{"id":7200,"date":"2016-01-18T13:51:34","date_gmt":"2016-01-18T18:51:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/?p=7200"},"modified":"2015-12-22T14:23:47","modified_gmt":"2015-12-22T19:23:47","slug":"weathering-winter-staying-active-in-colder-months","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/2016\/01\/weathering-winter-staying-active-in-colder-months\/","title":{"rendered":"Weathering Winter – Staying Active in Colder Months"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Winter<\/a><\/p>\n

Personally, I’m not crazy about winter and it’s mostly because I dislike being cold.\u00a0 Even when there’s the slightest chill in\u00a0the air, I struggle to stay active and highly prefer\u00a0being snuggled up by the fire with a hot cup of tea and a good book.\u00a0 Unfortunately, however, all that inactivity can leave me feeling lethargic.\u00a0 Being active is an important part of living well and Blue Cross Blue Shield NC encourages preventive care <\/a>all year long.\u00a0 Below are a few ways to stay active this winter and keep yourself moving well into spring!<\/p>\n

Go Outside:\u00a0 <\/strong>This is my biggest problem.\u00a0 It’s cold out there and so warm in here.\u00a0 But I’ve often noticed my children will brave the great outdoors anyway, and usually come inside with rosier cheeks and a better attitude.\u00a0 Winter is a great time to grab a football or\u00a0a Frisbee and spend some time in the yard.\u00a0 Just being out of doors will get your blood pumping and you are more likely to be active once you aren’t as comfortable.\u00a0 Head outside\u00a0and you will\u00a0reap not only physical, but mental health benefits.<\/a><\/p>\n

Create Indoor Activity:\u00a0 <\/strong>Even indoors, my kids never stop moving.\u00a0 They are up and down the stairs, wrestling on the floor, making up games they can play right in the living room.\u00a0 As adults, we have to choose to be creative about our exercise.\u00a0 Body weight exercises like push-ups, sit ups and squats are some of the most effective exercises we can do<\/a>, with the least amount of strain on our bodies.\u00a0 Winter offers us the opportunity to get off the couch and get on the floor!\u00a0 Instead of sitting, do sit-ups!\u00a0 Walk up the stairs 25 times.\u00a0 Use your kitchen counter-tops as a place to do push-ups.\u00a0 You don’t have to join a gym to stay active and most of us have everything we need to add a little movement to our daily lives.<\/p>\n

Be Deliberate:\u00a0 <\/strong>Spring and summer just seem to invite activity, but not so much with winter.\u00a0 In the winter months, we have to be more deliberate about exercise.\u00a0 Whether it means joining the local YMCA or an indoor soccer league or whether it means purchasing an exercise DVD we use in our own living room, we’re going to have to decide it’s worth it.\u00a0 And it is!\u00a0 Exercise not only makes us feel better, it keeps us from added weight gain that can so easily happen during the colder months.<\/p>\n

Be Sensible:\u00a0 <\/strong>Because it’s cold outside, be smart!\u00a0 Bundle up if necessary and don’t stay out too long. <\/a> Even 20 minutes of good exercise can make a huge difference.\u00a0 Take the dog for a walk or a bike ride around the neighborhood.\u00a0 Then reward yourself with a nice hot cup of\u00a0 coffee!<\/p>\n

The winter months can feel long and dreary, but a little exercise can keep you feeling fit even on the coldest days.\u00a0 A\u00a0balanced diet and moderate exercise are an important part of\u00a0a healthy lifestyle\u00a0and Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina supports preventive care maintenance, offering preventive services covered at 100%.<\/a>\u00a0 This winter, stay active as much as you can!<\/p>\n

For more information on Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina<\/a> insurance coverage, please visit our website at www.nchealthplans.com <\/a>or call our toll free number 888-765-5400 and speak with one of our experienced and professional agents.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Personally, I’m not crazy about winter and it’s mostly because I dislike being cold.\u00a0 Even when there’s the slightest chill in\u00a0the air, I struggle to stay active and highly prefer\u00a0being snuggled up by the fire with a hot cup of tea and a good book.\u00a0 Unfortunately, however, all that inactivity can leave me feeling lethargic.\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[23,848,98,847],"class_list":["post-7200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bcbsnc-insurance","tag-bcbsnc","tag-outside-activities","tag-preventive-care","tag-winter-exercises"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7200"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7200\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7241,"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7200\/revisions\/7241"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nchealthplans.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}