Fun And Interesting Workouts To Keep You Motivated

To be truly healthy, you must regularly exercise and get that blood pumping.

At first, it can be exciting and invigorating to begin a new workout regimen. However, it can become tedious and feel more like an obligation than a healthy activity.

We’ve all experienced the struggle of getting bored of our exercise routine. This article will help to give you some new, refreshing ideas to keep your interest. These tips will motivate you to continue a long habit of getting the movement your body needs.

Fun and motivating workout ideas:

1. Join an online group class – Other people can be extremely motivating and exciting when involved in your exercise routine. They can teach you how to do new things. They are supportive, enthusiastic, and happy to see you moving your body. If you allow them, these group class members can become your best friends and extended family. Search Facebook, YouTube, or other internet sites for online exercise classes.

2. Hula hoops, juggling, and other circus activities – One of the biggest mistakes we make as adults is that we stop playing. Play is critical to continue throughout your teenage and adult years, and you should not stop just because you aren’t a kid anymore. Not only are these activities fun, but there is a huge variety of choices with versatile benefits to your health. If this piques your interest, start with a google search of “flow arts” or “circus arts”.

3. Involve your dog – If you own a dog (or several), they will benefit from exercise. Keep your best friend happy and healthy with frequent adventures. If you can’t get motivated to move for yourself, your family pet(s) are a great reason to keep at it. Dogs are so much fun and can keep you smiling and laughing during your workout. Try going on a hike with them.

4. Learn to dance – I know most of you are probably thinking about how scared you are about looking like a fool while you try this suggestion. However, that fear really doesn’t help you, and may be preventing you from being healthier than you’ve ever been in your life. Dance is unbelievably good for you and your whole body. No one is born knowing how to dance, and it is never too late to start. Start looking into some dance tutorials, take a class, or get a video game based on helping you learn to dance.

5. Get video of your routine – Not only will this help to motivate others, but it has other benefits! You can hold yourself accountable by recording and/or posting your video to social media. You can view your videos and make sure you are doing your exercises correctly. You can view the ways your exercise can be improved, sped up, or slowed down. Your followers might become inspired to start exercising just like you!

With these tips and a bit of bravery, you are sure to start changing your life and becoming much healthier and happier with your activities!

How To Reduce Stress While Social Distancing At Home

While the impacts of the corona virus are starting to become a new normal, many people are feeling cooped up and claustrophobic in their homes.

You may be one of them, and you may be seeking some guidance on how to find relief from the stress.

The nice weather is coming and soon you and your family will play outdoors. Until then, here are quite a few things you can try at home to cure your cabin fever.

Our tips for coping during this difficult time:

1. Arts and crafts – You may or may not be artistic or good at crafts, but what better time is there to start than now? You can use just about any materials you have laying around the house, and you might surprise yourself.

2. Baking and cooking – Not only is this a great option to make healthier meals, but you will get practice with making food that tastes great. Stock up on some good seasonings and ingredients, make sure you have the right dishes and pans, and start looking up recipes!

3. Home workouts – Even if you are stuck in a small space, there are a few types of workouts you can do to help you feel better. Something as simple as jumping jacks, stretches, push-ups, or lifting some heavy books will be better than nothing.

4. Face time with friends and family – Do you have a smart phone or a good computer with internet and a web cam? Try video calling your friends and family. Make it themed, play some board games with them, or just talk about all that has been going on. They might be happy to see your face.

5. Organize and de-clutter your home – This is going to work wonders for how large you feel your home is. If you have way too many things clogging up your home, it is an excellent time to find out what you can donate or sell. You may have something to sell or donate that someone else really needs. Once you’ve cleared that out, organize the rest of your home. You won’t regret it!

Some other helpful tips are to start gardening, power wash your house or porch, clean out your car, or take your dog for a nice long walk.

These tips are sure to take the edge off of your cabin fever.

What It Means To Throw Your Back Out

You’ve almost certainly heard the phrase referenced in the title of this piece. You may have even used it yourself.

It raises an interesting though. Can you actually throw your back out, and what, exactly does that mean?

Assuming you can, how can you avoid doing it?

Those are all great questions, and we’ll address them in this piece.

First and foremost, yes. People can absolutely throw their back out, which is shorthand for doing anything that causes sudden, acute back pain. While it’s certainly possible that it can happen to anyone, the people who are most at risk are the elderly and people who are out of shape and/or overweight.

The elderly tend to have a more limited range of motion. People who are overweight and out of shape put more stress on their backs simply by carrying the extra weight around.

Far and away the most common cause is muscle strain. It is normally caused by lifting something heavy improperly or moving, bending or twisting wrong. It is possible that your sudden back pain could be caused by a condition like cancer, an infection, a damaged vertebra, or a herniated disk. However, those are incredibly uncommon.

In the vast majority of cases, sudden, acute back pain will go away on its own, usually in 72 hours or less. However, you can help the process along by resting your back and alternating ice and heat treatments.

Having said that, there are a few signs that you’ve got a more serious problem, including:

  • A loss of sensation in the legs
  • Weakness in your legs to the point that they won’t hold your weight
  • Bladder or bowel control issues
  • Fever or other symptoms of illness occurring in tandem with the pain

If you experience any of these, see your doctor or chiropractor right away.

Easy Ways To Deal With Your Stress

Most people know that stress kills. It lowers your immune system, raises your blood pressure, and has other nasty effects.

Unfortunately, knowing that and taking steps to reduce the amount of stress in your life are two very different things.

The good news is that there are things you can do. In this article, we’ll outline a few basic steps you can deal with the stress in your life.

Get Outside

First and foremost, any time you feel your stress levels rising, stop what you’re doing and go for a walk outside. Preferably in nature if you have a wooded area near your home.

The science is clear on this point. A fifteen minute walk outside will reduce your cortisol levels by an average of 25 percent. In comparison, a fifteen minute walk in the woods will reduce your cortisol levels by as much as fifty percent. That’s impressive and it makes a short walk in the woods the #1 way to reduce your stress.

Get More And Better Sleep

Maybe you thought that bedtimes were for kids. The simple truth is that when you go to bed at the same time every night, you condition your body to expect sleep and your body likes that. The routine is good for you. You’ll find you get a better night’s sleep every single night just by sticking to an established bed time. Given that a big part of our stress is caused by lack of sleep, that’s compelling.

Exercise

You don’t have to go crazy here, but exercising even moderately on a regular basis floods your body with endorphins which make you feel great. Exercise, then, is a win-win. Not only does it make you healthier, but you’ll find your stress levels dropping rapidly. What’s not to like about that?

There are plenty of other things you can do to reduce or eliminate stress, but if you stick with just the basics and follow the tips above, you’ll be amazed at the results!