active – Megan Gilman

Happy Monday!

I’ve had a pretty busy morning considering the current situation, so I’m finally getting around to finishing up and posting today’s post. I’ve been spending a lot of my time these past few months staying active, and not only has it kept my physical health on track, but it’s really benefitted my mental health as well, and helped me pass the time. Now that it’s finally getting warmer out (for the most part), it’s been a lot easier and a lot more enjoyable to stay active. So, this week I wanted to share some of my favorite ways (and new habits) of getting exercise throughout my day, and hopefully I can inspire some of you to work some of these into your routine!

1. Walking and Running

I mentioned this in my last fitness-related post, but I can’t stress enough how amazing it’s been to get out of the house for at least an hour every day and run or walk. I definitely plan out my runs during the week to spread them out and make them more a part of my exercise routine, but I also make a point to walk a little bit at least once a day. I track my steps on my phone (especially after studying abroad, I was walking way more!), so I’ve been trying to keep my average steps level around the same number as it was before quarantine. At first this seemed impossible, since I’m not walking to class, work, etc., anymore, but it’s actually been a nice challenge to hold myself accountable for. When I run I need to listen to music, but when I go for walks, it’s been nice to meet up with or call/FaceTime friends, listen to a podcast, or just walk alone in silence with nature (I’ll usually only do this if I’m hiking or walking through a woods/nature path). It’s such an easy way to get movement into your day, and it completely changes my mood!

2. Yoga

I’ve always liked the idea of yoga and occasionally would go to hot yoga classes before quarantine, but to be honest, I could never fully implement yoga into my exercise routine. I’m very productive in all aspects of my life, including fitness, so my thought process was that if I were to take an hour out of my day to work out, it would be much more effective to run for an hour, or take a spin, barre, or bootcamp class. Yoga seemed like a nice way to relax, but not a high-intensity workout. Now that I have much more time on my hands, I’ve been doing A LOT more yoga (almost once a day) in addition to my regular daily workouts. The one yoga studio I would go to before quarantine (very rarely) was CorePower Yoga, and thankfully they’ve been live streaming SO MANY classes on YouTube. It’s been really nice to take a C2 yoga flow class after a long run, or take a yoga sculpt class as my daily workout (these are very hard).

Another fitness company whose workouts I’ve been loving recently is P.volve. This isn’t yoga, but it’s a low impact, high intensity workout that builds lean muscle strength with very little equipment, if any. They’ve been posting Instagram Live stories pretty frequently, so it’s been nice to add these onto my daily workouts as well. The workouts are much different from anything I’ve done in the past, so it’s a nice way to change up my routine and work my muscles in a new/different way.

Now that it’s warmer, I’ve been really liking doing both yoga and P.volve workouts in my backyard in the mornings – they’re not too high intensity, so it’s a nice way to wake up and get some fresh air before starting my day!

3. Cardio and HIIT Workouts

As I mentioned, I’ve always found the most productive way to work out (for my body) to be condensed, high intensity workout classes. This was the hardest part about social distancing for me (in terms of exercise) – not being able to take group fitness classes. However, I’ve actually gotten really into at-home workouts and I’ve been able to try so many different workout classes and studios than I could beforehand.

One of my new favorites is cardio kickboxing. I had heard lots about these classes in the past, but I never actually tried one for myself. This has now become one of my regular go-to’s, and it’s actually a much more effective workout than it seems in the moment. Punching the air doesn’t feel that difficult while taking the class, but when you’re doing it for an hour, you sweat a lot! This is also a much more fun way to work different muscles than just doing sit-ups and pushups.

In addition to cardio kickboxing classes, I’ve also been trying a bunch of different dance workouts and HIIT classes, while still using my Nike Training Center app that I mentioned in my previous fitness post to target different muscle groups. Again, now that the weather is warmer, I’ve been loving doing these classes outside! I’ll usually do one midday, after lunch or before dinner – this is when I have the most energy.

4. Outdoor Circuit Training

My favorite outdoor workout right now is something I’ve created on my own, and I’m excited to explore more/try with friends (hopefully soon)! I was fortunately able to bring home some equipment from the gym that I was working at before social distancing measures were strictly implemented, so I’ve been using this to set up some circuits throughout my backyard and driveway. It’s been nice to do this on the weekends when I have a bit more time in the mornings.

Specifically, I’ll set up various sets of dumbbells, resistance bands, an agility ladder, a jump rope, and a mat, and then I’ll write down a different exercise or set of exercises to do at each station. Depending on how long/difficult each round is, I will usually repeat everything 3-5 times. This has been a lot of fun to design workouts that I enjoy doing, spend time outside, and move around between arms, legs, core, and cardio. These are definitely very physically exhausting workouts, but they’re fun to do and far from boring!

5. ANY Outdoor Games/Activities!

Finally, it’s been nice to spend more time just being outside recently, with family or social distancing with friends. Even when I’m not doing a high intensity workout, spending time outside in the fresh air has been so beneficial for my physical and mental health. I forget how much I take time outdoors for granted, but now that I’m in my house most of the day, I make a point to get outside and just sit in my yard for a little bit each day. This tends to make me more active, whether I start going for a walk, play catch with friends, etc. So in any way you can, being outside is usually better than being inside!

I hope these activities can inspire you to be a bit more active in whatever ways are enjoyable for you, and if you have any of your own suggestions, please comment them below! As much as this situation has been difficult, I am looking forward to having a lot more time to be active and to be outside this summer. I’m excited to keep trying new exercises and make fitness more of a priority, and I hope you guys are too!

As always, stay healthy and safe, and I’ll see you all next week 🙂

xx,

Megan

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Good morning and happy Monday!

Writing these posts each week makes me aware of how much time is going by, and it’s crazy to me that this is already my third post from quarantine. I’ve had to get creative with some ideas, but the timing worked out – right when I wanted to take a turn with my content away from travel for a bit, the world gave me a sign to do that 🙂

As most (or all) of us are pretty much at home, inside for most of our days, I wanted to share some things I’ve been doing to stay busy and keep some normalcy in my routine. Until the past few days, I really haven’t felt like I’ve had an excessive amount of free time, which I expected to feel immediately after coming home. Although a lot of my time is still being taken up by schoolwork, I’ve found some other ways to stay active in the free time that I do have, which has really helped me to stay levelheaded throughout this whole situation.

First, since I mentioned that most of my time is spent at my desk on the computer doing schoolwork, as soon as I’m done for the day I find myself with lots of energy and a drive to be physically active. One simple thing I’ve made a point to work into my daily routine are long walks and runs. Now that it’s getting warmer out, these are getting easier and more enjoyable as well. For at least an hour every day, I’ll either walk or run around my town/neighborhood, or through local parks and woods. I usually switch off with walking and running every other day so I don’t get too tired of one or the other, but especially during this time, I’ve found it so much easier to clear my head and actually enjoy the exercise, since it’s the one time of day I can set aside to safely be outside of the house. I’ll use the Nike Run Club app to track these runs, which is nice to see how much I’m moving in my free time, since otherwise I’m not getting around too much!

Continuing on the exercise path, I’ve really increased the at-home workouts I’ve been doing (as most of us probably have!) I’ve always been into at-home workouts, so this is not a new concept for me, but I’ve also always had access to a gym or a space where I can do these workouts, and where I can add whatever equipment I like. Now that I only have what’s in my house, I’ve had to really set aside a time and space to get these workouts in – but it’s working! All I use at home are a yoga mat, dumbbells, and ankle weights – pretty much all of which can be substituted by household objects if you don’t have the equipment!

I’ve been doing some at-home classes straight from YouTube just by searching a 45 minute or 1 hour HIIT workout class, or a full body exercise (whatever you’re feeling, I’m sure they’ll have it!) I did a one-hour kickboxing class last week that was so different from my normal workouts, so I was definitely sore after! I’ve also been using the Nike Training Club app, as right now all regular and premium workout videos are free! There are so many workouts put together on this app, varying from length to intensity to muscle groups, so you can definitely put together as short or as along of a workout as you like. I’ve been FaceTiming some friends at home so we can do these workouts together, and it’s been such a nice way to catch up while also making sure we’re both getting in some activity for the day!

Now that life has slowed down in all aspects, I’ve finally found the time to really get into yoga – something I always felt was too slow for me before. I’ve tried a number of different yoga classes, and while I love it when I’m in the middle of it, it’s not something I can usually justify taking the time out of my day to do. Not only would I prefer to take a spin class or a bootcamp class to get the most out of a 45 minute workout, but yoga puts me in a much more relaxed mindset – something I previously couldn’t afford to do in the middle of a school day. Now that I have extra time in the mornings, at night, and between classes (without anywhere to be), it’s been much easier to incorporate shorter yoga classes or segments into my day. I also get some of these from the Nike Training Club app, and others from YouTube.

Again, now that the weather is finally starting to look a bit brighter, being outside has been so much more enjoyable (and even when it’s cooler out, I can appreciate the fresh air so much more.) So, just spending time in my yard, playing pick up sports, going for short hikes/walks in the woods behind my house, and really just taking the time to think and appreciate nature right now, has significantly boosted my mood and kept me calm during this time. I’m normally an extremely busy, active, and organized person, so not having a schedule or places to be has been hard. However, scheduling my day like I normally would – with my classes, workouts, and phone calls all in my calendar – has given me more structure and allowed me to take advantage of the free time I find myself having more and more each day.

These are just a few suggestions of ways you can stay moving and keep it fun while we’re limited right now – this is obviously not an extensive list, but this is what I’ve been doing, and what’s been working for me. If you have any other ideas or suggestions, please let us know in the comments!

Once again, I hope everyone is staying healthy and safe, and please continue these distancing practices to keep others safe as well! Have a great week, and I’ll see you all next Monday 🙂

xx,

Megan

Megan Gilman

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Tag: active

Warm Weather Workout Ideas