Time to muster up fun, inspiring ideas for all levels of exercisers. There are still unconventional ways to expend calories without having to go to the gym!
No pain, no gain? Not in my world. Just dedicate your work-out to someone you love and believe me, there will be no pain, only pleasure!
1) Choose an exercise style which you really enjoy. Remember, make your work-out a fun, joyful event so you look forward to your sessions.
2) If you're not good at staying motivated, find a partner to train with or make it a social event where a bunch of your friends all work out together. This will always be a great way to get you going on the days you feel less inspired as you can become each other's cheerleader.
3) Hire a professional personal trainer and in making this commitment to yourself and your trainer this will give you the incentive to keep going because you'll have a motivator supporting you during your work-out.
4) If you work better with goal setting, make a plan of how you want to look by a certain date. use visualisation techniques and have a picture ready of how you'd like your body to by that timeline. Give yourself a target every week and decide how much trimmer and fitter you're going to look.
5) If you love the great outdoors, find an exercise suitable such as power walking or running outside instead of a treadmill indoors. Also these days there are lots of walking and running clubs you can join which are very reasonably priced. You can even set up your own one with a group of friends.
6) How about meeting your friends and going rollerblading or even ice skating instead of dinner or coffee and cakes?
7) Arrange to have a home visit from a fitness professional who can show you how to utilise the furniture in your own home for a work-out.
8) Cycle to work instead of using public transport.
9) Use stairs whenever you can. Believe it or not, I had a friend who used to have a showroom which was on two floors. She never had lifts or elevators in the building. Eventually she moved premises and her new office was on one floor only. She actually gained pounds due to a lack of activity by no longer being able to use the stairs.
10) Go dancing with your friends after a heavy meal and burn off the calories or, if it is a nice evening, go for a stroll and expend a little energy.
11) Drink tons of water when you're sitting at your desk so you have to keep getting up to go to the toilet and burn extra calories.
12) Do a bathroom work-out and dance while brushing your teeth and get a little exercise at the start of your day.
13) Sitting on a swiss ball at your desk will not only improve your posture but it will make you sit properly, engaging your core muscles and making your stomach and back stronger. If you do this, start with short periods and build up your time.
14) Go window shopping at lunchtime and wear a rucksack with a small weight in your backpack to expend more calories than usual. Carry any shopping bags evenly on both arms as you walk fast back to work and do some arms raises with them to get the heart rate up.
15) If you're at home exercising on a treadmill, put on your favourite TV soap to keep you distracted for longer.
16) If you have a dog, take it for interval runs in the park and time yourself to do one minute of running/walking. Also you can use the park bench to do a variety of strength training exercises such as press-ups and tricep dips (works chest muscles and backs of arms).
17) If you're a yummy mummy and want to burn the baby fat, I suggest buying a style of pram which enables you to do a brisk power walk or light jogging intervals. The best way to diminish the excess weight of pregnancy is to nip it in the bud within the first eight months while you have all the extra hormones in the body to help you heal and recover.
18) Walk everywhere when possible.
19) Massage your partner to burn extra calories.
20) Always keep a picture of how you want to look in your mind's eye, especially when it comes to running that last mile or lifting the last repetition. This will make you stronger mentally and help you resist that dessert.
These are a few simple ideas to motivate you. I find once I make a habit of doing some of the above on a regular basis, it becomes part of my life and something I can't live without.
Plan your social work-outs in advance and make a commitment to yourself. To succeed you need to find something to focus on which you enjoy. Exercise should never feel like a chore when you're working towards achieving it.
Sometimes you have to step a little out of your comfort zone and take that extra inch. Anyone who achieved something out of the ordinary never stayed within the realms of their comfort. Go for it. Program the subconscious mind to make it work for you and to make it all happen because you deserve to give yourself the body you desire.
Good luck and most of all enjoy! :)