Tips for sticking with your summer exercise plan
During summer’s warmer weather and longer days, it’s easier to get outside and get moving. Yet, how many of you have gotten off to a great start with your summer exercise plan, and then after a few days or weeks, feel frustrated or bored with your routine?
For example, I used to be very active in my vegetable garden in early spring, and then neglect that physical activity as the summer moved on. But over the years, I’ve discovered some ideas that really help me keep exercising part of my daily routine.
Here’s what keeps me moving
• Do what you enjoy. No matter what activity you choose to do, make sure it’s something you like doing. If it’s not, you’re less likely to stick with it — and the benefits of exercise only last as long as you continue to do it. Don’t hesitate to try something different for inspiration!
• Set reachable goals — both short- and long-term. Nothing keeps you motivated like success! By setting doable goals, you’ll stay motivated as you reach them — and look forward to the next ones. And don’t forget to celebrate when you do. I love to play golf, so I make a game of congratulating myself for good shots or new techniques I have mastered.
• Make sure your plan fits your lifestyle. I don’t like to sit at my desk all day, so I jump up to do in-office errands frequently and hop on my whole body vibration machine to break up my work day.
• Consider joining an exercise group. I know I need more aerobic exercise, but I am somewhat lazy about getting enough, so I joined a local biking group. Biking with others turns my exercise into a fun, community-building activity. Gina our exercise expert also offers weekly bone health exercise zoom meet ups in her virtual Exercise Evolution group. These ladies have fun, build community, and also get stronger together!
• Plan for a rainy day. No matter how well you plan, there are always days when it’s harder to get going than others. Keep track of your most common obstacles, like weather or last-minute errands. You may spot some patterns and be able to figure out strategies to overcome them. Some of my favorite ways to avoid weather limitations are using a weighted vest around the house while doing my housework. You can find many of my favorite bone-building exercise devices in our shop.
• Remember all the different ways you’re supporting your bones, such as maintaining and/or increasing muscle and bone strength, as well as balance, flexibility, stability, and emotional well-being. Every day you exercise, you’re supporting your bones. Congratulations!
• Finally, if you have special health concerns, it might be wise to check with your healthcare practitioner before beginning any exercise routine.
For other ways to help you stay motivated with exercise — and for many other opportunities to grow and change — I’ve developed my weekly Transformational Challenge. Here’s my fun challenge to power up your walking to get started.
Every day is a new opportunity to grow and transform our body, mind and spirit.
In yoga, you don’t lift weights or do high impact movements, but research is clear that yoga can help build and maintain bone strength. In a two-year study by Loren Fishman, MD, women with an average age of 68 who did yoga classes gained bone density while those who didn’t lost bone. I’ve seen the power of yoga in my clinical practice too! In many years of clinical practice, my only patient who didn’t lose any bone during her menopause transition was a yoga instructor who taught classes every day.
Anthropologists discovered this when comparing the bones joints modern humans and chimpanzees and from fossils of extinct humans.