say hello to the elephant

I have, for as long as I can remember, been a Summer loving gal. I legit, worship the sun – I’m convinced the sun is a God hehe!.  I come alive in the Summer. I get excited, hyperactive, bubbly, effervescent, motivated, and energized. Winter, however, makes me miserable, depressive, cranky, tired and un-motivated.

However, I have friends who are the complete opposite –  they love Winter. They love the freshness, the crisp air, and the ‘non-sweaty’ bodies. I have never understood this phenomenon or how to cope with my Winter pain. I have, for years, pushed through it, kicking and screaming, while at the same time dragging my Personal Training clients through it with me.  Dragging myself out of bed in the dark, and the freezing cold, and whingeing through every training session I pushed, and pushed, year after year. I was hard on myself if I hit snooze or couldn’t stay committed to my training schedules.

And then BOOM, I hit 50. I got diagnosed with Breast Cancer (which is a whole separate Elephant to post about). The Cancer forced me to stop. Like, literally stop, I couldn’t even lift my arms to brush my hair.  And guess when all this happened….???. yep ….smack bang in the middle of Winter. So instead of pushing myself in the only season I used to really dig deep and push myself in, I got to stop. Stop and rest.

Its been 2 yrs since that first Winter of rest and stillness, and I have learnt SO much about embracing the seasons, not only of the planet, but of life too. I am now SO much more kinder and nourishing to myself AND to my Personal Training Clients (sorry it took so long & I’m glad you all still love me!)

Let’s just take a moment to define Winter and the seasons. Winter is defined as ‘the coldest and darkest season of the year.’ This reduced sunlight effects our bodies natural circadian rhythm, causing our body to produce more melatonin (aka the sleep hormone) meaning our bodies actually want, and NEED, more sleep. Pushing myself, and my clients, through early morning and late night training sessions, (especially if they too struggle with the Winter season) is not, I believe, conducive to overall healthy bodies and increased longevity. I believe, now, that it is FAR more important to find ways to nourish your body appropriately depending on the season, and your own ‘personal thermostat.’ For those Winter loving creatures amongst us, this is your season to shine, however, for the rest of us, its time to embrace this season for what it is, and how it wants us to behave.

So, if you are like me, and you are feeling unmotivated with your training schedule now that it is Winter?

Then I have some tips for you!

• Change your mindset!  You are NOT being Lazy. You are ‘hibernating’, just like most animal species during this season, so, it is OK to slow down! Stop being hard on yourself and allow yourself this as guilt free time to rest and re-charge for the upcoming Spring, Summer & Autumn. There will be plenty of time to move, run and jump in those upcoming seasons.       ** tip** remember that  ‘hibernating’ animals are NOT gathering and eating food all day and night. If you really want to embrace the slowness of the Winter season, you also need to embrace the slowness of calorie consumption.

• Train in the middle of the day. It’s warmer, the sun is up, and your circadian rhythm will be favouring movement at the time of the day.  Instead of wallowing in a bowl of hot chips at lunch time, perhaps a 30min visit to the gym is a better option for you.

• Get some real Vit D. (NOT a supplement!) As often as you can, find a warm wind-sheltered spot in the sun, and expose as much skin as you can to those delicous sunshine rays. There are literally 1000’s of studies proving that SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder – a type of depression) is caused by a lack of sunlight and Vit D. So, a bit of sunshine might actually be all you need to kickstart your motivation, increase your energy levels and improve your mental health. Natural Vit D is also an amazing immune booster, so, this practice also doubles as a way too ward off any cold’s and flu’s that may be lurking.

• Train at home. The bonus of training at home, is how quickly you get your sessions done. Going to the gym can take up a good hour or so (driving there and back etc)while training at home can save those valuable daylight hours, or at least, allow you to sleep in a little longer in the morning, or get to bed earlier at night.

• Go to bed earlier. If early morning training is a ‘must do’ for you, then simply going to bed earlier will allow you to get those extra Winter sleeping hours.

• Change your training program. Winter can be a GREAT time change up your training. If you struggle with the heat in Summer, perhaps Winter is a great time for you to do High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and get sweaty….. without getting sweaty – if you know what I mean 😉  Or perhaps some long, easy over-distance cardio (eg 1hr+ walking) or some low rep/heavy weighted strength sessions would be perfect for you. Another option could be dynamic stretching sequences, to keep the body moving and to maintain your training routine/habit. There are sooooo many options. ** please feel free to message me if you need help with a program**

• Sign up for a Challenge. Challenges can be a great way to shake things up. They are great for motivation, and inspiration to just get moving again.  ** I have an 8 week challenge starting end of Winter so keep an eye out for that.**

• Make training social. Training Buddies can help you stay consistent,  motivated and accountable, ….. and …having someone to talk too and share your thoughts with will definitely help keep those Winter Blues at bay.

There are currently 72 days of Winter left, at the time of writing, and as strange as it may seem, I am excited about this pending Winter, because……. I am actually keen to try something different with my training, and my mindset.  It’s definitely time I went easier on my body (I can save the hectic stuff for the warmer months when I am fully charged), and going slower is definitely the message my body is giving me right now.

I’ve set an intention to eat less and rest more (in particular to go to bed earlier). I also intend to restructure my training program to incorporate more gentle dynamic stretching sequences and some shorter (20min max) resistance sessions. I am also planning to switch training into the early afternoon- just before that delicious sun goes down.

I’d love to hear what your intentions are, for your body, this Winter, so please comment below.

Let’s welcome in the Winter Season, and say “Hello” to that Elephant called “Winter Woes”, and love it for what it is.

Stay warm

Cheryl xx