It would be hard to find someone who's not overindulged in one way or another recently. No matter how you celebrate the many events of December at some stage we all generally overeat, over drink, over stress and under sleep – just to name a few!

Often in the days following our overindulgences we hit the gym hard or run a little longer etc just to make up for it - penance for their sins people tell me. Sometimes I want to do it too - just to get away from people or have a bit of "me" time. But it's often the worst thing you can do to your body.

Drinking just a few extra glasses of wine, beer or sprits in a night without allowing adequate recovery time in between can put a lot of stress on our bodies, often leading to feeling rundown, cranky, flat or catching a nagging cold or cough which you can't seem to shake. Then add a hard workout on top of that and you can put our self in serious danger. At the least it’s going to be a blow to your ego when you can't lift the same weights or run the same distances, but I have heard of cases recently where people have suffered heart problems and died after drinking the night before and hitting the gym hard to burn it off.

Don’t get me wrong, exercise is an important ingredient to a healthy body, especially this time of year we need to factor regular exercise in to our routine and maintain a healthy lifestyle. But do give yourself some time-out over the holiday season. Still go to the gym, head out for that run, cycle or what ever you prefer but if you're been overindulging the night (or nights!) before just shave a bit of time off your workout, cut a mile or so off the distance or just do it slower. Stop if you feel dizzy or unwell and most of all listen to your body. At the end of the day our bodies will win, if we look after them they will look after us.

Once all the parting is over slowly bring yourself back to your normal fitness routine and just see how your body thanks you. The proof will be in your results.

Most of all see the new year in healthy refreshed and ready to go!