As we get closer to the holiday period, it is normal for our schedules to get busier. This can often disrupt our daily routine. This is especially the case if your time is now split between organising events and spending time with family and friends. The holiday season is a common time for chronic injuries to creep up again for a number of reasons:
1. You are run off your feet!
Working as many hours as possible to meet deadlines; cooking and cleaning for arriving visitors; back and forth trips to the shops: what do all of these have in common?
You are doing a lot more than you are used to doing. Quickly changing your routine without giving your body time to prepare can leave you vulnerable to new or old re-injuries.
2. You've stopped everything for the silly season
The second is almost the opposite! While we devote time to other tasks over the holiday season, we might forget to do those daily exercises or activities or spend a day lounging around with friends. While this is normal and a few days shouldn’t disrupt all your progress, for some people it can be difficult to get back into that routine. This combined with a sudden change or return to your routine too quickly after a long break could result in a flare-up of chronic conditions.
So how can we keep ourselves as healthy as possible? The key is to try to maintain your normal routine as much as possible during this time. Here are a few tips to get you started:
Stay Hydrated!
The recommended total water intake (this includes all fluid found in food and water) is 3.4L for men and 2.8L for women (excluding pregnancy stages). Some people may require a higher intake of water if they are in a hot climate or very active. Please note that everyone is different, and this may not be possible if your specialist has placed you on fluid restrictions due to heart or kidney conditions.
Check your Blood Sugar
This applies to people living with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. Keep to your daily routine and be diligent in checking your blood sugar levels throughout the day as normal. Make sure that you account for intake of sugars hidden in pastries, puddings and alcoholic beverages.
No Physiotherapy? Try Retail Therapy!
If you have a very busy Christmas or holiday time, you might find it difficult doing a home exercise program or fitting in group classes. To maintain the recommended 30mins daily, try to accumulate as much physical activity throughout your day. This could be continuing with your gardening, parking the car a little further away and walking a longer distance or walking up and down your local shopping centre for presents. Try taking the stairs instead of the escalator or lift on your next shop.
Indulge Smarter
Often our schedule is packed with several breakfast, lunch and dinner plans with family and friends on the same day! This can be overwhelming to stick to a strict diet which can create a cycle of guilt and regret heading into the next event. Remember that there are only a couple of days at the end of the year that this happens, so don’t feel guilty to indulge on this rare occasion! A few days out of the whole year will not ruin your overall health. If you are concerned, try to portion smaller meals throughout the day and stick to a larger proportion of vegetables to fill you up.
Don’t Skip Meals!
If you do skip the step above and go overboard at your family lunch, don’t jump to skipping the upcoming family dinner! Skipping the next meal can leave you feeling left out and hungry and can often lead to overeating the next meal. Stick to the steps above by drinking water, having a smaller next meal and acknowledging that one meal will not halt your overall progress or health.
Be Bushfire Aware
The impacts to our health this summer aren’t limited to the normal festivities.
In NSW we are predicted to have extreme bushfires across the state, some of which have already begun. Bushfire smoke creates air pollution that can affect high-risk groups including:
Children
Elderly
People with pre-existing heart or lung conditions
Keep an eye on bushfires near your area by checking Fires Near Me through the NSW Rural Fire Service. As a general rule of thumb, if you can see or smell smoke it is at a high level and likely to affect groups above.
According to Environmental expert Fay Johnston interviewed by the ABC, running and physical activity can increase ventilation by 10-fold which can increase your exposure to particles 10-fold. Take your exercise indoors and avoid high-intensity exercise outdoors.
On a lighter note, we wish everyone a safe and happy holidays and a happy New Year. Our last day of trading is Saturday 21st December. We are open again from Monday 6th January 2020. It is not too late to book an appointment for our last few weeks of 2019.
Call us on (02) 4955 0143 to talk to our friendly staff.
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