By Iris Stasiuk
When you hear the words “working out”, what do you picture? Some might picture a 3 hour weightlifting workout at the gym. Others might visualize marathon training plans, or a strict schedule of pilates or crossfit classes. Over time, we’ve come to associate movement and exercise with regimented routines and pushing our bodies to the limit of what they can do. For the people with packed schedules and long workdays, adding a workout to the ballot can seem more tedious than fun.
Although it might seem like skipping movement is inconsequential, the data would tell otherwise: Insufficient physical activity is one of the most important modifiable risk factors both for non-communicable diseases, such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and hypertension. In addition, exercise can have major mental health benefits. Regular aerobic activity can greatly improve mood and stress resilience, and resistance training can foster self-efficacy and emotional regulation. In short, physical activity is not just key to a healthy body, but also to a healthy mind.
Luckily, moving your body isn’t one-size-fits-all! Moving and getting your heart rate up looks like so much more than lifting your body weight at the gym. Exercise can be fun, interactive, community-driven, and built into your every-day life! From switching your morning mode of transportation, to finding creative ways to boost your morale, here are five easy ways to incorporate moving into your everyday life.
1. Switch up your morning commute
Driving is one of the top ways people in Europe commute to the office – Around 45% of Europeans commute daily by car. While driving can be efficient, it can also be boring, repetitive, and very sedentary. If you are looking to be more active in your everyday life, one of the easiest switches you can make in your schedule would be to switch to cycling, walking, or taking public transportation to work! Movement-centered modes of transportation provide a key opportunity to turn your commute to work into an aerobic and also fun mode of transportation. (It’s also great for the planet!)
Cycling to work can improve both your mental and physical health, and can serve as a great way to make new friends in the community. Aerobic activity gives you a chance to boost your heart health, and it is a low-impact movement, which leaves low risk for injury or pain.
If you live too far to bike to work, using a combination of walking and public transportation is a great alternative to driving to work. In addition to saving the planet some carbon, you are able to get some cardio in while supporting important public infrastructure.
While it may initially seem more time consuming, switching to an alternate mode of commute transportation is a great way to boost your physical activity, engage more meaningfully in the community, and take care of your mental health. Joining a coworker to bike to work or taking the scenic route on foot gives you a chance to meditate in the morning before you start work, or simply decompress after you leave.
2. Make moving part of your work day
If your work day is long, chances are having an exercise routine outside of work sounds exhausting. However, it can be easier than it seems to implement movement into your work day!
Take a fifteen minute mid-morning break to walk around the block! A brisk stroll on your break can increase blood flow to parts of your body that don’t usually move, and reduce back and neck pain from sitting for long periods of time. In addition to physical benefits, it can also help clear brain fog and boost your energy. If walking isn’t for you, try and set goals for some easy exercise in between work sessions, like trying to do 40 squats or pushups by the end of the day.
It can also be fun to get your coworkers involved! Take a walk together, or try and set a group challenge for movement by the end of the week. Moving with other people can make getting started less awkward, and the exercise and community can help you focus better while you work, and maybe even make some new friends.
3. Move informally
Working out doesn’t need to look like a run, going to the gym, or a strict workout regiment. If fitting strict gym time into your schedule feels overwhelming, remember there’s so many ways to move that can be fun, laid back, or even relaxing!
While most of our ideas of working out generally look like a strict workout routine, just living life can also be physically active without even trying to! Activities like taking your dog for a walk and paying fetch can be a great way to get cardio. Playing tag outside with your kid can be an awesome way to get your heart rate up and also spend some quality time together.
Even small things can make a difference! Taking the stairs instead of the elevator can give you a few minutes of extra movement, or walking the last two stops of your train ride can get your heart moving after a long day of sitting. It doesn’t need to be a formal workout to count as moving, and it can function as a pleasant break in the day.
4. Do it with a group
Starting anything new can feel overwhelming at first. Luckily, doing things with a group of people can make starting a new task much less intimidating.
Exercising with a group can look like many different things! Joining a run club or a local football league can be great ways to get into organized sports! However, it can be as simple as throwing a frisbee at the park with some friends, or getting a group together to go on a weekend hike. Even going out on a weekend dancing is a great way to move and also spend time in your community!
5. Turn it into a game
While it might seem silly, refocusing movement from a chore to a game is a great way to rethink exercise and shift it from a chore to a fun activity.
This could look like setting challenges for yourself, like a certain number of a kind of exercise to hit each day, or trying to walk to a certain number of locations by the end of the week. You could create a scavenger hunt for yourself around the neighborhood, or set up a group relay game or challenge for yourself and your friends. It doesn’t have to be serious, but it could be a great way to incorporate movement into a slow or boring work week.
There are so many more opportunities for moving and exercise than just going to the gym! Other than the obvious health benefits, movement can be a way to give yourself a mental break from the workday, explore new places outside, try out a fun new game, and bond with other people! Getting started is the hardest part.