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Nail Your Nutrition
One of the first steps to fitness has to be nutrition. It primes your body for activity and allows you to really benefit from any extra activities you undertake. So look to your diet and make the necessary changes to ensure you are eating well to give you extra, useful energy. If nutrition is not your strong suit, consider outsourcing. There are a number of new meal plan companies such as fivepointfour (click here to see their range) that make it easy and cost effective to nail your nutrition.
Incidental Exercise
There’s been much talk in recent years about incidental exercise. It has to one of the easiest ways to increase your fitness without even trying. Incidental exercise is about exercising while undertaking everyday tasks, and all that’s required is a little creativity. Here are a few great incidental exercise options that you could fit into your busy lifestyle.
At The Office
How about parking a few extra kilometers from the office and walking the final distance? And what about using the stairs to get to meetings instead of catching the lift? It’s little extras such as these that make all the difference to fitness levels. Meanwhile you can even do some exercises while sitting at your desk. It might sound tacky but every hour pick up that giant dictionary and use it like a weight, lifting it through 15 repetitions. There’s a host of things you can come up with to keep you moving throughout the day.
At Home
Housework is one of the best forms of incidental exercise. So put on some music and get cleaning – just make sure you do it at a fair pace. It will raise your heart rate and there’s always something to lift that can increase muscle tone. How about a few extra squats as you load the front loading washing machine or dryer? Really work those arms while lifting the washing baskets. Again this is about creativity.
In Transit
If you spend a fair portion of your day standing on a bus or packed train, then use this time too. Find your balance as you’re standing and increase your core strength. Get off a few stops early and walk the last part of your journey. If you’re in the car, clench and unclench your muscle groups to get them going. It’s the little things that add up over time.
Find A Weekly Routine
On top of your incidental exercise, just add one exercise class or team sport per week to boost your fitness. It’s a great opportunity to blow out the cobwebs and will likely be only one or two hours of your week at a max.
With just a few alterations to your routine and some creativity about how you exercise you’re already on your way to fitness. The great thing is that it’s a routine you’re likely to maintain.