Amid holiday stress, take a minute to stretch

Vicky Hallett, one of the Post's MisFit columnists, is The Checkup's guest blogger today. 'Fess up: The only time you broke a sweat in the last few weeks involved rushing toward a buffet table. But while it's understandable that your holiday schedule has kept you from focusing on fitness, that doesn't make it OK -- even if you do have grand plans to return to the gym right after nursing that New Year's hangover. Beyond the basic benefit of warding off a Santa-sized belly, exercise has been shown to boost your energy (critical for party-hopping endurance), perk up your mood (thus making spirits bright) and help you sleep (to enjoy those visions of sugar plums). Most importantly, it can help relieve stress, which, like fruitcake, is available in abundance this time of year.