All of us are short on time. There’s so much to do and very little time to do it. Life is fast paced and without proper time management, you end up engaging in endless planning and accomplish very little with your life.
With our days packed with activities from morning till night, it is very difficult to become active by exercising regularly. This does, however, not mean that it can’t be done. It is possible to be active only if you prioritize exercise and put it high on your list amongst the most important things that need to be done for the day.
Gym or No Gym?
Having a gym membership or buying expensive exercise equipment is not a pre-requisite for incorporating fitness into your lives. In fact, you can become active and fit with little equipment to none at all. The choices are endless. You’re only limited by your own imagination.
Below are handy tips to help you become active even when your schedule is tight:
Walk often
How many steps do you walk per day? Walking is the easiest and most accessible form of exercise for most people regardless of their fitness levels. There’s a correlation between the number of steps you walk per day and your weight. The lower the steps, the higher your weight. Parking your car a few blocks from your office, taking a 20-30 minutes’ walk every evening around your neighborhood after dinner will aid digestion, and keep unnecessary weight gain in check.
Do your own chores
Outsourcing someone to do each and every little chore in your house is a recipe for putting on weight. Yes, it will release you to focus on more important tasks, but if the only physical activity you do is flipping through channels on the TV, then you are in for a rude awakening.
Increase the level of your physical activity by doing your own laundry once in a while, cleaning your house, car, or even mowing the lawn. These activities will help you burn calories and will accumulate to make your healthier long term.
Take the stairs
If you are in good health, there is no reason to scramble for the elevator your workplace. Take the stairs and in between the day, find a reason to go down and up the stairs at least three to four times.
These short up and down intervals will leave you breathless but will strengthen your cardiovascular system, tone your legs and increase your overall fitness.
Bike or walk to work
If your workstation is 10-20 minutes away, you can easily walk or ride a bike to work. Why waste valuable time in traffic for a distance that would take you less time walking?
Play a sport
If structured exercise is not your thing, there are lots of options you can take. Take up a sport that you enjoy and try getting good at it. You’ll be focused on learning the sport, and therefore you’ll become fit without the feeling of the actual workout.
Pick a sport and maintain a regular routine of play at least twice a week. This can be squash, tennis, soccer, volleyball, badminton and many others.
- Play with your kids. Kids grow fast and that stage can easily pass by without taking the time to enjoy these precious moments. Though daily demands leave no play time with your kids, set aside a day a week to run around with them. They’ll leave you gasping for your breath but you will get a good workout. If you can’t keep up with them, it shows you’ve been slacking on prioritizing exercise in your life.
- Take up a new form of exercise. Learn dancing, boxing or join a regular aerobics class. The energy in these classes will keep you motivated, help you stay in shape and relieve stress. Choose an activity you can stick to long-term to reap its maximum benefits.
- Find a friend or workout buddy. A training partner can keep you focused on your fitness goals even on those days you lack the will to leave your warm bed. A good workout buddy will keep you accountable and can make exercise fun and easy to stick to. It’s however important to look for a partner with similar goals and one whom you get along with well.
- Join a gym. If you decide to join a gym, choose an activity that you love and make it a regular part of your day. Results don’t just come by signing up for a gym membership. You can also hire a trainer to give you proper guidance and a strong fitness foundation. This is especially important if you’re just starting out. The trainer will teach you good form and technique. Doing this will greatly improve the chances of reaching your fitness goals faster than training on your own.
All kinds of physical activities are beneficial to your overall well-being. It’s therefore upon you to find out which one works best for you. If you are sedentary, get active because such a lifestyle will definitely come back to haunt you later.
Your health and fitness are in your hands. Never let a day go by without elevating your heart rate through some form of physical activity. You can also do structured exercise for at least 20 -30 minutes per day.
I hope these tips will give you the last inch of motivation you need to become active.
Which other tips have you used to incorporate exercise in your daily life? Share your thoughts.
