What's Your Thanksgiving Plan?

Good evening!

With Thanksgiving just a couple of days away, there are always concerns about consuming extra calories and eating the wrong foods. Months of hard work tend to go down the drain relatively quickly once you start to pile on the mashed potatoes and gravy. Well, luckily, there are plenty of ways to help fight the holiday weight gain.

Despite what department stores think, Thanksgiving is a time for families to be together and to enjoy each other’s company. And, for many people, the most fun and entertaining way to work out is with your family! If your family is anything like mine, then you are super competitive with everything. I know that my family has a great time pushing each other and that we have a lot of fun no matter what we do.

Here are some options this year to help burn off those extra calories:

• Turkey Trots – These are becoming more and more popular by the year. These are generally 5K races that take place early on Thanksgiving morning. They take roughly 20-30 minutes, which allows you to burn a significant amount of calories. The bad news: odds are you probably won’t win the race. Somehow there is always a 5’6” 110-lb high school kid that runs it in 14 minutes. Even if that is the case, you’ll still have fun competing against the rest of your family.

• Run your own family boot camp – If even one person in your family knows exercise, then you can run your own boot camp—outside or inside—this Thanksgiving. It does not have to be overly serious; it can just be fun. There are plenty of body weight exercises that you can do as a group: push-ups, planks, squats, lunges, sprints, burpees, sit-ups, etc. You can turn it into a fun competition as well to keep everyone motivated.

• Football (or street/ice/roller hockey game) – Football has become Turkey Day’s traditional game in the modern age. With nonstop NFL games, it only seems fitting to get your family outside for some pigskin fun. Depending on where you live, you can also head to the rink or street for a family hockey game.

• Go to the gym for a class, workout, and/or boot camp – While I personally do not suggest supporting places that are open on Thanksgiving, if you have no alternative and want a fun family workout, then there are always gyms that are open in the morning. Head there to do one of their classes together or to work out in a circuit together.

• Lastly, if you are living in northern/northwestern New Jersey, then this year may bring you a unique Thanksgiving activity. You may need to grab a snow shovel and shovel your way out of the potential snow storm that is currently threatening our area!

These are just some suggestions, and I would like nothing more than for everyone to work out over Thanksgiving. But, no matter what you do, whether you exercise or you don’t, do it as a family! I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving!

Any questions or comments? Let me hear about them! Bill@nextlevelnj.com

#billsblog