We are mixing things up on the blog today with a fun guest post from Orange Theory Fitness! If you feel like you are stuck in an exercise rut where you just cannot find the motivation to get up and get moving, then take a peek at these 5 alternative exercises to try. I am sure you will find some renewed inspiration.
If you have not taken an Orange Theory Fitness class in the past, I highly recommend it. Rob and I did an initial free one and loved it. We were sweaty messed by the end!
Before beginning any workout, be sure to warm up and cool down properly to prevent injury. You can get your free Warm Up and Cool Down Guide here to have on hand no matter what exercise you try.
A bit about the author: Hayden Stewart is a public relations specialist for Orange Theory Fitness. He regularly produces content for a variety of fitness and health blogs centered around overcoming the physical and mental obstacles to living a healthier life.
For some people, the most difficult part about getting excited for exercise is simply that exercise is not very exciting. Often the only thing that comes to mind is going for a run or lifting weights. The repetitiveness of these common exercise methods can turn many people off of wanting to exercise, period. Fortunately, for those who hate to exercise and hate the boring options of running or lifting weights, there are a number of alternative exercise that provide a good workout while also being fun.
Swimming
Swimming is not only a good workout, but it also has a very low risk of injury. This makes it a good exercise for those in poor physical condition, or suffering from arthritis or obesity. Even people who don’t know technically how to swim can get a good workout if they simply know how to stay afloat and move their arms and legs. The reason for this is that water is 12 times denser than air, which means it offers constant resistance when working out.
Hula Hoop
It’s hard to beat a hula hoop for cheap, easy and fun. Thirty minutes using a hula hoop burns 216 calories. Start by putting the hoop around your waist and rotate it initially with your hands and then keep it going with your hips. The classic move is to rotate your hips from side to side to keep the hoop going, but you can also do it from front to back, making sure to keep your stomach muscles engaged.
Intervals
Interval training is more effective and arguably more interesting than simply going for a 30 minute jog. It burns over 100 calories more than a jog as well. Start by walking at a good clip for about five minutes. Do your first interval with a 60 second all out run, and then follow it up with a two minute slow jog. Do this seven times and then do a three minute walk to cool down. Interval training is one of the best ways to burn fat due to the high intensity part, which triggers the release of a fat-burning chemical called catecholamine.
Get more interval training workout ideas here.
TV Commercial Workouts
If you’re the average person who watches around three and a half hours of TV per day, then you’re also watching around one hour of commercials. Make that time count by doing little workouts when they come on. Alternate exercises to make it more interesting. You can do pushups, jumping jacks, a quick run on the treadmill if you have one, some yoga poses, Pilates and just about anything else that can be done in front of a TV for a few minutes. As long as you’re moving, you’re getting your heart rate up, burning calories and building stronger muscles.
Dancing
You can burn nearly 300 calories in about 30 minutes of dancing. Like with swimming, you don’t have to know a technical form of dance to get benefits. Put on your favorite music and start moving. The only key with dancing is to try to get your entire body involved. Move your arms, legs, torso and hips as you dance. Also, like swimming you can go as slow or as fast as you want.
Working out doesn’t need to be boring and you have much more to choose from than the binary options of running and weight lifting.
Check out my list of Must Have Workout Resources here so you are prepared to make the most out of your workout time, whatever that may be!
What is your favorite way to exercise when you feel like you in a workout rut?
I’m Brooke Selb, a Personal Trainer and Health Coach specializing in helping busy moms and moms to be to easily juggle mom life with family friendly recipes, and easy exercise routines to help you achieve your fitness goals that fit in with your already busy life with sound nutritional advice.
Good list, I particularly like the TV commercial workout. I don’t watch TV, but my kids do (fortunately not too much). A few jumps are better than nothing.
Dancing is an underestimated exercise as well. I bought a dancing mat a few months ago for my kids, but I use it. I would have never thought that dancing is such sweaty training. I use it for 45-60 minutes, but I sweat like a pig.
Dancing has a huge effect! You are literally moving your whole body, which is not easy for long periods of time.
I’d like to also add burpees, power yoga, and hiking to your already great list of alternative exercises.
I really like intervals, because I don’t enjoy exercise as much as someone who helps people lose weight normally would.
I like to know I’m getting the most out of my exercise unless it’s super fun and I’m not even paying attention to the fact that I’m exercising.
Intervals also help you progress by allowing you to mixing in small sessions of more difficult exercises.
At the end of the day though, as long as you’re exercising almost every day, you’re doing more than most people.
Thanks for the post!
I love intervals! They make the time doing cardio exercise go by so quickly and you get a huge bang for your buck. What is your cardio interval of choice?