Prevent Holiday Weight Gain With These Easy At-Home Workouts

Prevent Holiday Weight Gain With These Easy At-Home Workouts | XpertsReviews.com

The holiday season is all about decorating the rooms with cheerful decor and the tables with festive treats. This highly anticipated time of year is usually filled with projects, leaving you with much less time to focus on your fitness. That being said, staying on top of your workout routine doesn’t necessarily mean you have to spend hours at the gym. Instead, we offer the best at-home workouts to prevent holiday weight gain and help you stay active.

“With the busy holiday season, it’s essential to find a workout routine that fits into your busy schedule while still providing effective results,” says Michael Cummingsdirector of education at BlazePod. “The key is consistency, intensity and focusing on the exercises that give you the most bang for your buck.”

In this article:

Workout #1: High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

woman doing jump squat, workout with bag burner
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The best home workout to stay fit and active during the holidays is high-intensity interval training (HIIT).

“HIIT combines short bursts of maximum intensity exercise with brief periods of rest. The key word here is maximum intensity,” Cummings tells us. “The intensity of HIIT workouts increases your heart rate and boosts your metabolism, even after the workout is over (called the “afterburn effect”). This means you’ll continue to burn calories at a higher rate for hours after your workout, which helps prevent weight gain.

Additional benefits of maximum intensity workouts include increased muscle strength and power, improved metabolic efficiency, and better blood sugar control.

An example of a HIIT workout at home:

  1. Jump squats (30 seconds)
  2. Push-ups (30 seconds)
  3. Mountain climbers (30 seconds)
  4. Stair Sprints (30 seconds)
  5. Rest (30 seconds)
  6. Repeat or choose 3 to 5 additional exercises to complete in 20 to 30 minutes.

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Workout #2: Circuit Training with AMRAP

woman doing push-ups, concept of easy home exerciseswoman doing push-ups, concept of easy home exercises
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The second best home workout is circuit training using as many repetitions as possible (AMRAP).

“AMRAP Circuit Training combines the intensity of circuit training with the challenge of completing as many reps or rounds as possible in a set amount of time,” says Cummings. “This type of training offers a range of benefits, making it a popular and effective training strategy for improving strength, conditioning and overall fitness.”

An example of AMRAP circuit training at home:

  1. Jumping Jacks (1 minute)
  2. Push-ups (1 minute)
  3. Walking lunges (1 minute)
  4. Crunches (1 minute)
  5. Rest (1 minute)
  6. Repeat for 3 rounds

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Workout #3: Bodyweight Strength Training

fit woman doing glute bridges, floor exercise concept for women to melt belly fat after 30fit woman doing glute bridges, floor exercise concept for women to melt belly fat after 30
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You don’t need to use fancy equipment to reap the benefits of a productive workout! Bodyweight training is a great way to sculpt muscle mass while promoting fat loss and long-term weight management.

“Muscle burns more calories at rest than fat, so increasing your lean muscle mass helps boost your metabolism,” notes Cummings. “Bodyweight exercises like squats, lunges and push-ups can be done anywhere while still providing a great full-body workout.”

An example of strength training at home:

  1. Squats (3 sets of 12 to 15 repetitions)
  2. Push-ups (3 sets of 10 to 12 repetitions)
  3. Glute bridges (3 sets of 15 reps)
  4. Plank (hold for 30 seconds)
  5. Lunges (3 sets of 15 reps)
  6. Chair Dips (3 sets of 15 reps)
  7. Rest for 30 to 60 seconds between sets

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Workout #4: Isometrics

woman doing walking lunges, concept of quick and easy vacation workouts to stay on trackwoman doing walking lunges, concept of quick and easy vacation workouts to stay on track
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This workout uses the same exercises as strength training, but with an isometric focus. If you’ve never performed an isometric before, Cummings explains it to you.

“Isometrics refers to a type of strength training in which the muscle is contracted but does not change length or produce movement at the joint,” he says. “Unlike dynamic exercises, where muscles shorten (concentric contraction) or lengthen (eccentric contraction) while moving a weight, isometric exercises involve maintaining a position where the muscle is under tension without any visible movement. This principle is called “Teeth under tension”. “

An example of isometric strength training at home:

  1. Plank (hold for 30 seconds)
  2. Side plank (hold for 30 seconds on each side)
  3. Wall sit (hold for 60 seconds)
  4. Split Squats (hold for 60 seconds on each side)
  5. Pushup (hold for 30 seconds at mid distance)

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Workout #5: Steady State or Fasted Cardio

Woman performing cardio workout on treadmill to double belly fat burningWoman performing cardio workout on treadmill to double belly fat burning
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Last but not least, try some steady-state cardio at home. Steady-state or fasted cardio involves low-to-moderate intensity exercises like incline walking, cycling, or jogging regularly on an empty stomach.

“The idea behind this practice is that by exercising before eating, the body is more likely to burn stored fat for fuel rather than carbohydrates from foods you recently ate,” says Cummings. “Even though many do it, I have to tell you that the scientific research on the benefits of fasted cardio is mixed.”

Alexa Mellardo

Alexa is the Mind + Body Associate Editor at Eat This, Not That!, overseeing the M+B channel and bringing readers interesting topics on fitness, wellness, and self-care. Learn more about Alexa

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