You can skip the gym this holiday season, and not wreck your progress. Here's how, according to a personal trainer.

• You can take a break from working out without losing your gains, according to science.
• Maintain your fitness by planning ahead with shorter, smart workouts, personal trainers say. 
• Easing up over the holidays can even make it easier to stay consistent with exercise long-term. 

Don't feel bad about sleeping off your Thanksgiving dinner, or opting for a late-night slice of pie instead of your typical gym session. You deserve a holiday break from your workout routine, and easing up on exercise won't erase your hard earned fitness gains, according to a personal trainer. 

It's a misconception that you have to take an all-or-nothing approach to fitness over the holidays, since you can dial back your workouts and still see results, Melissa Boyd, certified personal trainer and head coach at home fitness tech company Tempo, told Insider.

"There's a persistent idea that if I just do more, it will benefit me more, and it's just not true," she said. "You have to be flexible and in tune with yourself. You have to work hard, that's part of it, but the hard work shouldn't take away from other things in your life or you will stop.

Instead of overdoing it, aim to be gentle with yourself and plan ahead to spend less time in the gym and still make gains and maintain without missing out, Boyd said.  

Doing less in your workouts can pay off over time

One of the biggest mistakes people make in their fitness routine year-round is trying to do too much, which can backfire, causing you to burn out and then give up, according to Boyd. 

"People hibernate, panic [and overdo it], and then repeat. It's an all-or-nothing mentality," she said. 

Making progress is about continuing to challenge yourself a bit more week by week so your body can adapt and grow, a principle known as progressive overload. Taking on too much at once can set you up to fail, even if you hit a short-term goal, since your body can't sustain the effort for long. 

"You can only do so much. Your body will only let you burn so many calories before it starts taking away from your life." Boyd said. 

Instead, Boyd advises her clients to focus on incorporating small habits into their daily lives, changing one at a time.

In terms of exercise, that can mean that it's better to do a 20 minute workout that you can actually commit to a few times each week instead of a two-hour session that leaves you too sore to move for days. 

Pick the right exercises to shorten your gym sessions over the holidays

To get the most out of your time in the gym, start by being realistic about what you'll actually do, Boyd said. 

A good goal for many people is to exercise for 20 to 30 minutes at least twice a week, which is plenty of time to see progress, research suggests.  

For best results, include a combination of resistance training for strength as well as some cardio for overall health, Boyd said. 

Another great way to save time in a workout is to pick a smart warm-up that incorporates movements you'll be doing later, which helps activate the muscles without wasting any time, personal trainer Eva Peña previously told Insider. 

Finally, you can make your workouts even more efficient by picking compound exercises that work multiple muscle groups at once, and using muscle-building techniques like eccentric reps, trainers previously told insider. 

Maintaining fitness takes much less time than effort than building it 

You also don't need to prioritize your fitness year-round, and you can take a break for the holidays without missing out or losing your progress, Boyd said. 

"If you know your schedule is about to get crazy, maybe it's time to take a workout away and get more movement into your regular life," she said. 

For example, it's probably not realistic to hit the gym after a big holiday meal, but you can take a walk with your family before dessert, or enjoy some time playing with kids or pets outside between snacking on leftovers the next day. 

It's much easier to maintain muscle and fitness than it is to build it in the first place, research shows. A 2021 study that Boyd shares with clients found that people could maintain their fitness for months as little as one short gym session per week, if they kept the right intensity. 

Focusing on maintenance can free up more time to enjoy your life, and then get back into making more progress when you're ready, she said. 

"You can cut down your workouts and you'll stay where you are. It's not forever, it's just for a little while."