I love going home (to NS) for Christmas. The house is full - 7 kids running in every direction, 9 orso adults, lots of food, and the feeling of 'home'.
So why does this make me faster? Well, imagine a few feet of snow, kids from the age of 2 to 16, loads of sleds to choose from and a great sledding hill ... and your daily workout quickly becomes sledding! Now, with kids it's not just the act of sliding down and walking up ... but of waling up while towing one or two kids behind you yelling 'faster! faster!'. Now you are getting the picture! It's a cardio and strength workout all in one ... and if you try to talk or get into a snowball fight on the way up the hill ... well, it makes it that much more fun.
Then of course there is playing alphabet soup, hunting dragons, and generally keeping up with the neices/nephews! Add to that the fantastic home-grown food (in massive quantities) and the relaxation of being home, and when I got back on the bike - i could push more on my intervals!
I highly reccomend this specialized Christmas training program! It's good for the body and soul :)
Happy holidays all!