Hi, friend! Do you love working out? 🙂
…I’m only asking because I… don’t! 🙂 Yes, I’ll be frank with you: I am a bit lazy :). I am also super-busy (for squeezing in a workout yes, I am!) 🙂 And, well, yes, I am busy: I was just speaking to my friend the other day about how when you become a parent your time becomes golden: every single minute that you can spend taking care of yourself counts!
But even when I had the time to do what all the “normal” healthy people are supposed to do: to go to a gym on a regular basis, I could never do it! Not on a regular basis, anyway… I honestly tried it a few times: I bought the memberships; I even invested in the fitness equipment! But no matter what it just didn’t stick up with me: every time I began thinking about going to the gym – I’d always find a ton of very important things 🙂 that had to be done instead!
But the truth of it is – I was dreadfully, awfully bored there! No, seriously: running on a treadmill or pedaling away while still staring at the same wall in front of you? Counting the minutes left until you’re finally done? It sounded more like sitting through the most boring class at my high school! Now, how much fun is that? (And let’s not forget – you’re paying for it!)
But I like staying in shape: it feels good! And I just love-love-love moving around! Only… my way!
So here’re my 6 favorite, fun, easy and absolutely free of charge ways to exercise:
- Park your car far away from a market. (I usually park a few blocks or 10-15 minutes of walking distance away from it). Walk to the market. Then walk back with the grocery bags. Actually… you can do the same with any other place that you need to go to, be it going to a restaurant (I actually always feel like I need a walk after having a meal!), to an office or to a party with your friends (OK, maybe not to a “black tie event”: it’ll be tough to walk in high heels 🙂 ) !
- Go shopping! Who doesn’t like shopping? I love going to a mall, and it’s my favorite place to “exercise” when it’s too hot or too rainy for walking outside! And you don’t have to buy anything: I personally find “window-shopping” just as fun!
- Look out for the stairs! …Here, in LA, where most buildings are 1-story, the stairs are very HARD to find! But I always keep an eye for and take advantage of every staircase that’s on my way! No escalators or elevators for me! (Extra points for carrying a few bags as you’re walking up those stairs! 🙂 )
- Put on some music and dance! And if you have company, or your family members are around, – well, the more, the merrier: have them join the fun!
- I used to have a 9-5 office job before becoming a mom and that job involved sitting at the desk all workday long! And let me tell you – by lunch-time I could literally feel an itch to get off that chair and go for a run! And I always did! Even if that meant having less time to eat lunch! 🙂
- Just go out! Whether it’s going for a “coffee break” at work and using those 5 minutes to move around or getting out of the house and taking a run around a block (yes, just one block! You don’t have to pound yourself with “I have to run for 15 minutes straight”! ‘Cause that’s no FUN!)! It’s just that when your body tells you that it needs to move – listen to it! And take off for just a few minutes. Now, wasn’t it fun? And since it was so much fun, don’t you want to do it again? 🙂
You know if you think about it, there’s so much we don’t do any more – like wash our own cars or daily dishes, getting up to change the TV channel (though I think you’re way too young to remember that haha!) mowing the yard etc. getting our and moving more is imperative for our daily health. Love your post! Move that body!!
Thanks, Debra! Well, when it comes to changing the TV channels I can actually remember that one, although it isn’t relevant to my current life since I don’t get to watch much TV these days! (My kids know how to put the TV in our living room and I… don’t!) but it’s so true that there’re so many ways in our every day lives that we can exercise and also although the progress is great we should always stay in tune with our own nature and with that – we’ve GOT to move our bodies! 🙂