Since the start of the month and continuing over the next few weeks, Vancouverites are going to be attending a lot of holiday parties. What do family dinners, work holiday parties and social holiday gatherings all have in common? Amazing feasts that we can’t help but feel guilty indulging in.
Not only do the cold winter months tempt us to hide out at home with a warm cup of tea instead of exercising, but holiday weight gain is inevitable simply due to all of the tempting extra calories we’re offered by friends, family and coworkers during the holiday season.
Your office might offer rum and eggnog and frosted cookies, your friends will drop off baked goods to you to spread Christmas cheer – it’s a challenge for everyone not to indulge, so you’re not alone.
Compensate for your indulgence with calorie-burning workouts and you won’t feel so guilty. Here are the 5 best workouts in Vancouver to avoid gaining weight during the holidays:
1. Outdoor Bootcamp
Outdoor bootcamp is an intense and efficient outdoor workout guaranteed to burn a ton more calories than your average gym session. Outdoor bootcamps such as Ultrafit Bootcamp won’t cancel a class due to a little rain or snow. Instead, they encourage you to avoid the winter blues by getting some fresh air and exercising. A typical Ultrafit class includes a half hour outdoor run incorporating the neighbourhood’s hills, followed by 35 minutes of circuit training involving scientifically-proven strength and core exercises.This outdoor bootcamp is therefore the perfect full body, fat-burning workout.
Don’t worry, if it’s raining they choose covered locations for the strength portion of the bootcamp, but your body actually burns more calories when you exercise outdoors in the cold. This is because your body has to work harder to keep you warm when it’s cold outside.
Exercising outdoors in the fresh air gives you a natural high and is perfect for those who experience the winter blues – and for those who want to kick their workout up a notch. Because it is such a powerful workout, you’ll see results quite quickly with Ultrafit Bootcamp. Ultrafit offers classes in Kitsilano, North Vancouver, Burnaby and East Vancouver.
2. Indoor Workout Classes
If you’re looking for an indoor workout class to burn off those holiday cookies, Trevor Linden Fitness has workout classes that will kick your butt, but won’t break your bank. Their workout classes are awesome, but they’re also one of the most inexpensive gyms to be a member at in Vancouver!
The great thing about indoor workout classes is that the hour-long class is planned perfectly to give you a great workout without you having to even think about it. Planning your own workout isn’t always easy – so why not leave it to the professionals?
3. Indoor Cycling
Spin classes are a fantastic cardio workout, sure to have you sweating and burning off that eggnog. Indoor cycling studios such as Ride Cycle Club provide you with cycling shoes and a towel. Even bottled water is available for purchase, so all you need to do is show up! The intense ride is geared towards the goal of a maximum workout during each class.
4. Kickboxing
A one hour kickboxing class can burn up to 900 calories. Heat yourself up this winter with this high-intensity workout. It’s a form of aerobic exercise, which is the type of exercise best known for fat reduction.
Kickboxing combines cardio with strength and is therefore incredibly efficient. Kickboxing classes are offered at many local gyms in Vancouver including Urban Fitness Club.
5. Hot Yoga
Because hot yoga like YYoga uses a hot room, your heart rate is elevated during class, resulting in more calories being burned. Yoga also stretches, tones and leans out the body. This helps with stomach cramps caused by eating too many holiday treats – but it also helps burn off calories.
An added bonus is that if you’re freezing cold you’ll warm up quite quickly in hot yoga.
What exercises are you doing to keep off the holiday weight?
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