Stay active by challenging yourself to 12 days of exercise to Christmas!

With this busy holiday season, I am so thankful to be able to spend quality time with family and friends. I am fortunate that I continue to exercise through this hectic season. It not only helps me stay on my weight, it also helps me deal with the stress that comes with this season. Many people stop exercising or wait until the new year to start exercising,

So try this — from now until Christmas, plan to get at least 12 workouts in. That is three workouts a week for four weeks, if you start after Thanksgiving, that’s five weeks to get them in if you start now! Doable right? So what can you do?

Try to get at least one hour three times a week. It can be in two sessions of 30 minutes if that works better.

It can be as easy as walking out your door for a stroll through the neighborhood. Rowan County has a slew of beautiful parks with gorgeous trails to walk or run on.

And yes, of course we have the YMCA! We love to keep you busy with our pools, basketball courts, pickleball, racquetball, indoor track, classes on land and in the water and our fitness center.

So besides keeping you from gaining unwanted holiday weight and stress relief, exercising can reduce symptoms with seasonal depression due to the shorter and colder days. An exercise routine will also help you stay more structured by making sure you don’t overdo the calories but also get enough sleep and prioritize the demands which come with this exciting holiday season.

Also knowing how many calories you are eating from holiday foods keeps me from overindulging in them.

This is a pretty conservative holiday meal, and it can make a big difference when using butter, lard, extra topping, different desserts, etc.

• 4 ounces of roast turkey, light and dark meat — size of a smartphone and about 216 calories   

• ¾ cup mashed potatoes — size of a tennis ball and about 158 calories

• ½ cup of homemade gravy — half a baseball and about 62 calories

• ½ cup of sweet potato casserole — half a baseball and about 210 calories

• 1 cup of green bean casserole with crispy onion topping — size of a baseball and about 227 calories

• 1 ounce roll with 1 tsp butter — computer mouse-size bun with thumb tip of butter and about 210 calories

• 1/8 of a 9-inch pumpkin pie — pair of thin socks and about 316 calories

Totaling 1,399 calories (just for one meal!) Walking 10,000 steps (about 5 miles) burns 300-400 calories on average. So to burn off this pretty conservative holiday meal, you need to walk around 35,000 steps. Should you eat? Absolutely! Be mindful what goes into your mouth and what is takes to burn it off. It truly helps me!

So plan your workouts, get at least 12 of them in from now until Christmas. Be aware what goes in your mouth, prioritize your time and most of all enjoy your family and friends to the fullest!

Ester H. Marsh is director of healthy living at the J.F. Hurley Family YMCA.