10 Easy Ways To Add Exercise To Your Life

Last week I talked about eating healthy. I started out with some quick tips and followed up with a more detailed plan. This week, we’re going to do the same for exercise, the second vital component of a healthy life. Many of these tips can be found in older posts, but I thought it may be useful to repeat them for new readers, old readers who may have missed them and for all you people like me who need repetition for something to sink in.

Here we go!

Walk - It’s the best exercise there is.  Low impact and can be done anywhere with very little equipment.  Get in a 30 minute walk every day.  It’s the easiest way to start getting in shape plus the time you spend walking can still be very productive.  I spend my walks on conference calls or thinking of solutions to problems I am currently working on.

Go Dancing – For you couples who complain that you never have time to exercise, how about going dancing?  It’s a fun activity that can be a great date night.  Plus it’s great exercise.  Hint for you single men, there are ALWAYS women looking for partners at dance classes!

Join A Sports League – Another good way to replace your currently inactive social life with something that burns a few more calories.  Get some friends and join a local sports league or start one on your own.  It doesn’t have to be complicated.  A few friends and a frisbee make for an excellent Saturday morning workout.

Morning Workout – Roll out of bed and onto the floor.  A quick 10 push ups, 10 crunches, 10 lunges, 10 toe touches and 10 squats are a great way to start your morning.  Total time spend is less than 2 minutes but your body will thank you for every second.  Do these fast but with good form.

Evening Workout – The counterpart to what you did in the morning.  You can use the same exercise or substitute in something else.  This time do things slow and easy.  Remember, you’re getting ready for bed, not a marathon.

Work On The Yard – Cancel those gardners that come by every week and start working on your own yard.  You’ll save money and get a great workout.  Pruning, mowing and planting are all good physical activities that keep the body moving.

Walk The Dog – Commit to taking the dog for a long walk at least once a day, preferably in the morning.  Your pooch will thank you and so will your body.  By the way, for you dog owners, pets can get overweight too.  Dogs need walking and exercise, so please make sure you take care of them.  Unlike you, they have no choice in how much exercise they get and are completely dependent on you.

Join A Gym – Yes, I know, gyms are scary smelly places filled with people who use steroids and grunt a lot.  Wait no, that’s actually a whole lot of crap and has no connection to reality.  Gyms, at least the good ones, are clean, safe places filled with people who are friendly and willing to help.  And yes, they are still the most cost efficient places to get a good and complete workout. You can read more in this series of articles on how to find a good gym.

Start A Workout Routine – Sure, with enough physical activity in day to day life, you really don’t need a workout routine, but for many of us with desk jobs, this is the best way to get a day’s worth of exercise in a short amount of time. You don’t need to workout every day for two hours or more, but plan on spending 3 to 4 days a week, 45 minutes a day. Read more in this series of articles about designing a good workout.

Embrace Movement – What the heck does that mean?  It means most of us go to amazing lengths to avoid any kind of physical activity.  I can’t tell you how often I see people cruising for a parking spot at the gym parking lot.  They spend the extra minute just to get a space that’s 20feet closer.  Are you serious?  You’re at the gym to workout and you spend time trying to minimize your walk in?!??  Just stop.  Stop avoiding movement.  Stop taking the elevator when there are stairs.  Stop using a shopping cart when you are only getting two small items.  Stop driving to the store when you can walk.  Stop having sex in bed when you can do it standing up in the living room.  Err… ok, maybe that last one was going a bit too far, but do you see what I mean?  We spend so much time trying to avoid physical activity and then we wonder why we’re out of shape.  You get one life folks and one body.  Use it or lose it and I mean that quite literally.

###

If you have any more tips and tricks to increase your physical activity level, please add them in the comments or send me an email and I’ll add them to the post.  In the meantime, I’m going to go take a walk!