The holidays are a time of gathering, giving, and receiving. They’re also a time when we tend to eat a lot; we tend to get more than we ask for, like extra calories from those delicious tamales, pork legs, or turkey dinners. Now’s about the time most people want to do some holiday running-at least to burn off those unwanted extra pounds. So here are a few tips to consider for those wanting to run off their holiday meals.

Warm Up



So many injuries come from not stretching. It doesn’t take a long time to stretch, even the basics –like the ones most of us did in PE-are good enough to prevent injuries. Touching your toes without bending your knees and standing on one leg-while holding the other-are both basic, but great stretches to do before going out for a run.

Pace Yourself



Pace yourself, the last thing you want to do is go in trying to be healthier and finish needing medical help. It’s important to maintain a comfortable pace, you don’t want to build up an unhealthy heart rate or pull anything. For most people their goal is to burn off a few extra pounds they gained, not to be the next Usain Bolt.

Sweating



Sweating more doesn’t mean you’re losing more fat. People often wear an extra sweater so they can sweat more-because they think they’ll lose more fat. In reality a person loses mostly water and salt from sweating, not fat. But of course if it’s cold outside then by all means wear a sweater because no one wants to catch a cold.

Enjoy Your Run



When you enjoy what you’re doing, you’re happy. And when you’re happy, you relieve yourself or stress. Always remember to try and enjoy what you’re doing, time will fly by quicker and you’ll be more inclined to repeat what you’re doing-in this case running.

With all that being said, I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays. Be safe and have a very happy new year!