Freshen Up Your Exercise Routine!
by Taylor Smith, CHOP5 Wellness Blogger
Are you tired of the same old exercise routine? Do you feel unmotivated to work out? Do you need less or more intense exercise methods? Have you considered finding a new way to move your body and feel good? Well, whatever your reason is for seeking a different exercise method, look no further because I have ideas for you!
Various Ideas to Move Your Body
- Biking
- Yoga
- Pilates
- Running
- Lifting
- Boxing
- Tennis
- Pickleball
- Circuits
- Hiking
- Jump Rope
- Walking
- Sprints
You may be asking, why is it important to vary your exercise methods? It is very important because it allows you to create a new stimulus, which creates more progress over time. Varying your exercise methods also helps to decrease injury risk and beat workout boredom, among many other benefits! There are five main types of exercise that I will explain below. I urge you to incorporate at least two different methods into your life!
5 Main Types of Exercise
1. Strength Training
Benefits:
- Building muscle matters as your strength and muscle health are leading factors in longevity
- Enhance your quality of life—doing activities that strengthen and build lean, active muscle can help reduce the risk of chronic disease, improve mobility and function, and protect brain health
- Manage weight (increase your metabolism to help you burn more calories)
- Sharpen your thinking skills/boosts brain health
Examples of Strength Training:
Weight-bearing exercises: any activity in which you hold yourself up against gravity (example: you stand up during the move) is a weight-bearing exercise.
- Running
- Dancing
- Climbing stairs
- Jump rope
- Hiking
- Cross-country skiing
- Standing yoga poses
- Body-weight squats
- Standing bicep curls
Non-weight bearing exercises: usually involve sitting, lying, or using strength machines; place less stress on the joints and can be helpful for anyone with joint issues and mobility restrictions; isolates specific muscles.
- Calisthenics = whenever you’re using your own body weight as resistance
- Pushups, squats, mountain climbers, pull ups, planks, glute bridges, lunges, handstands, etc.
- Leg presses
- Rowing
- Swimming
- Seated rows
- Biking
- Leg extensions
- Seated bicep curls
- Hamstring curls
Weightlifting: the ultimate strength-building exercise.
- Dumbbell exercises – rows, dumbbell lunges
- Barbell exercises – bench press, deadlifts, back squats
- Exercise machines
- Resistance bands
- Kettlebells – kettlebell swings
- Medicine balls
2. Aerobic Training
a. Aerobic training is any activity that you do for more than a few minutes at a time.
b. Your body uses your aerobic energy system for power. And, because that metabolic system uses oxygen to help create energy, your breathing rate increases.
c. The CDC recommends that adults get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise each week.
Benefits:
- Helps you lose weight/maintain a healthy weight
- Helps increase your stamina, fitness, and strength
- Wards off viral illnesses
- Reduce your health risks
- Helps manage chronic conditions
- Strengthens your heart
- Keeps your arteries clear
- Boosts your mood
- Stay active and independent as you age
- Increases lifespan
Examples of Aerobic Training:
- Swimming
- Rowing
- Cycling
- Dancing
- Hiking
- Aerobic intervals – alternate periods of work and rest (example: sprint for 30 seconds and recover at a jog for one minute and repeat)
- Interval training ideas – treadmill, track, bike, pool, jump rope
3. Balance & Stability Training
Balance is partly a matter of developing your small stabilizer muscles that provide support and keep you steady.
Benefits:
- Improving your balance can help you avoid falls and stay active and independent
- Reduces the risk of lower-extremity injuries, such as knee or ankle injuries
- Prevents falls
- Body awareness/Improves proprioception (the ability to know where you are in space)
- Reaction time
- Long-term health
- Coordination
- Joint stability
Examples of Balance & Stability Training:
4. Coordination & Agility Training
Agility is the ability to move quickly and easily.
Benefits:
- Helps prevent falls and injuries by improving your reflexes, coordination, and focus
- Improves your movement, skill, and body awareness
- Improves your coordination and balance
- Increased cognitive function
- Improves your recovery times
Examples of Coordination & Agility Training:
- Agility ladder exercises
- VertiMax
- Lateral plyometric jumps
- Forward running, high knee drills
- Lateral running, side-to-side drills
- Dot drills
- Jump box drills
- Shuttle runs
5. Flexibility & Mobility Training
a. Flexibility is the ability of your muscles to stretch
b. Mobility is being able to move your joints and tissues through their full range of motion
Benefits:
- Muscles that are flexible and strong are less prone to injuries
- Regularly working on flexibility and mobility will help you age better—move more freely, do your favorite activities without pain or injuries, and be independent for longer
- Less pain
- Improved posture and balance
- Positive state of mind
- Greater strength
- Improved physical performance
Examples of Flexibility & Mobility Training:
- Dynamic stretching (BEFORE workout)
- Static stretching (AFTER workout)
- Endurance strength
- Myofascial release (AKA foam rolling)
- Ballistic stretching
- Active isolated stretching
- Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation
Whether you are exercising for functionality or sports or Olympic level training, all these exercises are for YOU! You have the power to tailor your exercises to your needs and goals! And what better than a delicious chopped salad to keep you energized and moving towards your goal. If you are near Columbus (Upper Arlington and Polaris) or Orlando, give us a call!
