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These days, physical activity is more important than ever! Most of us are spending more and more time at home, whether it be for work or school, and we are not getting the physical activity that we need.
When you get off track with your workouts or fitness, it can be quite overwhelming to think about jumping in again. Instead of setting a goal of 10,000 steps every day, focus on small movements that bring your heart rate up and increase blood flow. Here are 6 ideas to get you started:
1. Use Commercial Breaks as An Exercise Timer
There’s nothing wrong with binging your favorite TV shows, but why not use those annoying commercial breaks for a few quick exercises? It can even be something as simple as doing 10 jumping jacks or pushups during every commercial break. If you’re watching Netflix with no commercial breaks, you could set a goal to do 30 jumping jacks and 30 pushups between each new episode.
You can adjust these goals to meet your needs, but even just getting up to get your blood flowing is more physical activity than sitting on the couch the entire time.
2. Make An At-Home Obstacle Course
This is a great way to get the entire family up and moving, and you can do the whole thing at home! Take some furniture and create an obstacle course to run or walk around. Even just moving the furniture will get your blood flowing. You can get really creative with an obstacle course. Maybe you set up all of your throw pillows in the living room and weave around them, or maybe you use condiment bottles to have a relay race outside.
Remember, obstacle courses aren’t just for kids!
This can be an easy, fun way to get your heart rate up and spend a Saturday afternoon with the whole family.
3. Online Fitness Sessions
There are countless options that will get you moving, some classic examples include Yoga, Interval Training and Pilates. If you’ve got any sports equipment, like rubber bants, TRX, a classic high-bar or weights will all come rather useful. Limitless option on youtube for free, one of the best is “Athlean-X” or you can get live online fitness sessions for a fair fee. In all cases, it’s what you put in that will determine your results! Be consistent and aim to push a bit further every time!
4. Speed Clean Your House
This idea is a win-win, you get your daily physical activity and a clean house! You can do this alone or delegate cleaning tasks to your spouse and children. If you’re delegating tasks to others, turn it into a competition. Set a time goal for everyone’s tasks at the beginning, and see who can clean the fastest. No cheating though, a half-cleaned room doesn’t count. Cleaning is often quite laborious, and you’ll be surprised at how much your heart rate increases.
5. Play With Your Pet
If you have any pets, take them on a walk or play play fetch with them. Both the pet and you can benefit from the exercise and stimulation. It’s also nearly impossible to get bored of playing with your beloved furry friend!
6. Get Some Garden Work Done | Enrich your indoor plants collection – Related Article
If you’ve ever mowed your lawn, you know how much of a workout it can be. Garden work is a great way to get some steps in. No matter what season it is, there’s always yard work to do. You could mow the lawn, rake leaves or weed the garden. Also, if you’ve been putting off doing the garden work, you’ll feel incredibly satisfied at what you accomplished!
Finding ways to bring even a few minutes of physical activity can make all the difference in your health and wellness. Especially if you can’t make it to the gym, whether that’s because of a busy schedule or gym closures due to COVID-19.
