It’s very exciting when our students come home for the holidays. They’ve finished finals and have time to relax (they’ll probably want to sleep…a lot!). One problem with this down time is that students lose their regular routines. This may include interrupting great habits, such as exercising.
Here are some tips for you to share with your student to help them stay focused on health and fitness over the break.
- Remember as little as 30 minutes a day of moderate exercise is all it takes to stay healthy and on track. And you don’t even have to get all 30 minutes in at one time! Sprinkle in 10 minutes 3 times a day.
- Go for a brisk walk or a jog
- Ride a bike
- Go for a hike
- Dance
- Play a sport – It is a great time to start an Annual Family Flag Football Game!
- Help out with some yard work
- Take the stairs
- Go bowling or roller skating
- If your student is looking to maintain their level of fitness, all they need to do is increase the intensity and duration of their activities. This is only a modest increase in both to moderate-vigorous intensity for 60 minutes a day, 3-4 days per week.
- Suggest they invite friends and family to exercise with them. It is more enjoyable when you can exercise and catch up with friends and family at the same time.
- Not every day your student is active needs to be scheduled exercise. It’s the holidays, have fun with it!
- Help them stay focused on healthy food choices.
- Encourage your student to take advantage of the time off from classes and studying to get their sleep routine back on track. REST is a highly valuable component of health and fitness!