This is the last bonus episode in my Holiday bonus series.

You can download all 5 Ways to Beat Holiday Stress at gotchamama.com/holidaystress.

The fourth way to have a stress free and more peaceful holiday season is to move your body and take care of your physical body.

The interview episodes in December are about taking care of your physical body through healthy eating habits and mindset.

So if you haven’t, I encourage you to check out episode 72 and 73.

Hollan in episode 72 is a Vegan chef and she has some amazing and beautiful holiday recipes free on her website right now – highly recommended her recipes!

I also want to add that in addition to creating healthy eating habits, it’s going to help you with your stress and anxiety if you just move your body every day.

Now, I’m not saying you have to buy a Peloton and sweat your life away every morning (but by all means do it if it’s your thing!).

Moving your body can be the first area that gets put on the back burner when things get busy or stressful, especially for moms, right? I know it is for me, unfortunately.

There is absolutely no denying all the volumes and volumes of research that show how exercise helps relieve stress.

So even when you don’t feel like you have time to go for a walk, you’ll probably get more accomplished after you take that 20-minute walk or 15-minute yoga class, or whatever your speed is, than to try to push through the stress to get things done.

Dance, walk, run, bike, hike, do yoga, or Boxing, or hey if Peloton IS your thing – you get it done!

The key here is that you don’t need to schedule an hour long sweat session to see positive results with your stress.

Moving a little every day is better than moving a lot once a week – or so the research says.

This is a lot like scheduling peace from the first bonus episode. Make sure you involve whoever will watch your kids if you are going to move your body ‘solo’ so they can plan ahead too.

Put it on your calendar. Schedule intentional time to move your body. It could be walking the dog, kicking the ball outside with your kids, doing a 15-minute online class while the baby naps (and your older child plays on the i-pad).

Put it on your calendar and make it happen!

And if you miss a day, don’t get down on yourself.

Life happens, get back out there .

Make it fun.

Do something you like to do. If it’s not fun, you’re not going to want to do it.

My husband hates working out. But he likes to play racketball – which is an amazing full body and cardio workout.

So don’t make it feel like a chore.

As I close this episode that releases Christmas day I want to give you some encouragement…

Don’t beat yourself up.

When things don’t go the way you thought they would this holiday season, give yourself some grace and compassion. This year has been hard friend.

And nobody is perfect. It’s impossible for anyone to be literally perfect. We can’t be.

The whole reason for celebrating the miracle of Christmas is that a Savior came to be a perfect sacrifice for our sins as broken, imperfect people.

Because God STILL loves us, even in our stress and anxiety.

So give yourself a break and stand in awe and reverence of what the season is all about.

Enjoy the gifts of time, talents, opportunities, people, and finances that you have right in front of you now.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Links & Resources

5 Simple Ways to Beat Holiday Stress FREE GUIDE

Episode 72: “Easy and Delicious Vegan Meals the Whole Family Will Love with Hollan”

Episode 73: “From Overweight and Depressed to Fit and Confident with Martha VanCamp”

More about the Gotcha Mama Podcast:

The Gotcha Mama Podcast is where we share honest stories of the joys and struggles of mom-life with young kids.

Each week host Amanda Bennett interviews a mom about topics ranging from awkwardly making mom friends, to chasing BIG dreams and finding purpose, to managing crippling anxiety and depression. You’ll hear stories from moms like you with the purpose to inspire, encourage, and entertain you.

We understand that motherhood can be lonely and make you doubt yourself. The Gotcha Mama Podcast exists to let you know that you are not alone as a busy mom of young kiddos, no matter what you’re dealing with.

The show is all about tearing down our insecurities as moms by honestly sharing our stories and a little of what we’ve learned along the way.

We believe it’s a whole lot better riding the rollercoaster of motherhood together!

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