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Combatting Holiday and Finals Stress Through Exercise…Is It Possible?

Her Campus Placeholder Avatar Nicole Cremer
Her Campus Placeholder Avatar Madeline Hunt
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UCLA chapter.

With the holiday season in full swing and the added stress of finals coming up, our lives seem to get extra busy this time of year!  Often times, our workouts are the first thing to go when we get caught up in a busy schedule.  In the midst of trying to do everything, exercise is just another thing on our seemingly never-ending “to do” lists. However, according to the Mayo Clinic and numerous other sources, exercise is one of the most important things you can do to take control of stress.

Let me guess, right now you are thinking that you have heard this information a million times and “I know exercise is good for me, but I am too busy to go workout at the gym for an hour.”  Well, here is some good news Bruins!  By simply being active, which does not necessarily mean going to the gym, you can benefit from boosted endorphins, a better mood and less anxiety.  Taking even five minutes to take a little time away from your everyday schedule can have big health benefits when it comes to reducing stress.  
HerCampus has a few ideas for you to squeeze in a little exercise into that every busy month, December!
 

  1. Follow this 15-minute strength training routine that you can do in your dorm, apartment, sorority house, or wherever!  That’s the best part about this routine; its fast, involves no equipment, and you can do it in your pajamas.  You owe yourself these 15 minutes two or three times a week to focus on the stress-reducing benefits that exercise provides!

 
Do 2-3 sets of 15 reps of each of the following exercises:
 

  • Push-ups
  • Planks
  • Tricep dips
  •  Lunges
  • 75 bicycle crunches

 

  1. If you already have a weekly exercise routine that you always stick to, use the same techniques as usual that keep you dedicated to it.  Maintaining your normal exercise regime will bring order and structure to this busy holiday and finals season.  However, if needed, substitute one of your typical workouts for the 15-minute strength training (see above) routine when necessary.  For example, if you normally workout for 30 minutes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, substitute Friday’s workout with this routine and do what you normally do on Monday and Wednesday. 

 

  1. As college students, we find ourselves doing a lot of walking.  We walk to and from class, into Westwood, to club meetings and more.  If you can’t find the time or energy to get a workout in, there are many things that you probably already do in your daily life that count as some form of exercise.  So just make sure to keep up walking to and from class and take the long way or stairs when possible…remember that each of these steps will add up!

 
 
http://www.self.com/fitness/blogs/freshfitnesstips/2011/11/your-lazy-thanksgiving-workout.html
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/exercise-and-stress/SR00036/NSECTIONGROUP=2

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Nicole Cremer is currently a sophomore at UCLA majoring in Neuroscience. She has a passion for journalism and loves being involved in a variety of extra-curricular activities, including doing research at the UCLA Brain Tumor institute, volunteering with Global Medical Brigades where she traveled to Ghana this past winter to provide health care to over 1,200 people, contributing to the Daily Bruin newspaper as a Video Reporter, and being a part of Gamma Phi Beta Sorority. Before becoming the Her Campus Campus Correspond for UCLA, she was a founding member of Her Campus UCLA and wrote a weekly health blog. In her spare time, Nicole enjoys exploring new restaurants and sites around Los Angeles, listening to country music, running (and training for half marathons…maybe a full one someday!), hiking, and spending as much time as she can at the beach!
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Madeline Hunt is a senior at UCLA majoring in Communication Studies with a minor in Spanish. Originally from the laidback beach-town of Santa Barbara, the California native finds the fast-paced nature and eccentricity of LA extremely exciting. Once more, she decided to expand her horizons when she studied abroad this past fall in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Madeline wants to pursue a career in the entertainment industry and is considering broadcast journalism and public relations as potential options. On campus, she is currently the Public Relations & Marketing Director for the student- run organization Fashion and Student Trends and an intern at E! News. She served as an entertainment reporter on UCLA’s accredited student newspaper, The Daily Bruin, under the video division and is a current member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. During her free time, she enjoys playing tennis, exercising, going to the beach, shopping (online shopping will be the death of her!), reading Glamour and Cosmo, eating Mexican food and sushi, spending time with her friends, practicing her Spanish, and satisfying her weakness for caffeine with Starbuck’s lattes.