Fun Ways to Get Exercise

Exercise is important for our health. Not only does it help you sleep better, it might even help you live longer. Plus, exercise can help you lose weight, thereby avoiding a lot of weight-related health issues. There’s every reason to exercise when it comes to our health. The only problem is, we don’t really want to do it.

Exercising can be the most frustrating part of our daily routine–the thing we drag our heels about the most. We could exercise right after waking up, or after a long work day, but neither time slot fills us with enthusiasm. If you’re having a hard time staying committed to an exercise routine, consider one of the following options. Each one is fun, and might be easier to commit to than a daily jog.

Go Hiking

Hiking might not seem like good cardio, but a few steep hills and you’ll feel differently. Hiking is an excellent way to get exercise, and the fresh air and beautiful scenery make the exercise seem like recreation, not work. Hiking is best experienced with friends, especially if you’re traversing dangerous terrain, so grab a pal or two and commit to a tri-weekly hike. When you hike, you use your leg muscles and increase your heart rate, and if you carry a backpack, you intensify your workout.

Go Surfing

Surfing is an excellent way to get exercise, and it’s an undeniably fun and thrilling hobby. When you surf, you use your muscles, your mind, and you get your heart rate up every time you fall and have to start over. You could make it a goal to someday surf Hawaii, and as long as you live near waves, surfing is the perfect exercise routine. It’s true that some workout options, like surfing, are limited to where you live, so if you’ve got waves, you should take advantage of them.

Go Swimming

While not everyone can surf for their weekly exercise, everyone can swim. You might live nowhere near a natural body of water. The ground might be frozen solid. No matter what, you can always go swimming at a local pool. A few laps back and forth across the pool and you’ve gotten great cardio and used muscles all over your body. You could even investigate swimming pool construction for your home and be assured of a workout whenever you wanted it.

Take a Dance Class

Dancing is a great workout. Some people do ballet barre every week to tone their muscles and get their exercise, even if they have no dance experience. You can also learn Irish dancing, swing dancing, or African dancing to get your cardio workout. You can choose something fast-paced and good for your heart, or slow and good for toning your muscles. There are plenty of different dance options out there, and a class might help you stay on track with your routine.  

Take a Walking Tour

All around you, there are places to explore. Whether you’re at home or on vacation, you can take a walking tour. You might want to visit a historical site, a city, or a scenic view. As you explore, you’ll certainly be getting exercise. Whether you find places to see on Florida’s Gulf Coast or visit Monroeville, AL, choose to walk instead of drive. Not only is it better for the environment and easier on your pocketbook, it’s a great way to get exercise. You can enjoy the shops, views, architecture, and more, all by spending a few hours on your feet.

Take a Martial Arts Class

There are several different kinds of martial arts. You’ve probably heard of taekwondo, karate, and jiu-jitsu. You might have even taken a class or two in high school. As an adult, however, martial arts are more than a good after-school activity. They’re an excellent way to get your weekly exercise. In a martial arts class, you’d hone your muscles, get your cardio, and leave with a great workout you enjoyed.

Get a Dog

Sometimes, we don’t go walking or running because we don’t feel like it. Anyone with a dog, however, knows that they don’t have that option. Unless they want to deal with an energy ball all night long, they have to take their dog out for some exercise. If you invest in a furry friend, you can enjoy all the benefits of owning a dog, including the exercise you have to get every day. Sometimes you need a friend to force you outside, and a dog could be that friend.  Getting your pet insured with Bivvy, an affordable pet insurance, will help cover your pet’s care related to accidents that might happen while you are outside for an exercise with your pet.

Go Sledding

Not every fun exercise routine is available, depending on where you live. Even those who live in winter climates won’t get to use this routine more than a few months every year. It’s worth taking advantage of while you have it, though, since sledding is both fun and a rigorous workout. By the time you climb all the way back up the hill a few times, you’ll be set for the day. It doesn’t have to be kids only who enjoy that rush of whipping down the hill in an inner tube or sled.

Go Biking

Biking is an excellent workout, and for many, it’s much more enjoyable than jogging or using the treadmill. A good bike will feel like very little effort, and you’ll travel much further distances on a bike than when running. By the end of your workout, you’ll have engaged your leg muscles and gotten your heart rate up, and you’ll have seen the sights of where you live. PSA announcement: don’t bike without a helmet. But do bike for enjoyable exercise. An excellent way to ramp up your biking workout is to try cycling HIIT (high-intensity interval training) with power meter pedals to set the right pace. HIIT allows you to get faster results if you want to increase your speed and power, improve your fitness, or lose a couple of pounds.

Go Rock Climbing

Rock climbing is a favorite recreation of many people, usually reserved for a few days in the summer. A membership to a gym, though, can make climbing a routine activity, as long as they have a rock climbing wall. You could end up rock climbing any night of the week! The challenge and full body engagement of rock climbing make it appealing, and the high cost of climbing would even out if your gym membership covered it.

Exercise certainly isn’t the easiest task to schedule into your busy and tiring day. But if you find an activity you genuinely enjoy, you’ll discover that this healthy habit actually energizes and inspires you. Soon enough you’ll be stealing hours here and there from less healthy pursuits–like TV watching or social media scrolling–just to get out on the waves, hit the trail, or run around the park with your canine pal!