How many times have we said or thought:
“my schedule gets a little hectic, I enjoy participating in all sorts of fun events, but don’t have time” “I had to work late, didn’t get my workout in” “how will I ever stay motivated?” “I’m too slow & don’t want to slow anyone down” “I’m not a serious runner” Yet there seems to be just one tiny issue – our normal daily routine can be thrown off just a bit, especially when it comes to our regularly scheduled exercise (walking) time.
Here’s food for thought for your motivational mental Monday: I will NEVER put off exercising/training, it’s too important to me. I know, it’s easier said than done, but if you’re training, you’re an athlete and I’m hoping you feel the same way, so I compiled a list of exercise ideas that can be done in roughly 10 minutes so you can be sure to hit your exercise goals. Take a moment of so to select a few ideas from the list below in order to squeeze in 20-30 minutes of exercise daily. You’ll not only feel better because you’re taking good care of your health but you’ll also enjoy how great you look in all year around wardrobe. Face it, when we take the time to work out daily we also reap the benefits!
- Do two sets of jumping jacks for five minutes each set, which can burn approximately 50 calories for each 5-minute session. A full 10-minutes of jumping jacks burns 100 calories.
- Jump rope for 10 minutes, which can burn up to 135 calories for a 10-minute session.
- Mowing the lawn with a push mower can burn 50 calories in 10 minutes. It has to be done anyway, right? Mow for an entire half hour, you’ve just burned 150 calories!
- Washing your car burns calories too, about 35 calories for a 10-minute scrub and rinse!
- Do some yard work, maybe even start a garden. Do this for a full 10-minutes and burn 50 calories; an hour can allow you to burn 300 calories! Not only will you be exercising but you will enjoy fresh produce in a few short months as well.
- If you have stairs in your home or workplace, walk up and down them and burn 100 calories in 10 minutes. If you feel especially energetic, run or take them two at a time – challenge yourself!
- This is one of my favorite ways to get in a little extra exercise: vacuum. Ten minutes of vacuuming your carpet will burn 50 calories – vacuum for 20 minutes and burn 100 calories.
- Walking is my absolute favorite way to burn calories. Walking at a brisk rate for 10-minute intervals can burn about 65 calories, which can be done several times throughout your day. These are some ways to do so: Walk to get your morning newspaper (I know, some of you are thinking, um..What’s a newspaper?” lol. Walk to work (if that’s an option). Walk during your breaks with co-workers. Walk to the restaurant at lunchtime. Hold walking office meetings (coach’s can vouch on this, we’ve had “running meetings”). Walk to deliver messages instead of using the computer. Walk around the block several times while you wait for your child at practice. Walk around the building if you have a long wait for a doctor’s appointment.
- Dance as if you were a teenager again! Just put on some music and dance your heart out. If you really get your grove on, you can burn about 70 calories for every 10-minute dance session – which is about the length of 3 full songs!
- Running in place can burn about 90 calories in ten full minutes. You can do this at home, in the office or even when traveling. Simply jog in place in front of the television in your hotel room. You’ll be happy you did as you’re heading to your fall holiday destination afterwards. You’ll feel better, look better and your self-esteem will be better, especially when you see your reflection in the mirror and know that you earned that healthy body of yours!
As many of you know, I coach young kids (you guys are my big kids :-0) I like holding short topic sessions (they can’t sit still for longer than 10 minutes, lol). Junk food, sugary drinks and the lack of physical activity were just a few of the topics that children discussed. Many of the information I knew about, but I will admit that I also learned a few things.
The tricky question stumped the kids when I asked them about fueling our bodies and how much do we burn? The answer was simple: “Our body burns energy from the food we eat.”
I’ll admit it wasn’t the answer I came up with, but it was cute and kept my attention. The children in the film are real, and their generation is tackling an epidemic that my generation didn’t have to deal with back in the 70’s or 80’s. They are concerned and have a right to be. We have heard this time and time again, this may be the first generation of children who will have a shorterlife expectancy than their parents.
What are we running this week?
- 10k: Monday-Rest/XT; Tuesday-2-3 (in zone 2); Wednesday- 45 minutes + XT; Thursday-2 miles+ drills; Friday REST; Saturday 3 miles
- 5k Monday-Rest/XT; Tuesday-2.5 miles; Wednesday-40 minutes + strength; Thursday-2.5 miles; Friday REST; Saturday 2 miles
- Saturday:
- 10k / long course group: 3 miles w/surges
- 5k / short course group: 2 miles w/2 x 30 second surges
- If it’s worth it —- then it’s worth the work…remember, holidays are approaching and you are already getting a head start to staying fit.