Maintaining Your Fitness Regimen During Winter

It?s a sad coincidence that many people kick off new fitness regimens in January, right when the weather starts to nosedive.? Commitments to finally start running every day or get to the gym at least three times a week are soon compromised by blistering cold and icy roads. Lofty goals get left behind in the nasty winter slush.

Get out there!

While it?s been several years since I began working out regularly, I still have trouble braving the hellish weather of upstate New York in order to get some arm curls and elliptical time in. Whether for the dangerous road conditions or the near Arctic chill, fitness goals seem to take the back seat to not wanting to die like Jack Nicholson in ?The Shining.?

If you?re serious about starting and/or maintaining a proper fitness regimen, falling prey to winter hibernation is out of the question. It?s easier (and a whole lot more comfortable) to sit in your well-heated house and watch ?Mad Men? in your PJ?s than it is to man up and brave the sub-zero temperatures. Taking an extended break from regular exercise because you can?t handle the weather will have detrimental effects on your overall fitness, bringing you back to square one sooner than you?d think.

Say you live in Valdez, Alaska (average yearly snow: 326.3″) and getting to the gym without taking a sleigh ride is an impossibility.? You?re really no worse off than regular gym-goers if you work out wisely and dress for the occasion. If you have a bench and know what the hell you?re doing, there?s no reason why you can?t get a full-body workout from the comfort of your home (no matter how bad fitness centers might want to hide this.) Whether you?re running on a treadmill, using kettlebells, or doing couch crunches, your house/apartment/buddy?s garage is a fitness center waiting to be.

If you find it difficult to work out indoors with your girlfriend doing yoga and/or your roommates playing beer pong, consider braving the frigid cold. Have you ever seen the training montage in ?Rocky IV?? You know, where Rocky gets all hardcore chopping down trees, throwing logs and climbing a mountain? While you don?t need to travel to Krasnoyarsk, Russia, you can get an amazing workout outside in seemingly deadly weather. Our bodies can withstand colder temperatures than you think. As long as you?re moving and properly clothed (layering is essential), there?s no reason why you can?t get some cardio and strength training outside, even if you live in Crested Butte, Colorado (Average yearly snow: 215.8″). All it takes is guts, proper planning and a little cash to spend on the proper gear.

Don?t sell yourself short this winter. Whether you?re a fitness noob or a chest press veteran, it?s essential you keep at your fitness routine during the year?s most brutal months. Indoors or outdoors, the winter months don?t have to mean a hiatus from working out. If you don?t want to end up looking like a bear, avoid hibernation. Be like Rocky and brave the cold. ::Cue cheesy montage music::