Getting and staying fit is and always will be a long-term commitment. With that being said, this doesn’t mean that there aren’t ways to make working out easier. Here are a few ways to hack your way around staying fit:
1. Gamify your workouts
Use apps to make this as fun as possible! There are plenty of great apps out there – Fitocracy, for instance – but finding ways to make staying fit, fun, and something you want to actually do is a great way to keep yourself motivated.
2. Keep a gym bag in your car or at work
Because why shouldn’t you? You don’t want to go home to get your workout clothes but end up lying in bed or lazing about in front of your TV watching re-runs of your favorite TV show.
3. Don’t sit down to watch TV
If you do end up in front of your TV though – find something to do instead of just sitting still! From using a skipping rope to a hula-hoop, from using weights while you’re sitting down to even dancing – the options are endless!
4. Find an activity that involves a lot of physical activity
If you’re not the sort that likes running on a treadmill or going to the gym – find something that you might like that can keeps you sweating – drumming or even long-distance biking, for example!
5. Incentivize working out
If you’re not the sort that likes to workout at a gym – use that money saved on a gym membership to pay yourself every time you exercise, and use those savings to buy yourself something nice every other month. Or you could even earn money for charity by working out using apps like Charity Miles – find the right incentive to get yourself pumped about working out!
6. Find a friend to get fit with
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We can’t stress how important finding support from friends and family for your fitness plan is. Finding someone to get fit with is even better – it helps you stay encouraged to keep working out, and also keeps you accountable in terms of staying on track with your schedule.
7. Go hard… and then rest easy
Also well known as HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training), this strategy of working out involves short intensive workouts with recovery periods. This could apply to your overall schedule (don’t do two hard workouts in a row) but can also apply to how you workout as well. For instance, if you’re doing cardio on an exercise bike, switching between biking hard and biking slow is better than biking medium for the entire duration of your workout.
8. Find ways to include fitness in boring activities
This ties into our previous point about not sitting down while watching TV – and if anything could be applied to everything you do in your life. Waiting on your toast in the morning? Do a bunch of sit-ups. In the shower? Do some stretching.
9. Sleep in your gymwear (as long as they’re clean, of course!)
Are you planning on waking up really early to get a workout in before you head to work? Sleeping in your gym clothes could help you save precious minutes in the morning!
