5 Active Lifestyle Tips

Americans have become far too sedentary. The Cleveland Clinic reports that 80% of Americans don’t get enough physical activity. An inactive lifestyle puts you at a higher risk of diabetes, heart disease, and a number of other health issues.

If you are serious about maintaining good health, then you will need to be more physically active. Here are some ideas that will make this goal more attainable.

1.      Consider Doing Three Separate 10-minute Long Sessions Of Physical Activity A Day

Many people are reluctant to be more physically active because they feel that they need to really push themselves. They think that they need to do an hour-long parkour workout or run like they are training for a marathon. This can seem overly daunting, which discourages them from being active at all.

The truth is that you don’t have to put in a tremendous amount of effort to be more physically active. The CDC recommends getting 30 minutes of exercise a day. If committing to a 30-minute workout is too intimidating, then you might want to do three smaller workouts that last 10 minutes each.

You don’t need to go full out, either. You might be able to get 10 minutes of exercise by walking to the end of your street and back a couple of times. You could also practice the moves in a 10-minute Tai Chi video that you found on YouTube. The benefits of a couple of small workouts like this can really pay off.

2.      Decide Whether Or Not It Is Worth Working Out With Your Friends

More people are participating in group fitness activities these days. This trend has mostly been driven by millennials. Since the millennial generation is more social than older adults, they enjoy participating in many different types of activities together, including physical fitness.

A lot of health bloggers recommend working out as part of a group. There are clearly some potential advantages. Your workout partners can help keep you motivated, which is important if you are having trouble committing to your fitness regimen.

However, there can be downsides to group fitness as well. It might not be practical if different members of your group have different fitness levels. You don’t want to be held back by a partner with less endurance or a low tolerance for discomfort. Some people might also be too distracting if they want to talk through the entire workout.

Group fitness may or may not be a good idea. You will need to use your own judgment.

3.      Don’t Neglect To Work Out Your Muscles

There is a lot of emphasis on getting aerobic exercise. Running, bicycling, swimming, and other forms of aerobic exercise are incredibly important for your cardiovascular health and keeping your blood sugar within normal limits.

A lot less attention is paid to the importance of muscle training. Muscle building is also important for a variety of reasons. It improves your balance and coordination. It also helps keep your bones strong, which reduces the risk of getting osteoporosis as you get older.

Weightlifting is the best muscle building exercise. However, there are other options worth considering. You can try doing push-ups and resistant band workouts if you don’t want to invest in weights.

4.      Have A Plan To Deal With Soreness

If you are careful enough, you should be able to avoid any serious injuries. However, some level of soreness is inevitable.

You are going to need to know how to deal with muscle pain and mild overuse injuries that are going to arise. You may need to occasionally apply cold or hot packs to dull the pain. You may also want to use CBD cream if muscle soreness becomes persistent.

Of course, the most important thing is to make sure that you don’t push yourself too hard. It can take time to condition your body. You should push your limits, but be careful not to take things too far.

5.      Use A Calendar Or Fitbit To Track Your Activity

It is easy to overestimate how physically active you are. Some people admit that they thought they were highly active until they started tracking their daily activity with a calendar or Fitbit.

Tracking your activity with a FitBit is best. You will see how many active minutes you have gotten every day. You won’t be able to cheat yourself by fudging the numbers or counting the time that you spent stretching or chatting with your exercise partners.

If you don’t want to invest in a Fitbit, then a daily activity log is better than nothing. You can at least keep track of the days that you decided to skip your workout, which will help you realize that you need to get back on track.