Exercise is defined as “activity requiring physical effort, carried out to sustain or improve health and fitness”, but most people narrow that definition down to only a few kinds of activity, which you do in only a few kinds of places. The truth is, exercise doesn’t have to mean running on a treadmill or jogging along the pavement; it can be anything that gets you moving and increases your heart rate.
Our best tip when it comes to motivating yourself to exercise, and improving your fitness? Find something you really love doing, and make sure you do it (at least) a few times a week.
Maybe you really love dancing while you vacuum the house – if you spend half an hour per day dancing with your vacuum cleaner, you’re burning 200 calories a session and improving your muscle tone as you stretch into those tight corners behind your couch. Maybe you love to garden; walking around your patch of land, weeding and sowing is a great way to get moving.
If you haven’t found your favorite way to get out and moving yet, that’s a good exercise challenge in itself: pick a range of things that you think you might enjoy, and try them all until you land on something great. Hooping is an increasingly popular form of exercise (and a really great workout) – if you loved your hula hoop as a kid, you might find you love it just as much as an adult. There’s some great spots around town to kayak, and hire is relatively inexpensive if you don’t want to commit to buying one yet. There’s some great exercise games for various gaming consoles, which again, you can hire relatively cheaply if you want to try it out before you commit to buying (thank goodness video stores still exist!). If you’re a Harry Potter fan, you can even join a local Quidditch league (spoiler, the brooms can’t actually fly…but you will have a lot of fun).
That’s what it comes down to: finding something fun that you love to do. If exercise feels like a chore, you’ll avoid it or make excuses – if it feels like happiness, you’ll make it a priority.
