Fitness Routine or Fitness Rut?
You don’t go around eating the same meal every day, or wearing the same set of clothes to work…right!?!?! Then why do the same workout day after day? If your fitness routine has become a fitness rut, it’s time to get out of your comfort zone, and try something new.
5 Things that we absolutely know to keep your mind and body healthy over time:
- Move your body EVERY DAMN DAY!
- To boost metabolism, cardio is best done in the morning
- Stretch more as you age
- Challenge yourself as you progress
- DIVERSIFY YOUR FITNESS ROUTINE!!
The human body needs so many things to keep healthy! We need high/low intensity, cardio, stretching, weight-bearing, movement in all planes, proper breathing techniques, balance/stability challenges, strength training, etc. That’s a lot! And so far I don’t think any fitness entrepreneur has come up with the perfect fitness class that meets all of those needs. So the only perfect solution is to be diverse in your workout. Diversity is good for all things, good for business, good for microbiome, good for art, good for fitness…diversity is finally trending!!
Luckily you can use a platform like LubbDubb to book a myriad of fun, and effective classes right in your neighborhood.
- Other ways to get cardio:
Are you bored of running on the treadmill or along the same route in your neighborhood?
Or are you trying to drop weight but the running isn’t making a dent? What’s the definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Instead try a dance class!
Cardio is important for your heart health, but let’s face it, it can get boring. Attending classes like ReggaeTone or other forms of dance is a great way to have fun and get in a great workout! Dancing is also amazing for your brain!!
“Dance is a language of physical exercise that sparks new brain cells (neurogenesis) and their connections. These connections are responsible for acquiring knowledge and thinking. Dancing stimulates the release of the brain-derived protein neurotropic factor that promotes the growth, maintenance, and plasticity of neurons necessary for learning and memory.” — Judith Lynne Hanna, PhD
2. Want to look good naked?!?
Who doesn’t want to look good naked, I mean isn’t that the point of working out?!?!
Unlike cardio, strength training uses resistance. The resistance can be weights, bands, or your own body weight. It is important to add resistance into your workout to increase your bone density, improve blood flow, build strong and healthy muscles, and last but not least, look good naked.
Adding resistance into your workout gives you the ability to sculpt your body in any way you want. We recommend doing a bootcamp style class for resistance training.
“I rarely wear clothes when I’m home by myself. I love making breakfast naked. But you’ve got to make sure the gardener’s not coming that day.” — Kristen Bell
3. Suffering from back pain?
Do you spend a lot of your day sitting? First of all get yourself a standup desk, sitting all day cuts years off your life, and if you haven’t heard sitting is the new smoking!
If this resonates with you we recommend strengthening your “core” torso stabilizer muscles to decrease back pain and stiffness. Back pain crusaders shout the praises of Pilates, and you should to.
But it’s not just the injured who love Pilates. Almost any top athlete is doing Pilates to improve their game, prevent injuries, and rehab when needed — especially the back. Taking a Pilates class is one of the best ways to focus in on your core muscles, and research shows a stronger core can help relieve back pain. People swear by it. You’ll feel muscles you’ve never felt before. For back pain we recommend a Pilates Reformer class or some kind of Pilates equipment class. Mat classes are awesome if you aren’t acutely injured, but if you have acute low back pain stay away from mat classes until you can build a strong core.
“I do Pilates and yoga to stay in front of the curve.” — Lebron James
4. Do you tote a board?
Are you in Tahoe skiing or boarding every winter weekend? And surfing Ocean Beach in the summer?
If you’re not or wish you were better equipped to stay vertical during your board toting outings we suggest working on your balance.
Balance is underrated until you lose it, and balance is definitely one of those use it or lose it skills. We use it for everything, especially when we take our skills to the next level. Riding a wave, skiing, or boarding requires hella good balance. Working on your balance will make a world of difference out in the water or on the slopes. We recommend taking a stand up paddleboard class…what’SUP;-) to mix it up.
What better way to work on your balance than to be on a large body of water with friends on a sunny day?!?!
“I like to fall on my face.” said no-one ever!
5. Are you a gym bro? Or gal?
Or just a regular human?
If so, you could probably benefit from a yoga class. As a yoga teacher it’s always a special moment when a gym bro or gal comes to my class. Their muscles are popping out of their shirts, but they can’t straighten their arms. Holding down-dog for this body type gets exhausting quick. Healthy muscles need to be eccentrically (lengthening under load) and concentrically (shortened under load) strong. But a lot of gym rat’s muscles are strong concentrically and lack eccentric strength. If you lack flexibility of the muscles you quickly lose mobility of the joints — no one wants that!
So start young, and do yoga often, but it’s never too late to start!! Stretching prevents muscle injury for those days you are lifting heavy, running, or doing something with a limited range of motion. When you first start yoga, there will be a period of time where you are saying to yourself this is the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but just keep at it. And remember the hardest part of yoga is getting on the mat. But if you do it throughout your life you’ll stay flexible in your body and hopefully in your mind as well:-)
“Action is movement with intelligence. The world is filled with movement. What the world needs is more conscious movement, more action.” B.K.S. Iyengar
To sum it all up, we want to stress the importance of diversifying your workout with all aspects of fitness. In order to maintain a healthy, well balanced body you need diverse styles of training. Don’t just take 5 days of your week to lift weights. Or 5 days a week to run on the treadmill. Mix it up! Taking group classes is a perfect way to spice things up, get a new perspective and most importantly have fun while meeting your fitness goals!
Didn’t find a class you like? Search for one you do.
