How to Keep Your Workouts Challenging and Interesting

It’s crucial to constantly challenge yourself and keep your workouts fun and exciting. Losing weight, getting muscular or fit takes time. If you’re doing the same training daily over a few weeks, you’re going to get bored very quickly and will not look forward to exercising.

Once that happens, it’s all downhill and a matter of time before you quit exercising and give up on your fitness goals.

This article will list 10 ways you can inject excitement and variety into your training sessions. They can be applied to cardio, weight training and most exercises.

1. Combine exercises with other activities. I had an obese client in her mid-forties. She loved spending time in front of the tv. I helped her to position the television in her house in front of the treadmill. She had to walk for an hour on the treadmill thrice a day. Morning, noon and night. She willingly did it and watched tv at the same time. She barely noticed the time fly. Get creative with your workouts.

2. Try new things. If you run all the time, try cycling. Or maybe swim laps at the pool. If you run a certain route every day, change the route. The new scenery will be a welcome sight.

3. If you go to the gym, try visiting another gym. New people to look at. I know that you’re going to a gym to work out, but it doesn’t hurt to see and meet new people before or after your training.

4. Listen to music that gets your blood pumping. It could be techno, rave, epic soundtracks, etc. Listen to whatever gets you going. Put your player on shuffle mode so u don’t listen to the same songs in the same order every time. Change songs every so often.

5. Join classes. Maybe sign up for a Latin dancing class or kickboxing. Joining others for exercise can be fun and interesting. You may even wish to go for Karate classes. Those are excellent because not only will you burn calories but you will be learning a very useful skill.

6. Have a training partner. Find someone who is not lazy to accompany for your workouts. Both of you will motivate and push each other to new personal achievements. Competition is always fun.

7. Keep records of your training and always try and improve on your past results. If you run 3 miles, try and shave off a minute from your timing. You are always striving to beat your personal best. This tip alone can keep you motivated for years.

8. Use social media to show off. There are several apps for your smartphone that can track your training and progress. Many of these apps allow you to log in through Facebook and post your results. If you like showing off, this will be fun. It will also motivate you to do your best.

9. You may also surf online for videos or training programmes. There are several excellent DVDs such as Insanity or Taebo that can be watched and followed at home. “Insanity” is truly excellent and will shred the fat from your body.

10. Finally, you may look through fitness magazines for new workouts. I’ve noticed that nowadays whenever a movie comes out with a buff actor in it, they tend to publish his workouts in magazines. The idea is that you will be able to sculpt a similar body by following his workout. I’ve seen the Spartan workout for the movie 300, Ryan Reynold’s workouts for the Green Lantern and quite a few others too. Interesting stuff.

So, go ahead and give these techniques a try.

Add some variety and challenge to your training and you will not only constantly keep your body guessing but you will smash through plateaus and stay motivated till you reach your fitness goals.