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How to Reinvigorate Your Exercise Routine

Fitness

How to Reinvigorate Your Exercise Routine

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We’re only human, which means that, for many of us exercise comes in phases. If you had a good routine going but have felt the couch calling more often than not recently, you might need to jump-start your fitness regimen. Think less couch potato and more treadmill turnip. The benefits of exercise have been proven time and time again. From better sleep to weight control, improved mood and (yes!) better sex lives, it really does help our lives in a lot many ways.

Need some inspiration?

Read on for tips on how to reinvigorate your exercise routine.

Contents

Find a Workout You Love

You might have heard that weightlifting is the way to go or that yoga will change your life, but the best workout for you is simply one that gets you up and at ‘em. If you think lifting massive amounts of weight next to other sweaty humans is the only option, you’re doing it wrong. These days, the possibilities for workouts are endless.

pilates

From Pilates and Orange Theory to Bikram Yoga and Zumba, there literally is something for everyone. Of course, most fitness experts will tell you that you don’t want to do the same thing day in and day out, as your body will get used to it. But you do want to ensure you find a few workouts that you enjoy, as that will increase the likelihood that you’ll actually do it. That in and of itself is the name of the game.

Dress to Impress

You just gasped in horror, we get it. It sounds silly to dress to impress when working out. However, there really is something to the fact that you are more likely to work out and, in particular, to hit the gym if you feel like you look decent. You don’t have to go Lululemon from head to toe, but wear something that makes you feel comfortable and confident.

dress-to-impress

There are a ton of great athletic wear companies out there these days, and places like Nordstrom Rack and TJ Maxx have racks upon racks of fitness clothes that are inexpensive and stylish. Want to really impress those around you? Get a pair of fancy exercise socks. Need to get yourself in that warrior frame of mind? Channel your inner soldier with some camo-colored socks that really help you feel the part.

You’d be amazed at the difference clothes can make on our mental fortitude during a tough sweat session, and performance socks can make a different in foot comfort, which will come in handy after your 5th mile on the treadmill.

Grab a Partner (No, Not for Square Dancing)

Everything is easier with a friend, isn’t it? And if you’re a tried and true one, you’re not going to leave your buddy hanging, right? We all know that if we tell someone that we will meet her at the gym, the likelihood that we’ll actually make it increases at least tenfold.

On top of the pressure to avoid letting your bestie down, the actual act of working out is much better with someone you like. Misery loves company and all that. And after a while, it won’t even be miserable anymore. You might even—gasp—look forward to it.

Do it Early and Often

Some researchers have said that the body’s metabolism can increase with morning workouts. Whether that’s true or not, there’s another huge reason to do morning workouts. You get it over with! Working out later in the day and/or after work is fine, too, but you know that your chances of actually making it to the gym significantly decrease once someone mentions happy hour. It’s, like, science.

morning-workouts

As for the “exercise often” mentality, there is something to be said for getting your sweat on every day. Now, now, don’t go freaking out about this, as we now know that you no longer need to work out for hours and hours to reap the benefits. In fact, many of the most popular workouts these days include HIIT (high intensity interval training) workouts, and many of these routines have shown benefits after only 20 to 30 minutes.

If you can’t make the sweat session happen, just get out and move. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Go for a walk at lunch. Get a monitor to track your steps, as this will instill a sense of competition within yourself from day to day. Whatever you do, just move.

Follow these tips to reinvigorate your exercise routine and you’ll be You, Version 2.0 soon enough. And, yes, that is an upgrade.

  1. I think we should first set up a goal, visualize it every day and make sure you reach it. It’s also important to be realistic in your fitness planning. Training 3 days a week is equally beneficial as training 5 days a week provided you set up your routine correctly.