Working out regularly on a weekly basis is one of the only healthy ways to keep in shape and strengthen your body. But sometimes when working out, we all get a little bored of doing the same old same old exercise. This is either from lack of brain stimulation and only focusing on the exercise at hand. However, there are some ways to keep yourself entertained while working out and prevent you from cutting the workout short. Here are a few of my personal favorites!
I CANNOT workout without music. If I forget my headphones when I go to the gym I will go all the way back home just to grab them, because that’s how much I need the music to be able to complete all my exercises. When I workout in silence, I feel as if I can’t concentrate on what I’m doing and instead all the other sounds around me are too distracting, so I usually end whatever exercise I’m doing early. But with music, you have a constructed playlist providing that needed motivation to cruise for those last five minutes of cardio or complete one last rep.
The world of podcasting has expanded so much that there is show out there for everyone to listen to whether your interests are politics, humor or a little bit of both. This method helps keep your brain stimulated and learn something in the process, which is pretty cool. Plus with the idea of listening to say perhaps a new show, rather than watching it on a TV in front of your machine, you have more freedom to move about while keeping the information flowing, allowing for you to not be held to one particular area.
While you can’t use this technique throughout the gym, it certainly helps you be able to go for longer periods of time on machines like the bike, treadmill (walking), and stepper. A little reading whether it’s for pleasure or school work assignments keeps you focused on the words on the pages rather how much longer you have to go to reach your calorie goal. Also if it is schoolwork, you’re getting done that homework that you might have pushed off until later to do the workout, or it was the reason that you may have hesitated going to the gym. A truly win-win solution!
It’s just a fact that not everyone can get on a machine for a half hour straight and do the same workout. Not only is it about the physical capacity to do so, but also it’s mentally draining to just be standing in the same spot for that long of a time, only doing one thing. So when in doubt switch things up! Do a little cardio in the beginning (like 10 minutes or so), do some weight lifting, then a few floor exercises, and then come back to the cardio at the end. You can even switch between machines on certain weight lifting exercises if you please to keep yourself from getting bored. Don’t be stuck in the same routine, change it up and I swear the time will go by like no time!
Instead of sitting in and watching Netflix or Hulu, why not workout instead or better yet do both at the same time! You’re going to want to pick a show that you’re definitely not too invested in, but something you can have on in the background for a little distraction when you’re working out. I’d recommend a sitcom like “Friends”, “Parks and Rec”, or “The Office”, especially if it’s one you’ve already watched once before. Each episode is usually about only twenty minutes long, so by the time it’s over, you’re already done with your cardio.
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