends and adverts on the TV are constantly adding to this pressure to over perform in the gift giving segment of Christmas. And this could lead to many spending over their budget and running up large bills on their credit cards. This is a stress which you could really be doing without at the festive period. Instead you should look to finding a meaningful gift for a loved one and stop at that, the temptation to buy more and more is high, but knowing you have a guaranteed smile producing gift should be enough to make you realise you don’t need to buy more. Because at the end of the day Christmas is about spending time with your loved ones, not how many gifts you can buy one another.
Have Fun and Enjoy the Festive Period!
Try to take the pressure of yourself this Christmas in order to keep your mental health in check as this is often the key time of year where this is greatly affected. You should also try to keep on top of your physical health by keeping an eye on your food and alcohol intake while ensuring that you remain active. And ultimately, don’t forget to have fun and make the most of your quality time with loved ones. If you are still on the hunt for a gift this Christmas, you can take a look at our handy gift guides on the blog or checkout our website – Sports Fitness.
This article was written exclusively for Sports Fitness by Loren Astbury