Rainy Season Fitness Tips
Every place in the world has its own version of an offseason. In the Northern states, Europe and Canada, when the snow falls, “staying in” is probably the best rationale for avoiding the daily regimen.
New Mexico and Arizona all find caves to hide in when the summer oven cranks into the triple digits, and even in Los Angeles, there is a version of winter that is strong enough to chase Angelino’s back into their overpriced homes.
Let’s face it, it seems like many of us wake up every day just to look for excuses to avoid the things we should be doing, like finding the excuse is the real accomplishment. “I was going to eat right, but we only had donuts in the house, and it was raining out.” Win!
The reality of chores is that we are going to first search for ways out of them, and then search for ways to compromise, and then maybe when all else fails, just do them. Here are three simple things we can do to avoid losing ground on our health during the rainiest time of year in Costa Rica.
Don’t compromise your food weaknesses; keep your home stocked with the right food. By “right food,” we mean vegetables, fruit, and lean meats. Having grab-snacks like chips, cookies, cakes, and crackers are not going to help you with feeling satiated or healthy.
If you are suffering from a case of cabin-fever, going for a banana is going to better supply your body with what it is looking for than a cupcake, and while this is not news, keeping your home free of the option may be a new idea. I can’t have these things in my home because I know I will pick at them.
Fill your time with activities. This is a great way to combine efforts with the first suggestion as one idea: look online for healthy snacks you can make and then make them – two birds, one stone.
The morning time right now, for many of us, is occupied with everything we have to get done before the sky opens up: gardening, repairing washout damage, getting the kids to school, meditation, but what about after 11:00 AM?
If Netflix or FoxLife come to mind, then may I suggest something more active? How about Yoga or stretching while you watch the same “House Hunters” for the 500th time? I am currently collecting fabric to make a rug from instructions I found online.
The beauty of extra time is we can choose to fill it with whatever we want, and in this modern day our resources are unlimited, mere keystrokes away.
Just get wet. Before leaving LA, when I asked my friend from Costa Rica what he thought about raincoats, having lived in Costa Rica, he replied, “I never used them.” To him, he was going to get wet sometimes and have to dry off other times. Rain and wetness here are just part of life. Really, when is the last time you took a walk in the rain?
You can wear a raincoat, I won’t make fun, I have a hooded North Face shell that goes with me everywhere here.
Choose a route that is not to treacherous, put on your walking boots, and enjoy a private nature walk while nature is at her best. Bring your camera in a clear plastic bag and get shots you never take. When you are done you can go home and eat the snacks you made yesterday.
In a matter of weeks we will all be hanging up Halloween costumes, planning Thanksgiving meals, and enjoying a bit of a break from the worst of the rainy season.
The next day it will be New Years eve and we could all be sitting with around wishing we had done something sooner to get ahead of the belt-notch increase we have gained, or we could be out enjoying the Costa Rican summer, looking and feeling good while everybody else works on tired resolutions because they let the rain chase them indoors.
Personally I plan to be on the beach, come December, but first I have to get rid of this box of donuts in the kitchen, and watch the final episode of Breaking Bad.
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Written by VIP Member Damon Mitchell who spent over 10 years in the fitness industry before he moved to Costa Rica in search of a better work/life balance. Currently he lives in Playa Tamarindo in Guanacaste, where he and his wife Cristina are owner-operators of Pizza&Co pizza express, located in Plaza Conchal 2.
Daily, Damon runs on the beach or works out at Tamarindo Fitness Center, keeping fit by doing a combination of old-school weight lifting, calisthenics, TRX, stability ball work and just about anything he can do to create new and fun exercises. Most recently he is learning to surf.
You can email Damon here if there is anything specific about staying fit and healthy in Costa Rica you would like him to cover in his next article.
Rainy Season Fitness Tips
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Andrew Makarik
to@welovecostarica.comAndrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.
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