by Michelle Wilkinson

Created on: November 10, 2009   Last Updated: December 12, 2009

The holidays can be one of the busiest times of year as you find yourself rushing around buying and wrapping presents, cleaning and decorating the house, preparing and cooking festive meals. You can quite easily find yourself overwhelmed by the pressure of it all, and the last thing on your mind is doing exercise. However, it is important to make time for yourself, and becoming more active is the perfect way to deal with stress and anxiety, so it is certainly worth your while making exercise more of a priority, especially during the holidays.

Winter, especially during the festive season, may not be the best time to start a hardcore training regime, as time constraints and poor weather conditions will make it extremely difficult for you to stick with it. However, whatever the time of year the weather should be no barrier to you increasing your fitness gradually; after all, it is not even as if you have to leave the house to get a workout. If you are prepared to spend a bit of cash on a piece of exercise equipment, such as an exercise bike, elliptical trainer or treadmill you can exercise without having to leave your own home.

You don't even need to spend that much money on equipment, though, as you could purchase a skipping rope or follow an exercise DVD or, if you feel confident, devise your own workout routine. It doesn't require any equipment to perform sit-ups, push-ups and pull-ups, while running up and down the stairs can be a good way of burning any extra energy you have.

Perhaps you feel that you don't have any energy, but doing exercise can actually remedy this, increasing the rate at which blood is pumped through your veins and helping you to feel more energised, alert, and positive. This is especially important when you're stressed out by the prospect of a change in your routine, as you wait for friends and family to arrive, or have to take a long trip to a relative's home.

Going for a run around the block, or taking half an hour for yourself to go for a walk can help you to relieve the frustration and anxiety you may be experiencing and help you to feel as if you're more in control. The holidays are supposed to be enjoyable, but it can be hard to relax when you feel under so much pressure, and so it helps to take time out for a breather, and what better way to relax than getting active and doing some exercise?

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