You hear everyone talking about the health benefits of regular exercise, but how many do you actually know? In case you need a brief rundown on why it’s important to get in a workout every now and then, here are a few that can motivate you. First and foremost, exercise is a great way to build and tone your muscles, as well as strengthen your bones, leading to more strength and a more leaned out appearance.
This is usually the advantage of exercise that people are most familiar with, but there are so many more advantages to getting a regular sweat session in. Physical activity can help boost your energy and mood levels, while also increasing your confidence and improving your overall mental health. It also boosts cognitive performance in areas like memory retention, concentration, focus and critical thinking.
And while exercising is great for weight management and loss, it can also keep you healthy in the long term by significantly reducing your risk of developing certain chronic illnesses like diabetes, heart disease, certain cancers, hypertension, high cholesterol and more. Other notable advantages include improved skin health and appearance and better quality of sleep.
There’s really no downside to starting your fitness journey, but it’s still something many hesitate to do, mainly because of fear and intimidation. When you think of working out, chances are that your mind conjured up images of the gym with all the difficult machines and unfamiliar equipment that come with it. Along with those, you might also be imagining some regular gym members that clearly know what they’re doing, making you feel incompetent.
It’s a very understandable fear, but there are also ways to avoid it completely until you feel ready for it. Here are some easy and simple exercises that you can try out!
Pilates
Pilates is the workout that the entire internet is obsessed with! While impossible to pinpoint what exactly led to the instant popularity of this form of exercise, it definitely has something to do with celebrities and social media influencers getting into it, as well as the growing accessibility of it with content creators posting full body workouts online for everyone to try out.
Pilates is a low impact exercise that aims to improve strength, flexibility and balance, while also practicing the art of mindfulness through slower movements and focused breathing. Pilates specifically targets the muscles of the core, the back, the pelvic floor while also engaging the muscles of the arms, legs and glutes.
This workout is great for beginners because it does a great job establishing your fitness foundations by helping develop your strength and muscle tone, while also keeping you calm and centered, taking out the initial fear of exercising that everyone feels at the start. You’ll also be able to see a lot of progress with Pilates because of how it really engages every muscle in your body through controlled movements.
Yoga
If you’re someone who hates the idea of hard and intense workouts, then yoga is definitely something that you should try. Yoga is a calm yet effective form of exercise that combines physical postures, breath control, meditation and ethical guidelines to establish a connection between the mind and body. This allows for a more mindful and centered form of physical activity, while still getting the benefits in terms of strength, flexibility, balance and well-being.
Apart from these benefits, many individuals also prefer doing yoga for a few other reasons like stress reduction, relaxation, self-exploration and much more. It’s a great way to get your blood flowing in a soothing and relaxing way, and there are many available videos online that you can try out to get started.
HIIT
High intensity interval training (HIIT) is a form of exercise that focuses on exerting maximum effort in short periods of time. The idea behind it is that these short bursts of energy followed by periods of rest or lower intensity activities will challenge the endurance and stamina of your cardiovascular system, as well as your muscles. There are many different forms of HIIT like running, cycling, bodyweight exercise and more.
This is a great way to get fit if you’re someone who wants to burn a lot of calories but don’t necessarily have a lot of time to spare. The higher intensity of HIIT allows you to get an effective workout in a much shorter time compared to other forms of exercise, and the great thing is that you’ll definitely still get all the benefits of working out. It’s also great if you’re someone who wants a bigger physical challenge.
The great thing about exercising is that it doesn’t have to happen in a gym! You’ll be surprised what you can do in the comfort of your own home with just some comfortable workout clothes, a yoga mat, some running shoes and maybe some equipment if you’re feeling up to it!
For anyone looking to start their fitness journey, visit Temu to find everything you’ll need. Temu is the newest online shopping platform making waves online for its high quality and affordable products. With over 29 categories and 250 subcategories of items to choose from, there’s something for everyone over at Temu!
Check out Temu’s official website or download the mobile app today!