By Andrea Parkinson
Personal Trainer

Judging by the festive blinky lights and the rearranged “in season” aisle of the Duane Reade near me, it’s now Christmas time.  Of course we have only just gotten past Halloween. We still have Channukah, which happens to fall on the eve of Thanks to Give. Let’s not even discuss New Year’s.

The busyness of this time of year continuously takes my breath away.  Kids, work, socializing, deadlines: it’s all an excuse to put fitness on the back burner, yes?  

No. No. No. 

Now is when you need exercise and healthy habits. Now is when your programming needs to be as effective and as streamlined as possible. See below for some of my tips.

1: Use your time efficiently. Let’s start with a major time waster in the gym and why you need to steer clear:

Seated Abduction/ Adduction:

What it looks like: a two legged dentist’s chair (or worse, a gynecologist’s set up).

Chances are your gym and fitness centers have a number of machines where the lower body equipment is located.  This is the one where you sit upright or on an incline and and move your thighs towards your midline (adduction) and/ or away from your midline (abduction).

Why it’s used:     

You get to lounge around and pretend you are still working out.  I’ve seen people doing the New York Times crossword on this thing.  Also, if you bump the weight up and and increase your range of motion enough, you might get nice and sore in the groin and/ or butt area, which gives an illusion of accomplishment.

Why it’s useless and/ or dangerous:  

When you are seated with bent knees, your hips and knees are in flexion.  When your hips and knees are in flexion, you cannot activate any of the very important muscles around your knee while abducting and adducting.   What you are targeting is the smallest of inner thigh muscles (adductors) and some external rotators (abduction) that do not cross the knee.  Because they are so small, stressing these muscles  alone will not result in a tighter rear or shapely thighs.  There is no functional reason to isolate these particular muscles on a healthy individual.  Being able to move 10 plates on this machine will not make you any stronger, except to continue being able to move 10 plates on this machine.  The “burn” on this machine is potentially addictive, leading the exerciser to increase the range and up the weight until those poor little single joint adductors are lengthening and contracting  without the checks and balances  of a larger set of quadriceps or hamstrings to protect them.  The risk of a pesky groin injury or an attack of sciatic pain from this contraption is high.  And yes, you are wasting valuable time on this thing.  Better to relax at the beach.

What to do instead:

Squats, Lunges, Standing Multiplanar Leg Kicks, Plies and Pilates.

Why:

If you are able, standing up is always a better idea.  When you support your full weight (or more) against gravity, you work far more muscle fibers than you do when isolating  a specific group. These exercises require more balance, posture, and power.  They also utilize more calories and require you to think of your body as a whole instead of in parts, which is always more efficient and functional.  

If you want to tone up without standing up, a better option than the Inner/ Outer thigh machine is pilates.  A favorite of dancers and those who enjoy a longer and leaner sense of their bodies, Pilates requires a lot of focus, but the payoff is well worth it.  The attention to the most intrinsic muscles surrounding your pelvis and spine eventually translates into supple, yet strong and toned belly, hips, and thighs.  Don’t know how?  A good trainer will teach, supervise and inspire.  😉

2: Add some plyometrics to your workout.

What it looks like:

A squat becomes a jump squat.  An overhead press becomes a medicine ball throw/ catch. Lunges morph into hops and a push up becomes a crab or bear crawl.  The possibilities are endless and a lot of fun.  

Why:

Done correctly, plyometrics enhance agility, strength, stimulate bone growth and tap into the anerobic energy in your cells (read calorie burn).  Caution is advised to insure correct form, and programming for your current fitness levels.  Don’t know how?  A good trainer will teach, supervise and inspire.  😉

Time crunched?  Don’t forget:

3: Stretching

It’s easy to get caught up in the endorphine releasing strength and cardio part of a workout only to race past the stretch option before showering.  Don’t.  Are your thighs burning and cramping after that spin class?  Stretch them out immediately.  Ankles and calves tight after a run?  Stretch them out immediately.  Don’t know how?  A good trainer will teach, supervise and inspire.  😉

4: Water

Let’s face it, you’ll be ingesting and imbibing more in the coming weeks. Water helps detox.  It keeps your skin from flaking once the heat in your home is on full tilt.  After a sweaty workout, your body demands it.  Don’t worry about the perfect fresh juice or protein shake.  Skip the soda. Drink water and a fair amount of it.  

Remaining motivated to be your best throughout the holidays in not impossible.  In fact, it’s an excellent challenge to greet the new year with. Staying fit during the holy daze is really about time management, which is something most of us are excellent at, right?  If you are not great at keeping track of how you spend your work out minutes, a good trainer will teach, supervise, and inspire ;).