Fitness can be a tricky subject and is actually a very broad one. I personally believe fitness is a personal thing and some folks might prefer some methods over others and that is okay. Fitness is a personal journey and at the end of the day, you need to do what makes you and your body happy. Even if that looks different than what others are doing. Also, in no way am I saying my active ways are the correct ones – these are just ways I like to honour my body and move to stay active. I am an active person even though I never used to be, but in the last two or three years I have become more dedicated to being active. I still do have ‘off’ days where I spend the day lounging around watching movies and I have learnt not to feel guilty about those days. Enjoy the active days and enjoy the rest days. They go hand in hand.
my fitness routine
1. running
I used to hate running. If I could do ANY other activity, I would. This year, I made it my new years resolution to be able to run 5kms without stopping. It might seem like a small feat to some, but to someone who hated running and never ran more than 2km, it was a worthy goal. When the first lockdown hit here in South Africa, I started to run. Purely to get out of the house and get some fresh air (I am blessed to live on a farm where I have many roads to run being surrounded by nature). I started off with 2kms (walking every now and then during the run) and I dedicated to adding 200m on to the distance every run. It took me a few weeks but I eventually was at my goal of running 5kms straight. My time wasn’t the best but that was not as important to me. I was just so happy to have achieved a goal and enjoyed the process of achieving it. The running bug hit me hard. I used to run every second day and I would get frustrated if something came up when I couldn’t go for my run (for example, rainy days). I would try the treadmill but personally, I am partial to road running as I find the fresh air and open spaces help my mind stay focused on my run whereas on a treadmill I find I get bored.
Unfortunately, a few weeks ago I succumbed to a running injury known as Piriformis Syndrome. I haven’t been able to run properly since as I am resting my leg, doing stretches and trying to restore strength in my muscle. I miss it, but I have also learnt I was very much dependent on running to get that “exercise high” and having to take a break has shown me other ways I can keep active.
2. Walking
This might sound basic – but walking has been my main avenue of keeping active in the last few months. Being blessed to living on a farm, I have thoroughly enjoyed walking the farm everyday. I usually walk with my mom and we take the dogs and spend time in nature. We started off with small 3km walks and now we do 10km walks easily! Walking is less taxing on your body, it has helped with my injury recovery and I have learnt to enjoy walking. It is a time where you can think about things you need to or just switch your mind off completely. The added bonus of walking in nature with fresh air helps clear one’s mind.
Walking is also not as easy as it is made out to be. It requires a different kind of fitness and it is a great way to be active while not overexerting yourself. I highly recommend going for a walk to move your body. Does not have to be a long one, even if you walk your dog around the block or something. Get outside, get some fresh air and get active.
3. home workouts
I used to go to the gym to workout and do weight training, but due to lockdown and the gyms closing, I had to make alternative arrangements. I personally enjoy working out. I used to love going to the gym for an hour and doing exercises with weights or body strength. So I made sure that I could still do that from home.
A home workout method I highly recommend is following along to YouTube videos. I have been using MadFit and her real time YouTube workouts and I have been LOVING them. Her workouts are simple and majority of them require NO equipment. All I have here at home with me is a workout mat and a set of weights. I have had no need for any more than that with her workouts. Her workouts are fun, different (there have been some exercises I have never done before but loved learning them), short (varies from 10 minutes to 30 minutes) but still long enough to be productive. She has full body workouts and specific focus workouts that I definitely feel the burn when doing. She has a great personality and her workouts are fun to follow along to. She keeps things interesting and fresh. She also has a bunch of dance workouts which do not even feel like workouts. She does mashups or specific song workouts – I did the Folklore workout and I could definitely feel it in my legs the next day. I highly recommend checking out her YouTube channel! There are also tons of other fitness channels that are similar to follow along, I just found that I like MadFit’s workout style for me personally so I have stayed with her. The real time aspect of the videos make it feel as if you are in a gym class with the instructor.
be active for you
My current fitness routine is doing a 10km walk every second day and on the days between I do an hour MadFit workout session. I also like to have at least one day a week as a rest day – sometimes I take two days if I find my body is tired. I like to stay active but I also try not overexert myself.
Fitness is a very personal journey and I hope you choose to move your body in a way that you find best for yourself. These are the ways I like to stay active on a day to day basis. I find that by keeping active (in whatever form) helps me in so many ways: I sleep better, my mind is in a better space and it helps me feel more focused and awake during the day.
What are the ways you like to stay fit or be active? Share them in the comments below!
All the love, Jay.
Just Jay 