Fun Ways to Exercise Without Realizing It
There are tons of people in this world who simply just don't enjoy typical means of exercise. Are you one of them? Here's how you can tell:
1. You can't stick to any real fitness plan.
2. You have absolutely no motivation to get moving.
3. You HATE feeling the burn in your muscles after lifting weights.
4. Every workout you try is so boring.
If you identified with any of the above list, you're probably don't enjoy exercising as it's typically presented. So what does that mean for you? Are you destined for a life of inactivity?
The answers to that question is absolutely not! You can exercise in fun ways that you don't even realize count towards exercise! So many fitness trainers and athletes are obsessed with getting an optimal workout in, but for the Average Joe (or Jane!), it shouldn't be about perfection, it should be about keeping your joints moving, your heart pumping, and your muscles strong for everyday activities so that you can get up off the toilet by yourself or carry in your own groceries when you're 85 years old. So how do you do that? By making your everyday life filled with enjoyable movement that keeps you healthy.
Here are 5 fun ways to exercise without realizing it:
1. Geocaching
Geocaching is like an adventurer's dream come true, as there is always some sort of treasure at the end of the trail. It's a lot of fun, but takes some planning and hiking to actually discover the exact location of the geocache. To get started, check out geocatching.com (there are 44 located near Eufaula alone!). And if you'd rather partake in some digital geocaching, you can do some Digital Geocaching with Pokémon Go or Harry Potter: Wizards Unite.
2. Dancing
Dancing is so much fun, and you can do it anywhere! Team up with your friends and try the newest TikTok dance trend, hit a Zumba class with your work buddies, or simply dance around your living room by yourself to Megan Thee Stallion's newest bop. Whatever you choose, you'll be sweating and getting your blood pumping in no time.
3. Wrestling with your kids
Not only does roughhousing with your kids get you moving, it gets them moving, too! Plus all that wild movement (piggy back rides and summersaults and goodness knows what else they have you doing) is movement you don't normally engage in in your everyday life, so it works muscles in new ways that make your body stronger. Plus, who are we kidding, it's just plain FUN, and it's a great way to bond with your children.
4. Cleaning your crib
Have you ever spent the entire day cleaning your house from top to bottom to wake up the next day and find your body S-O-R-E, sore? Yeah, that's because cleaning is a pretty killer way to get some sneaky exercise in. From squatting to clean the baseboards, to stretching up to dust the fan, to using your back muscles to push that dreaded mop across your kitchen floor- cleaning can be a full body workout. But what's so much better about cleaning as a full body workout as opposed to say, a HITT class, is you actually get an added benefit of having a clean living space. Sounds like a win-win, to be honest.
5. Hardcore Parkour
Parkour is all about moving through your environment efficiently and naturally. Parkour practitioners, who are often called traceuers (from the French for ‘to trace’), jump, climb, and vault over obstacles in their path. Their goal is to get from point A to point B as efficiently as possible. So, okay, parkour is definitely going to make you look and feel a bit silly, but truly, once you get into it, it's a blast! It's also a really good way to squeeze some exercise into your day. But make sure you are doing this SAFELY and NOT like the characters from The Office if you do give it a go. Interested in giving it a shot? Here's a really fun guide to parkour from NerdFitness that will help you get a feel for it.
