HEALTH

 

As you know, exercise is a key element to keeping a healthy bod, a healthy lifestyle and a healthy life—it’s super important! But the more you perform a certain workout, the better you’ll get at it. Practice makes perfect, right? That means that in order to keep up with your bod’s strength, you need to challenge yourself. Once you feel a certain move or exercise becoming easier, you should either bump up your reps, your minutes or your weight depending on what you’re doing. 

Plus, doing the same thing every day increases your chance of injury from using the same muscles over and over, says Dr. Michael Jonesco, a sports medicine expert at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. When you change things up, your body must "find ways to adapt, whether that’s building bigger and more muscle cells or recruiting more muscle motor units,” Jonesco says. “The end result will continue to be the same: gains in performance and a healthy, happy body.” 

Your body will benefit tremendously from varying activities and routines. You don’t want to get bored, so mix it up! Try everything from yoga to running to biking to swimming to hiking to walking. Below are some tips to keep in mind. 

1. Grab a workout buddy

With more than one brain, there will *def* be more than one idea of how you two (or three!) can exercise. The more people, the more motivation! Not to mention that it’ll be fun and it counts as hanging with your bestie, right?

2. Don’t get in a rut—beat boredom 

By switching things up, not only are you challenging yourself, but you’ll enjoy the workout more. New moves require your brain and body to concentrate, and the stimulation from them will kep you going harder and longer. You will *totally* reap the benefits.

3. Take classes 

Classes are a great way to keep things fresh. Any class you take will be different from a past one in at least one way. Yoga classes are great because they incorportate stretching, muscle strengthening, and you'll leave feeling totally relaxed and refreshed. Sign us up!  

Professionals agree that switching up your fitness routine every couple of weeks is vital, so keep things interesting! And remember: daily exercise also has other great effects such as healthier eating habits, clearer skin, a regular period, and more, so get out there!

What is your go-to fitness routine? How often do you switch things up? Let us know in the comments below!

Photo credit: Instagram.

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by Ellie Pesetsky | 7/31/2017