Whether you’re looking to challenge that plateau or trying to work a fitness regime into your day-to-day life, there’s a host of opportunities waiting on your doorstep that can help you shape up in no time. While nutrition plays a vital role in the weight loss quest, you can boost your results by adding in an effective fitness component, no matter how small. Trying something different from your usual routine will shock the body into using different muscles at different intensities and achieving significant results in return, even in a week.
When getting to that exercise class just isn’t going to fit into your diary, try one of these activities instead. Make sure tha
1. Stretching is an important element of exercise that many simply ignore. Stretching before exercise can prepare the body for the stress about to come and also help prevent injury after you finish.
2. Try Pilates for core strength. The core is the foundation of all movement, from day to day activities and dance to playing sport, and posture. This results in enabling you to exercise with less risk of injury, further promoting weight loss results.
3. Spice up your life. Add thermogenic spices such as turmeric, ginger, chilli or cayenne to your cooking or herbal teas. These spices help to promote thermogenesis and fat metabolism and should speed up any weight loss results.
4. Go hiking. Often over-looked but hiking is an ideal activity for endurance as it works the largest muscle group – your legs, which in turn helps work the whole body.
5. Don’t stand still. Walking up escalators is an Incidental exercise that will enable you to increase the number of steps you take per day. The average recommendation is approximately 10,000 therefore if you have more weight to lose, walking is the best way to get you on the road to results.
6. Deliberate inconvenience. Making life less convenient will provide you with natural exercise and fat-burning activities. Try parking the car away from the shops and walking or cycling to work.
7. Cycling is a great way to exercise, burn fat, tone muscles, and work the heart. Plus it can get you off the sofa and into the great outdoors with the whole family, and get a workout at the same time.
8. Use shopping bags like hand weights. Although you may feel a little silly, this is perfect for the biceps and doing a few ‘reps’ with them can help lose those bingo wings.
9. Housework. Normally considered a chore, but with the right mindset it will also raise your heart rate, help with flexibility and give you a nice sense of achievement.
10. Try yoga as it improves flexibility, balance, mobility, stamina and strength as well as increasing cardiovascular performance. An inability to lose weight may stem from stress issues and lack of sleep. Yoga may ease this and promote a better sleeping pattern.
11. Play sport (especially high intensity activities such as squash or tennis). Group sports can be motivating and provide a sense of belonging to a team, in turn providing an extra sense of achievement and motivating you to go further and expand your fitness goals
12. Get a gym buddy for extra motivation. Working out with someone means you are less likely to cancel on your fitness routine. It also makes it more of a social occasion, therefore more enjoyable.
13. Lift weight to lose weight. Resistance exercise is vital to fast-track your weight loss results. It helps develop lean muscle which will allow you to burn fat more efficiently, even after you’ve finished.
14. Get in the garden. Gardening, especially digging, uses your muscles in a different way, proving you don’t need to go to the gym to get fit and lose weight.
15. Drink dandelion tea. This is a liver tonic and will eliminate excess fluid, helping the body to burn fat and to reduce bloating. One to two cups per day should do it.
16. Swimming is another activity that can be done with friends or family. It uses the majority of muscle groups in the body, helping to promote a lean physique and it can be done all year round, so there’s no excuses!
17. Use the stairs. Step up wherever possible, either at home, at work or out shopping. If you want a great looking butt then this is the key.
18. Sun warrior plant-based protein is a healthy protein powder. It can be used as a meal replacement tool as a way of reducing your calorie intake and it’s jampacked with amino acids, meaning you’re getting the right nutrients, making you feel fuller for longer.
19. Write a diet and fitness diary. This is very important for you to be able to track your activities and it means you know exactly what you’ve eaten, so you can make changes accordingly. Many people fail to lose the weight they want because they eat more than they think and move less.
20. Try high frequency vibration training to help with toning and definition. You don’t need to use this type of training every day; often results can be achieved in as little as five minutes per day due to the intense nature of the muscle activation.}
