How to Make Exercising Fun
Working out is a tedious and sweaty experience that leaves me counting down the minutes until I can go home, get into my pyjamas and watch some TV. And after one particularly gruelling and boring gym session, it got me thinking, surely, there's a way to make exercising fun? Or at least more fun than running on the treadmill in an airless and stuffy room watching the seconds tick away slowly on the screen.
So, I went home and did some research, and this is what I found.
1. Exercise with a friend.
Bringing a friend along with you to the gym can make exercising less mundane. Chatting to a friend while exercising also helps make the time go by more quickly and allows you to enjoy yourself.
You're also more likely to stick to your fitness plan if you're doing it with a friend, as it's more motivating than exercising alone. Similarly, you're more likely to be consistent because when someone else is counting on you to turn up, you're are less likely to let them down by not showing up. It’s also nice to have a support buddy if you’re a bit nervous about going to the gym by yourself.
2. Get competitive.
Why not set weekly or even monthly competitions with your friends? Perhaps the person who gets the least steps that month has to pay for dinner at the end of the month? It's a great incentive for getting you off the couch to do some exercise, but it's also nice to have a bit of friendly competition to encourage you as well.
A study published in Preventive Medicine Reports found that those in competitive workout groups went to 90% more classes than those in the study who weren't. It suggests that being in a competitive workout group (whether with friends or not) is a real motivator for exercising and seeing desirable results.
3. Watch your favourite TV show.
Who said you have to listen to music in the gym? If you're cycling or running, why not pop your phone next to the screen and watch some Netflix while you're working out. Maybe you were planning on catching up on episodes later, but what's to stop you from doing it now and making your work out more bearable and perhaps even enjoyable?
I can vouch for this tip: when I watched Netflix while using the cross trainer, I stopped focusing so much on the clock ticking away on the machine's screen. I was too busy watching TV to notice that my workout had ended! I recommend trying it, and I'm sure it would even work for listening to a podcast or watching YouTube too!
4. Do a fun activity.
Exercising doesn't have to be about lying on a smelly gym mat on the floor and doing crunches till your abs hurt the next day; there are lots of fun activities that you can do. Dancing is a great way to lose steam, have fun and burn calories simultaneously. You can go to Zumba classes, clubbercise classes or even play Just Dance on some sort of gaming console – these activities are enjoyable but count as exercise!
Similarly, other fun activities that burn calories are rock climbing, martial arts, bowling, tennis, football and more.
5. Exercise without realising it.
You might not realise it, but you can burn many calories doing day to day tasks and not even realise it. One hour of shopping burns roughly 175 calories, and one hour of housework burns approximately 191 calories. Imagine what else you might be doing that's burning lots of calories? Exercising is not all about going to the gym and burning hundreds of calories at once; it's about creating a healthier lifestyle. You might already be more active in your day-to-day life than you realise.