If you think that becoming fitter and healthier requires a pricey gym membership and hours of lifting, cardio, and careful meal planning, you’d be wrong! While all of these things can be helpful, you can still realize a fitter and happier version of yourself through smaller (and fun) changes to your lifestyle. How you view your day-to-day activities can have a big impact on your health.
Dance! Go dancing with friends, have a dance party with your toddler, or just jam out by yourself in your living room. Dancing not only helps burn extra calories but boosts our mood and brightens our whole day. Take it up a notch: take a dance class or dance-based cardio class like zumba.
Like to garden? Great! A half hour of gardening can burn up to 200 calories. You'll also feel great when you see the results of your handiwork. Take it up a notch: try doing some heavier yard work like raking, mowing or weeding. Looking for even more? Take on a heavy duty landscaping project yourself rather than hiring a company to do the work (be sure a doctor clears you for vigorous exercise first).
Do simple exercises while waiting for something to happen. Have something in the microwave for 1 minute? See how many squats or jumping jacks you can do in that amount of time. Watching your favorite tv show? Do hopping drills or squats during the commercials.
Getting together with friends? Try meeting for something active rather than sitting down for food or drinks. Drinks are expensive, and I'm sure you always end up eating more junk than you would like. Instead, go for a group walk, bike ride, or a hike on a trail. It’s much quieter than going to a bar, anyway... you might actually get more of a chance to talk and catch up.
Just say no to elevators and escalators - pretend these don't exist. It can be a little more challenging to find the stairs in some buildings, but do your best to only use stairs to get where you're going. You'd be surprised how many extra calories you can burn this way!
Do something (anything!) on your lunch break. Taking a walk during your break is ideal, but even just getting away from your workstation and walking around the office is better for your physical and mental health than eating at your desk. Stepping away from the challenges of your job, even for only 10 minutes, can have a big impact on your stress levels and mental well-being (both of which have an effect on your overall health). If you can get in a brisk walk or lots of stairs, even better!
What fun ways can you come up with to make your lifestyle more fit in 2021? Leave them in the comments here, or hit us up on twitter, fb, or Instagram. We would love to hear your ideas and what has worked for you!