Sometimes, we will be very caught up in life with so many happenings and activities. New-born baby at home or an event which you need to plan and arrange or a hectic job or trying to find work-life balance – there could be many reasons why we run short of time and cannot find time for exercise. But no matter how busy we are, one thing we should take care of is our health. Only when we are healthy, we can do anything productive in life. Without good health, we cannot enjoy our life.
Exercise plays an important role in keeping us healthy. It is the foundation on which good health is built. Daily exercise is not optional, but it’s a basic need of our body irrespective of our age and gender. Some people think only those who want to lose weight needs exercise. This is not true. Every one of us needs exercise because our body is designed to move. Our body’s true nature is movement. With regular exercise, our body functions at its optimum level, and our immunity stays high. We age gracefully, and we remain in better shape and better mood with exercise.
So, no time cannot be a reason for not exercising our body. Many of us really want to exercise, but we may not have enough time to go to a gym and workout or spend 1 hour in walking. So, how to exercise when there is no time to do it? Here are some ideas.
8 ways to exercise when you have no time:
1. Take stairs: Instead of using a lift or an escalator, take stairs. This takes only a few minutes of your time, but it gives some good exercise for the body. Climbing down the stairs is easy, but climbing up the stairs could be challenging. On your day 1 of climbing the stairs, start climbing only the number of steps you are comfortable with and gradually increase the number of steps with each day. Don’t climb stairs beyond your capacity on day one because our body and lungs need time to adapt. The good news is they adapt very quickly and their capacity increase with each day. When you climb beyond your capacity, you feel tired and stressed, and this will make it tough for you to continue this in the future. So, be gradual and regular. With regularity and small improvements every day, very soon, you will be climbing stairs effortlessly.
2. Take a walking break: After every 1 hour of sitting, get up from your chair and walk around. Spend at least 5 minutes in walking. If you are on your job for 9 hours, 5 minutes every hour will make it 45 minutes of walking, which is a very good amount of exercise in a day. Amazing, isn’t it! Walking break not only helps you exercise but also makes you productive in your job. Our mind works best with breaks in between. So, keep a reminder for every hour and take a break!
3. Stretch: When you wake up, nicely do some simple stretches. You don’t need to go anywhere to do stretches. You can do them right in your bed. These stretches give your body the boost and energy for the day. They prepare your body for the day. They also relax you and help you start your day on a positive note. You can spend 5 minutes stretching your body. You can stretch your spine, legs, hands, and neck muscles gently.
4. 5 minutes of Surya namaskara: Surya namaskara has numerous benefits for body, mind, and soul. Just doing this alone can bring the benefits of various other yogasanas. It is easy to do as well and does not need much time. Spend 5 minutes every day in doing surya namaskara before your breakfast. This recharges you and promotes the health of all major organs and complex systems of your body. This also brings mental clarity and emotional strength.
5. Exercise while cooking: Cooking anything takes some time. Even a simple cooking will take 30 minutes of time. So, while the food is being cooked, do some simple exercises for a minute or two. If you cook twice in a day, doing simple exercises while cooking amounts to 5 minutes of exercise in a day. Remember, every small amount of exercise makes a difference to your body and its health.
6. Exercise during ads: While watching a show on TV or a video on mobile, generally, we skip the ads or flip the channels during the ads time. Don’t skip these ads. Use them as reminders to exercise. Whenever you see an ad, make it a point to exercise. Exercise your body during the advertising time. You can do simple stretches or jumping jacks or just walk around. Even if you watch 1 hour of TV in a day, you manage to get 10 to 15 minutes of exercise with this approach.
7. Walk or stand while you are talking on the phone: When you are on a phone call, walk around and talk or at least stand and talk. This gives some exercise for the body without much effort. When we have long calls, doing some exercise while talking helps us get the maximum benefit out of these long calls.
8. Stand up: After every 30 minutes of sitting, just stand up and do simple stretches right at your desk. This adds great value to your health. Sitting continuously is dangerous for health and leads to several health issues.
These are some ideas which help you exercise even when you have no time to exercise. Our body is created that way it is to support movement in life. When we do not move it enough in a day, we are bound to get health issues. Exercise is very important if we want to stay healthy in life. Don’t underestimate the benefits you gain by practicing these little hacks. Incorporate them in your daily life and exercise no matter how busy your life is.
Exercise and stay healthy!
