5 Easy Ways to Spice Up Your Workout

By Ally Russell on October 22, 2016

The Freshman 15 is any college student’s worst nightmare, and staying in shape regardless of your age is difficult at best. And, if you’re like me, you find working out to be boring and monotonous, so in order to get me motivated, I change up my workout.

I do this so that instead of focusing on the same routine that I do daily, I’m concentrating on whatever new obstacle I’m trying to accomplish. Here are five easy ways I’ve found to spice up your workout.

1. At-home workouts

Living off-campus makes it incredibly hard to get to the gym on the weekends. I’m never up for it and I’d much rather be sitting at home and watching Netflix than driving to the gym. To combat my laziness, I found Kathryn Morgan.

Kathryn Morgan is a former ballerina who danced as a soloist for New York City Ballet. After having troubles with her thyroid, she left the company and is now a full-time YouTuber. Kathryn posts workout videos that include barre stretches for beginners, intermediate learners, and experts.

What’s really great about these barre workouts is that I don’t have to leave the comfort of my own home and all you need to participate is an open mind, some space, and a chair or counter to help keep your balance.

via YouTube

I highly suggest checking her out because not only does Kathryn provide workouts she also gives advice and has makeup tutorials on her YouTube account. If barre workouts don’t peak your interests, try typing “home workout” into YouTube — you may find something that you really like!

2. Take a class

Many gyms, especially ones on campus, have different classes that you can take (most even are included with your tuition or gym fees). Some are fitness boot camps, aerobics, or Zumba. Either way, trying something different will work your muscles in a way that is foreign to your body and will give you a good workout.

The good thing about classes is that you can also bring your friends with you. Working out is always better when you have someone who can cheer you on and encourage you, plus if your Zumba instructor is having you try a weird move that you feel uncomfortable with, there is no one better to laugh with than one of your closest friends.

3. Try a challenge

Challenges are basically a goal that is divided up over a month. Your main goal can be running 10 miles by the end of the month, and the challenge will work you up towards your main goal. For instance, the first couple days you may be running for five minutes and slowly it will increase until you’ve reached your goal.

Many websites, like one of my personal favorites Darebee, have challenges for you to try. You can download a PDF, print it out, and stick it on your fridge, desk, or wall. They have challenges like the Cardio Blast challenge or 10,000 crunches challenge. What’s really cool about Darebee is that they also have food challenges, like No Sugar or Water challenges that can accompany your daily fitness journey.

4. Go with friends

A good way to stay motivated is to have a gym buddy. They will always encourage you to get to the gym and you’ll have someone to constantly motivate you to go. It’s like having a personal trainer that you don’t have to pay and will allow you to eat chocolate even though you swore that you were not eating candy this week.

However, I’ve found that you can also take that to the next step. Try this: get a group of your friends together and scout out local trails and places to hike. You can bring some speakers and music and you’ll forget about climbing an imposing hiking trail and instead focus on having fun with your friends. Plus, those mountain views are always golden opportunities for likes on Instagram and Facebook.

via Pixabay

5. Listen to some new tunes

I’ve found that rewarding myself with new music motivates me to get my body moving and to hit the gym. Sometimes I decide to splurge on music that I’ve been wanting to buy and won’t allow myself to listen to it until I hit the gym. It gives me incentive to go while also taking my mind off of what my body is doing and focus on this song I’ve been jamming to in my head for a couple days.

Another way to achieve this same effect is to try music services like Spotify where people make playlists for working out. My personal favorites can be found on 8tracks – 8tracks is free and has a huge userbase that boasts many playlists. You just search workout in the search bar, or whatever musical mood you’re in, and there are dozens of playlists to choose from. I find working out to a playlist where I don’t know what song is coming up next gets me hyped and ready to go.

We all know going to the gym or working out in general can be tedious. But, the hardest part is staying motivated and not conforming to a routine that bores you. Spicing up your workout and trying new things will make you excited to get your body moving and you and your body will be happy that you did it.

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