Build a Fitness Routine that Works to Reclaim Your Busy Life
Knowing how to build a fitness routine that doesn’t disrupt your life but helps you gain results is one of the most elusive parts of training. Life and work can often get in the way of your goals, but they really don’t have to, and you can even include them as part of your overall training regimen. But how can you do this without impacting either of them? From using micro-workouts when you have spare time to working out while watching TV, here are some examples.
Find Some Healthy Encouragement
Encouragement when working out can often be vastly underrated. Staying motivated and consistent is the key to crafting a routine that works for you, and just being with others is one of the most powerful methods you can try. When you schedule a friend, book a gym session, or even sign up for a personal trainer bootcamp, the commitment to another person or a group is a powerful motivator that will help keep you on track through friendly and healthy encouragement.
Build a Fitness Routine with Micro-Workouts
Vigorous activity in short bursts has massive health benefits, including reducing the chance of cardiovascular disease by 49%. All it takes is three to five minutes of short-burst micro-workouts every hour to begin a routine that anyone can do when they have some spare time:
- Calf raises are one of the easiest but most effective exercises for a quick burst.
- If you have the space and want some intensity, try a few bodyweight squats.
- When sitting at a desk all day for work, cram in some powerful desk push-ups.
Try HIIT Workouts for Quick Calorie Burns
High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is often thought of as something only experienced and professional trainers perform. However, anyone can try this, and it doesn’t take any expert knowledge. In fact, HIIT training can be one of the most effective for burning calories when you are short on time. If you can set aside 15 minutes in the day, you can benefit from exercises such as burpees, done at high intensity for 30 seconds at a time with 30 seconds of rest.
Reclaim the Morning with Habit Stacking
Everyone has habits or behaviors that they do every day, and more importantly, every morning. The morning is the best time to use habits because it sets you up for the day. But it isn’t only for brushing your teeth and eating breakfast. With habit stacking, you can attach a healthy exercise to a typical morning ritual, and after some time, it becomes automatic. For example, you can get ten push-ups done immediately after brushing your teeth or when waiting for your coffee.
Build a Fitness Routine with Commuter Cardio
Commuting is a common way to get to and from work, and changing how you go about it can cut the risk of heart disease by 40% to 50%. This is one way that commuting actually begins to pay off, and you can feel the benefits while still being able to go about your daily routine.
Getting off early
If you need to get some exercise in but don’t want the intensity, you can reap numerous benefits from just getting off the bus a few stops early, getting your 15-minute walk without losing time.
Parking at the end of the lot
Some parking lots are large, and you can also get some light exercise by parking away from the entrance, which can be supplemented by taking the stairs instead of the office elevator.
Walking, cycling, and jogging
A couple of days a week, you can get in tons more exercise without losing time by walking, jogging, or cycling to work, some of which can actually get you there quicker than the bus!
Intensify the Household Chores
Any kind of movement that raises your heart rate is considered exercise, and as you may already know, there are even some chores around the house that can do this. If you are old enough, then you know what it is like to lug a wired vacuum cleaner up the stairs! However, this is a golden time you can use to increase activity and burn some calories. For example, you can do a few lunges while carrying the laundry basket and mop the floor like you are mad at it.
Walk and Talk Instead of Sitting at Meetings
Many of the world’s most prominent CEOs consider meetings a waste of time and not even work. Does anyone even like these anyway? There’s no reason why you can’t take a meeting outside for a walk and talk, Mafia style, to burn some calories while getting through work stuff. Of course, there could be bad weather. So instead of a dingy meeting room, how about a walk around the office? Any movement, instead of sitting around, is always good for your body.
Build a Fitness Routine while Watching TV!
Watching TV is considered one of the worst things for a healthy lifestyle, but like most things, you can use it to your advantage as an exercise method. No one watches commercial breaks, right? So use that time to reduce abdominal fat by 19% with short burst HIIT training:
- A 4-minute Tabata set (20 seconds on, 10 seconds off) is enough for a break.
- Lift free weights for the duration of the commercial break for arm toning.
- Break out the resistance bands and catch up on leg work during the break.
Use the Weekend to Catch Up
Of course, we all work during the week to enjoy the weekend. But what if you have forgotten your usual exercise throughout the week and are feeling guilty about it at the weekend? You can even feel stress and depression when you feel like you have to catch up. But guess what? There are tons of fun ways to exercise without realizing it that you can do on the weekend. For example, you hike with the kids, go biking with the team, or even take the dog on a long walk.
Summary
Finding support and encouragement with like-minded people is a powerful way to build a fitness routine that begins to work for you. You can also use your work commute to get some extra movement, and you can even catch up with fun exercises on the weekend if you missed a day.