I think most of us can agree that exercising sucks. I would much rather watch a movie or read a book on a porch in the mountains. Also, I feel gross when I sweat. I know a lot of people love “getting their sweat on,” but I have curly hair, which isn’t really compatible with humidity, and sweating just creates my own little humidity cloud, which in turn frizzes my hair. So I’d rather not.
However, I can trick myself into exercising every now and then if it doesn’t feel so much like exercise and/or if I’m having too much fun to notice or care that I’m sweating. I absolutely do not do all of these things, but if you’re looking for fresh ideas, here you go:
- Work in your yard/garden.
- Clean your house (with music).
- Reorganize a room, and get rid of things you don’t need/want.
- Listen to music and dance while you’re getting ready in the morning.
- Family dance party!
- Use a bathroom on a different floor (at home or work). Drink a lot of water so you have to pee often. Take the stairs every time.
- Go to a playground and play. Seriously, do it.
- Join a silly sports league like dodgeball or kickball or hide and seek.
- Join a for real sports league like soccer or hockey.
- Climb a tree.
- Rearrange your furniture.
- Go swimming.
- Go kayaking (Lake Johnson will rent you a kayak for $5/hour).
- Go dancing! Try a kind of dance that’s new for you – shag, swing, salsa, square, contra. Hooboy contra dancing is a GREAT workout!
- Take advantage of your local hiking/walking trails. If you live in the Raleigh area, there are TONS to choose from.
- Stand up on public transportation. Try not to hold on (germs). Your muscles will have to work to keep you balanced and stable.
- Get off of public transportation a stop or two early and walk the rest of the way.
- Try martial arts!
- Try yoga!
- Try rock/wall climbing!
- Try Zumba!
- Try aerobic pole dancing! It’s seriously a thing, and it’s seriously a workout. It’s also seriously awkward, but if it sounds like fun to you, go for it!
- TRAMPOLINE!!
- Organize an elementary-school-style field day for your friends and neighbors. Include all the classics: 3-legged race, over/under, potato sack race, egg toss, etc.
- Play Duck Duck Goose
- Play Follow the Leader.
- Play Red Rover.
- Play any kind of tag.
- Play dodgeball.
- Play kickball.
- Arm wrestle.
- Leg wrestle.
- Stretch while you’re watching TV or talking on the phone.
- Do silly walks.
- Play tennis.
- Play in the sprinkler.
- Play Capture the Flag.
- Walk around the mall.
- Walk a dog.
- Toss a frisbee.
- Fly a kite.
- Go for a walk with a friend instead of going for coffee.
- Bring back the hacky sack!
- Play catch.
- Play Hopscotch.
- Play Foursquare.
- Play Simon Says.
- Sidewalk chalk someone’s driveway in the wee hours of the morning.
- Go for a romantic moonlit walk.
- Come back home and let one thing lead to another.
- Visit a museum. Look at everything. You’ll be walking around AND learning! Bonus!!
- Park in a central location when running errands that aren’t far apart, and walk to do each one.
- If you can see your destination from where you are, walk, don’t drive to it.
- Play charades.
- Jump rope.
- Photo scavenger hunt.
- Choreograph a dance to a song. Do it every time you hear that song.
- Hula hoop.
- Ping pong.
- Go roller skating.
- Play laser tag!
- Wash your car.
- “Walk to another city.” There are about 2,000 steps in a mile. Pick a “destination,” and figure out how many steps it would take you to walk there (literally). For example, it would take me about a million steps (2,000 steps x 500 miles) to get from my house to New York. Get a pedometer, and when you’ve walked enough steps to have reached your destination city, plan a real trip there!
- Pillow fight!
- Tickle fight!
- Play active video games like Wii Sports or Just Dance.
- Car dance.
- Clean out your garage, attic, or storage closet.
- Build a fort.
- Play putt-putt.
- Go to a zoo.
- Ride a horse.
- Get a pedometer for everyone in the house and see who can take the most steps each day.
- Act out your favorite scenes from books (including comic books) and movies. Make costumes and scenery and everything.
- Do a puppet show. Build the stage and make the puppets.
What else should we add to the list?