Staying healthy through the holidays

Photo by: Will Gentry

In a season of feasting, splurging and celebration,  resolutions to stay healthy get lost among the mountains of food. Fortunately, there are ways to avoid falling into this holiday trap.

“Research is showing that having an active lifestyle is good,” Mark Thompson, adjunct instructor of physics and head cross-country coach, said. “This shouldn’t be news to anybody at this point because people talk about it all the time. … Exercise doesn’t just do things for your body. It does things for your mind, it does things for your emotions, it does things psychologically and it does things all around.”

Stefan Aschan’s article for ABC News, Tips to Stay Skinny this Holiday Season, gives seven tips to stay healthy in the holiday season and avoiding those extra pounds.

First and foremost, portion control is  both the easiest and hardest rule of thumb to follow for staying healthy. Especially in the holiday season, limiting food portions can be difficult.

“In high school, I decided to go on Weight Watchers, and I learned portion control and what foods I needed to stay away from to achieve my goals,” sophomore Rachael McGowan said. “A lot of times we snack because there’s food available, not to satisfy our hunger. Even if you’re not trying to lose or watch your weight, it’s OK to deny yourself food knowing that you’re only eating it to eat it and not because you’re hungry. At the end of the day, you have to ask if that excess food is beneficial to your body.”

Another way to avoid this desire to overeat, as mentioned in Aschan’s article, is to drink water. Water is beneficial for the human body; the simple act of drinking a glass of water instead of a sugary soda has lasting health benefits.

Furthermore, eating is some people’s way of relieving the stress that comes with the holiday rush. Aschan suggests a pampering bubble bath, pedicure or movie by a fire to deal with stress instead of pigging out on all the treats the season has to offer.

More ways to be health conscious during the holiday season outlined in Aschan’s article include keeping a food record, making weight loss a competition, adding cinnamon instead of sugar, and of course, finding time to exercise.

The knowledge of different benefits that come from exercise are spreading throughout the nation, and some companies are stepping up with incentives for their employees to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

“Large corporations these days are budgeting time in for exercise in the workday,” Thompson said. “The reason that these larger corporations are doing these things is because they recognize that even giving three hours away that would be work time adds a positive increase for the company. It improves productivity, results in less healthcare bills to pay and all these factors add up to show that it is more profitable to provide times for exercise.”

Oklahoma Christian University students have varying responses to the idea of exercising during the holiday season.

“I think health and diet should be thrown out the window during the holiday season,” junior Lisa Wiseman said. “The focus should be more on family and relaxing. Save the exercise for after the holidays.”

Other students, however, find more reason to exercise during this time of the year.

“I work out more during the holiday season because I don’t have class or homework as distractions,” senior Jacqueline Lovejoy said. “I have to work out more because I eat more during the holiday season.”

Events such as the Turkey Trot and Holiday Hustle focus on these holidays and use them as incentives to exercise, urging students to remember the importance of health.

“To me, the easiest exercise to do is put on shoes and walk out your front door to walk, run or both,” Thompson said. “A 5K is a very manageable distance. With just a few weeks of walking, running and training, just about everyone can complete it. So that’s what makes this a very nice event, especially during the holiday season so we can remember that while we’re eating turkey and sweets all the time, it’s important to keep our bodies and minds up.”

According to Thompson, the Holiday Hustle on Oklahoma Christian’s campus started in 2009 to raise funds and awareness for the cross-country team.

“The Holiday Hustle has evolved a bit over several years,” Thompson said. “The proceeds are split between the cross-country program and Team OC Fitness and Wellness. My wife is the director there and that’s a program that’s only been going on for a couple of years. … We’d like to see that program grow and just more offerings for students, faculty and staff that help them better themselves in the way of physical fitness. We’re hoping a lot of people run the Holiday Hustle and join the group of physically conscious people on campus that is growing because of those efforts.”

This year’s Holiday Hustle will be taking place on Dec. 7 with registration starting at 7 a.m. The entry fee is $15 for students and includes a T-shirt, the race and a pancake breakfast.

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