Fun Fitness Tips
Getting and staying in shape doesn’t have to be dull and boring! Try some of these fun fitness activities to make your workout time more enjoyable.
MUSICAL EXERCIES – Put on your favorite music and do some yoga! No need for slow, elevator music. Move to your favorite beat. Or pop on the headphones or earphones and grab your MP3 or cassette player or handheld PC and bike to a nearby park. Too cold or rainy? Then head to a mall or other enclosed area where you can walk. Caution: make sure you are alert while listening to music with headphones or earphones.
FUN IN THE SUN – Check out the latest tanning solutions and try fun, scented versions with funky, multi-colored sunglasses. Grab your cassette player or MP3 player and favorite tunes. And pack some flavored water, new flavored health bar that you’ve been dying to try and some frozen berries in your carryall for breaks and have a “sense”-ational time.
FITNESS CLASSES – Try out a new fitness class for fun. Enjoy a full water aerobics workout with less stress on your joints. Grab some colorful water gear and swim to the beat. Or try a dance or Jazzercise routine. No need to commit long-term, just ask about popping in for a class or two to check it out and enjoy. Meet new friends and get fit all at once.
VCR / DVD – Head to the library or local rental store and grab a fun fitness video or DVD. Crank up the sound when your favorite tunes come on and join the taped workout participants in the privacy of your own home.
GYM / FITNESS CENTER – Dig out those coupons you’ve been receiving in envelop mailers and those money saving coupon magazines. Again, no need to commit long-term. Just head on over and use the free or low-cost trial / invitational period and enjoy!
JOURNALING – Spice up your logging routine with an inexpensive new journal from a discount or dollar store nearby. Crate snazzy charts with colored markers. Add bright colored stickers for each workout. Paste or tape clipped pictures of your goals throughout the covers and inside sections. For example, paste pictures of that vacation spot you want to travel to with your new, healthy YOU wearing a new swimsuit.
So add some fun in with your fitness activities. Wake up your senses with new taste, smells, sights, touches and sounds. Forget that “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” stuff. Workouts plus play make Jack a fun, fit boy!
Nicky Pilkington
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/fun-fitness-tips-11268.html
March 14th, 2009 at 8:58 am
fitness tips?
my fiance and i are getting married in August and although we are both very healthy and look after ourselves, we both want to look our best for the wedding. we usually go cycling but the weather is really awful at the moment and the local gym is rubbish. does anyone have any excersize tips that we can do at home? aside from the obvious of course *wink*
March 14th, 2009 at 2:00 pm
Do you have stairs in your home? Go up and down them a couple dozen times a day, that should get your legs feeling good. For sit-up or abs, put your feet up on the seat of your couch while you lay on the floor. You can be very creative that way. You can do squats with a kitchen chair. Push-ups in the living room or den. Cleaning is good exercise, too. Do you have kids, yet? If not, borrow someone's infant and lift him or her a lot, that'll tone your arms.
References :
March 14th, 2009 at 2:02 pm
Here is an at-home routine that you can do for a total body and great cardio workout. Hope you like it.
RUN IN PLACE – kick heels up to buttocks
SQUATS
JUMPING JACKS
BACK LEG LIFTS – keeping the hips forward lift your left leg back – it's a small movement so don't arch your back to lift very high – do one side for half the amount of time and then switch
HEEL DIGS – press heel out in front of you and hop to switch feet
SIDE LEG RAISES – standing lift your left leg out to the side and lead with the heel (don't turn your toe up) and also don't lean over sideways as you do this – half the time and then switch sides
BURPEES – standing place hands on floor and jump feet back into pushup position and then jump feet back towards hands and stand up (that completes one burpee)
PLIE SQUAT – stand with your feet wider than should length apart and your toes turned out at a 45 degree angle, squat down and using your inner thighs press yourself back up
SPEED SKATER – leap to the right bring left leg slightly behind you and you reach towards the floor and then leap to the left bringing right leg slightly behind while reach towards the floor
PUSHUPS – can do against a wall or on the floor on your toes or knees
CROSS COUNTRY SKI – stand with legs together and jump up landing with right leg in front and left leg back then jump again switching feet in the air
BICEP CURLS – curl with weights (or whatever else you can use such as soup cans, water bottles, resistance bands) be sure not to lock out the elbow and curl for the full range of motion
DOWNHILL SKI – feet together jump to right and then the left and stay low in a little bit of a squat position
TRICEP PUSHUP – lay on your left side with your left hand on your right side and place your right hand on the floor infront of you, now press yourself up with your right hand – half the time and then switch sides
HIGH KNEES – run in place brining knees into the chest as much as you can
BACK ROW – using weights hinge forward at the hips so you are slightly bent over and knees slightly bent, let the weights hang down with palms facing each other than pull the elbows up keeping them close to the body and bring the weights up as high as you can and then lower
SQUAT THRUST – kinda like a burpee but when you come up jump
SHOULDER RAISE – with weights stand with elbows out at shoulder height then press weights up over head and lower to shoulder height (don't go below shoulder height)
POWER JACKS – like a jumping jack but when your feet go wide go down into a squat and when jumping back with feet together do two hops
LOWER ABS – laying stomach place your hands infront of you forming a triangle, lift your hips up so you are on your toes and elbows (don't lift your hips too high though – you should be in a straight line and abs pulled up in towards your spine) alternate touching your knees to the floor, but don't let them rest – they should just barley touch
JUMP ROPE – real or pretend
OBLIQUES – on your back with feet on the floor and hands behind the head crunch up and twist left elbow to right knee – half the amount of time and then switch sides
SQUAT JUMPS – in a squat position jump up and land in squat position
UPPER ABS – on your back with feet planted on floor lift your hips up and have hands behind head – keeping your hips up off the floor do a crunch
QUICK FEET – standing with feet wide run in place as fast as you can (think football)
FRONT LUNGES – lunge forward with the left foot, staying in this position lower yourself and then press back up – half the amount of time and then switch sides
SQUAT W/ FRONT KICK – feet close together squat and come up and kick with the left then squat again and come up and kick the right and keep alternating
STEP TOUCH – stay low with knees bent and step to the left bringing feet together and then step to the right, while doing so have your arms extending out to the sides with each step
SHUFFLE W/ KNEE – shuffle three times to the left and on the third one lift your right knee and then shuffle three times to the right lifting your left knee on the third one
MARCH – march in place to cool down
do each move one after the other without a rest in-between and you'll get an excellent interval workout – If you want a longer workout walk in place 3-5 minutes and then do the whole circuit again.
References :