The average holiday dinner consists of a lot of food! And most of that food is probably covered in butter and is high in calories. From crusted ham to sugar cookies, there’s no way to avoid these delicious treats.
But what can you do to burn down that unhealthy Christmas treat if you overindulge? Instead of spending hours at the gym no one wants to do on Christmas, opt for fun family-friendly fitness activities.
1. Host a game night
If you own a video game console like the Nintendo Switch, hosting a fun game night with your loved ones is a great idea. There are a lot of fitness games that allow you to burn some serious calories while having a great time.One of the best fitness him games is his Fitness Boxing 2 which combines both fitness and rhythm.
Fitness Boxing 2 is a game about dodging, ducking and jabbing while enjoying your favorite tunes. The object of the game is to perform different boxing moves depending on the symbols that pop up.
But don’t forget that you also have to match the beat of the song. Fitness Boxing 2 also has a 2 player mode where you can throw punches side by side with another player.
2. Go on a holiday light tour
Taking a walk to see the Christmas lights doesn’t mean you need to book a luxury tour. Just going out with friends and family to see the beautiful festival lights in and around town is enough to burn those pesky calories.
Why not record your steps with a pedometer app? A basic pedometer app, like Leap Fitness’ Step Counter app, is free to download and use.
What’s more, this mobile app tracks your steps automatically, so you don’t have to do anything yourself. Just take your phone with you and the step counter will report your total steps, calories, time and distance. Plus, the more you walk, the more fun achievements you unlock.
download: Step counter for iOS | Android (free, in-app purchases available)
3. Go ice skating
Ice skating is not only a fun activity, but also an effective exercise. In fact, ice skating has some great benefits such as better balance, better posture, and stronger muscles.
After Christmas dinner, gather your loved ones for an ice skating session instead of watching TV on the couch. To easily find a skating rink near you, visit the TripAdvisor website or his mobile app.
Enable access to your location and type ‘ice skating’ into the search bar to find spots near you. Alternatively, you can enter your current location to find such ice skating rinks. Each ice skating location has photos, reviews, maps, and information about the area.
download: TripAdvisor for iOS | Android (Free)
4. Enjoy retail therapy
Shopping is good for your heart, and it’s good for your waistline. So instead of fiddling with the computer and doing his shopping online after Christmas dinner, take the family outside for some real physical retail therapy. The Tiendeo app is the perfect tool to help you find various specials and deals from your favorite local stores.
To explore the app and find the best prices in your city, you can browse different catalogs based on your chosen category or store. You can also share your location and use the map feature to find all the stores and shopping centers closest to you.
With the Tiendeo app, my list tab. Add the items you need to purchase, view offers for those specific items, and tick off when purchasing.
download: Tiendeo for iOS | Android (Free)
5. Bake together to create a celebratory treat
Spending time in the kitchen may seem like the exact opposite of what you should do after enjoying Christmas dinner. However, cooking and baking, which includes prep work, dishwashing, and general kitchen activities, can help burn a surprising amount of calories.
Use the Tasty app or Tasty website to access many delicious and free celebration baking recipes. Tasty is known for its huge collection of recipes, so if you have a specific recipe in mind, type it into the search bar.
Not sure what you want to bake? Tasty lets you filter recipes based on difficulty, meal type, occasion, meal, dish, and cooking style. For example, with multiple filters, he can find what he’s looking for, such as desserts that took him less than an hour to make, or vegan desserts for special occasions.
download: Tasty for iOS | Android (Free)
6. Clean up the house
There’s no getting around the fact that we have to clean up at the end of Christmas. But did you know that doing regular chores can give you a great workout? Putting on is physically intensive work for the arm muscles.
Sweepy is a dedicated home cleaning mobile app that you can use to get your family involved in cleaning. To get started, add each room in your house, including the kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, and other rooms.
Then add the chores that need to be done in each room such as washing, vacuuming, dusting, tidying up, sweeping, and general tidying up. The best thing about this app is that you can connect with the whole family and participate in friendly cleaning competitions.
download: Sweepy for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
You don’t have to hit the gym to undo your Christmas treats
Once you’ve eaten nearly everything on the dining room table, exercise is probably on the back of your mind. However, the festive season is not the time to go do it yourself and pack on those extra pounds.
Luckily, you don’t have to hit the gym or jog for hours to burn extra calories. From ice skating and games to surprisingly intensive activities like household chores, these fun, family-friendly activities will help you fight calories.