Work, household chores, errands, playtime, dinner, laundry—with so many things to do and not many hours in the day, finding time to exercise is difficult. To help you fit in the physical activity your body craves, we’ve rounded up some simple, quick workout routines you can fit into your daily schedule. With these fast exercise ideas, you’ll be able to stay moving even when you don’t have time to hit the gym.
“You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.” –John C. Maxwell
Sleeping Beauty Leg Exercise
Wake up and warm up with this in-bed exercise! Lie on your back and lift your legs about 6 inches off the bed. Keep your abs tights, back flat, feet together, arms to your sides, and knees straight as you use your feet to draw small circles in the air without touching the bed. Do 20 circles clockwise and 20 circles counterclockwise.
(Calf) Raise the Bar
Brush up on your calf raises while you brush your teeth! Start flat-footed and raise to your toes until you get a tight flex. Do 3 sets of 20 reps.
At-Work Workout
If you have a desk job, it’s important to get up and move at least every 2 hours. Do some standing stretches for your arms, neck, back, and legs; squat a few times; or walk around your floor or building. The movement helps your body and helps you clear your head and stay productive!
Traffic Jam Session
Stuck in 5 o’clock traffic? Turn up the radio and move to the beat. You’ll burn some extra calories and make the wait a little more fun. For an extra boost, add some ab, glute, or thigh flexing. Just make sure you keep an eye on the road and remember safety first!
In the Hot Seat
Start by sitting up straight. Squeeze your glute muscles and pulse 50 times. Rest for 5 seconds and repeat until you feel a good burn. Take your desk workout a step further and work your thighs too! Place your feet on the floor with your legs together. Press your knees in so you feel your inner thighs working. Pulse 50 times and repeat as desired.
Playtime Meets Gym Time
Make exercise fun for the kids! If you have a baby, hold a plank position on your hands for 30 seconds while your hover over him or her. Lower into a pushup and kiss your baby on the forehead. Come up and repeat as many times as you can. Give your legs some attention by doing wall sits as you read your children a book or review their homework.
Torch Calories—and Grime
Burn calories while you clean the carpet. Push the vacuum only as far as your arm extends and return it to your body without moving your feet. Switch arms every 5 minutes. This quick push-pull motion targets your arm muscles and burns up to 100 calories in 30 minutes! The heavier your vacuum, the more strengthening this exercise is. Use the same method of mopping and sweeping—you’ll burn up to 100 calories in 30 minutes while mopping and 100 calories in 45 minutes while sweeping. Burn a few extra calories and clean the baseboards too!
Burn Calories, Not Dinner
Take advantage of your downtime during dinner! Do some push-ups against the counter while the vegetables cook or jumping jacks while you wait for the water to boil. Do 3 sets of 20 reps of one or both exercises.
Walk Around the Block
There’s nothing wrong with sticking to the classics, and a walk around the block is fun for the whole family. Take your kids, spouse, or dog for a 10-minute walk around the neighborhood. This is a great after-dinner activity to beat a post-meal crash. Plus, you can spend time with your family and stay moving.
Sunset Salutations
Unwind after a long day with a few calming or rejuvenating yoga poses. Pair your practice with your favorite essential oils such as Frankincense, Lavender, or Stress Away™. Try some of our simple, sweat-free yoga poses to get started!
Bonus Tip
Remember to hydrate all day to make your moves most effective and keep your body healthy. Add Vitality™ oils to give your water an extra splash of flavor!
GIVEAWAY
******UPDATE******
Congratulations to Anne D., our lucky giveaway winner! We truly appreciate everyone that shared their quick exercise tips to stay in shape!
What exercise tips help you feel the burn throughout the day? Share your suggestions below for a chance to win 15ml Frankincense, 15ml Stress Away, 15ml Lavender, and Pure Protein Complete Vanilla Spice (valued at $252.30).
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- To enter, simply comment on this post.
- Contest ends at 11:59 p.m., MT, on Thursday September 15th
- One winner will be chosen at random and announced on the blog on Friday September 16th.
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I am a new stay at home mom with a one year old so I tend to try and get my exercise while doing things with her or things around the house. For example, I will do squats when I need to get down towards the floor, do planks while we are laying in the floor (which she also loves because she can stand up and walk around me), do lunges around the house while she was learning to crawl and walk so she would follow me, do tricep curls holding her while laying on my back, do supermans while laying on the floor to play peak a boo. It keeps me motivated because she thinks it is funny seeing mommy move weird. It also gives me my boost of energy mid day along with my Ningxia shot :)
I walk every day with my son and dog! It gets all of us outside and moving! Also, drinking a lot of water! I try to drink 8-10 16 oz glasses of water a day! I absolutely love Lemon and Copaiba oils in my water!
I do my best to take the stairs instead of the elevators at work. Also, if sitting, I do some ab exercises by lifting my feet off the floor and holding it for a few seconds. Nice to squeeze in what I can when I can.
There is a park near my local post office. On the days when I need to go to the post office I walk 4 or 5 laps around the soccer field before coming home. ( 4 laps is a mile, I’ve been told). Then on days when I’m not going to the post office I exercise at home on my own equipment. I never get bored this way, and I never know what I’ll be doing so I stay motivated.
Water aerobics.
I use walking poles for my walk every am,gives a full body workout,.try to walk to run errands when possible.
relax in evening with essential oils and yoga
I bought a Fitbit so I could track my steps and try to get in 10,000/day. Due to an injury I have to break down my walking into 1/2 hr stretches which is how long I can walk at one time, so I walk before work, at coffee break, and at lunch time and then try to fit the rest in as I can. One of the features of the Fitbit is you can set it to remind you to walk 250 steps every hour, this makes it so I get up from my desk and move. I also have to remind myself to drink water :)
I have saved several high intensity interval workouts that take 10-15 minutes to complete on a YouTube playlist. I play them on my iPad down in the basement. I feel great after doing them, they promote long term fat burning and as a mom of four kids the length of time is perfect.
Not something I love, but definitely feel the burn. I run up and down the stairs when cleaning and straightening the house. Instead of filling my arms and struggling to get up the stairs, I take a few items at a time and run up and down them instead. Still get the job done efficiently with a little exercise built in.
While washing up at the sink I do leg exercises shifting side to side, some bending, stand on toes! I love my oils when I’ve done by yardwork! Relieve It, Idaho Balsam Fir, Deep Relief just to mention a few!
I like to sprinkle in balance work throughout the day by balancing on one foot for a minute, and longer if I can do it. Sometimes I do this through the “tree” yoga pose; while putting gas in the car; brushing my teeth, while working in the kitchen. There are many places throughout the day to work on your balance.
Take a virtual trip on the treadmill. Some treadmills have a program which takes you on a virtual walking tour of the Swiss Alps, Italy, national parks, etc. It’s a wonderful way to travel.
I get up early 3 days a week and go to a 5:15 boot camp class before my husband goes to work. If I don’t get it in first thing, it’s not happening!
I started walking in place moves in my bedroom first thing when I get up. I started with 5 minutes and have worked up to 8 minutes, which seems to what fits my schedule and my interest. And doing it every day, I’ve noticed that I’m not as winded going up a flight of stairs as I was, even when I was taking longer walks on the weekend. I think doing something everyday even for only a few minutes works better than trying to cram in a big workout a couple of times a day. At least for me.
I try to get at least 30 min of exercise in each day! I do a workout video on you tube, take a walk on the greenway (right next to my house), I even have been known to run sprints in my driveway! Sometimes my kids join in and we have some fun.
I love getting up with the sun, doing some warm-up stretches, and going for a brisk walk first thing in the morning. I always bring my glass water bottle with me and add 2 drops of either grapefruit or lemon to ice water to wake me up and jumpstart my calorie burn for the day!
Great tips. I will be sharing this on my page.
I love to walk. It helps clear my mind. I am very lucky that I can walk to work. I get prepared in the morning and unwind on my way home! I put my choice of oil in a diffuser necklace and it make the whole journey more relaxing.
I have my cross trainer set up in the lounge room, so I’m reminded to do a session while watching some TV. Super easy! 😊
I love taking walks with my kids! It’s especially great workout if I take the walk during their map turn, then I can walk a little faster. It’s very relaxing and enjoyable!
I love to walk the trail every morning next to the river but to give myself an extra boost, I will jog up all the hills.
I stay really well hydrated, but that also means I need to use the restroom a lot. It’s a great way to get up and move, though! I try to use the one restroom furthest away from my desk, and take the stairs to get there.
Grapefruit VitalityLemon Vitality,Peppermint Vitality and Cinnamon Bark Vitality are added to my Ningxia Red I drink every morning. Doing exercise in the pool is less stress on my body andhelps me relax and sleep better at night.
I love to do a morning walk on the trail next to the river but in order to give myself an extra boost, I will jog up all the big hills.
I made the switch to a stand-up desk about a year ago. Being able to do calf-raises, leg raises, and to dance to Pandora while working are great benefits to keeping my body moving all day instead on only sitting. Choosing the larger desk is key to having to take a step to each side to reach my calculator and files!
Grapefruit,Lemon,Peppermint and Ocotea are added to my Ningxia Red I drink every morning. Doing exercise in the pool is less stress on my body andhelps me relax and sleep better at night.
Simple things can add up to lots of extra steps! Using stairs, parking in a farther away spot and going to see someone at work rather than IM’ing them or calling are some of my fav ways to add in some extra steps towards my daily goal!
Yoga is my go to exercise!!
Having 3 boys under 5. And all mobile and active I find it best to keep up with them. As much as possible. Going on walks with them always has me chasing after one at least a few times which includes sprinting. As well as varying my 8month old while playing on the playground with my 2 yr old and 5 yr old. And same goes for when in our backyard. While In home I will incorporate lifting my kids in the air in 10 reps at a time. Lounges while holding my kids ect…..
Riding bikes to the park with my children. I take them the long way so we can get a little extra distance in. And have little races to get the blood pumping a little 😊
My excerise tip is plan fun, movement activities with kids each day! They help keep me going and they’re a woot! A day at the zoo walking around, exploring the park, toddler movement class, playing outside, riding bikes around the neighborhood, swim class etc! Just keep moving!!!
The calf raises, for sure, get a burn!!!
In the Hot Seat! I just started doing it today, and I love it!
I already do several of these but haven’t tried the first one. I will be trying the in bed leg lift and ankle rotations tomorrow morning. Hoping to me walking in the morning a bit more comfortable.
Love getting exercise while I walk our dog!
I love jogging through the outdoors with my 2 doggies :) I work at a gym so I’m constantly in a gym setting, learning new tips from personal trainers and watching the classes. I love doing tabata intervals where it gets your heart rate elevated with a few breaks to bring it down again. It is a huge fat burner and a really great way to push yourself and see how far you can go from day 1 to day 30. Yoga afterwards is a must to increase flexibility and stretching of the worked muscles. Then if I’m really sore the next day ill rub some oath ease or use some pan away in a whipped butter to relax the nerves and muscles :D
Daily walks with my 70 pound dog and 16 month old baby girl! I feel the burn in my arms as I 1) tug on the leash, and 2) hold my little one with my other arm! Who needs a stroller when this is GREAT exercise!! 😉😀
I babysit so I try to work in some extra moves with the toddlers by playing fun games. I do “marching” games, (I lift my knees up as far as I can), “elephant walk”, (to strengthen my arms and tighten my glutes), things like that. I think my lungs must be in the best shape because those little ones are so cute trying to copy me, I get plenty of laughing and giggling!
Push ups against the shower wall helps to get the blood pumping and getting clean at the same time! Win! Win!
I love dancing – jitterbug, just dance, Zumba or just moving to the music i feel is a fun way to get my exercise!
When I go to jazzercise I put on peppermint to give me a little boast of energy. When I’m really tired I take Nitro before going to work or going to exercise class and it really energizes me.
In addition to many of the tips shared in the article, when I am working at my desk I always make a point to do some deep breathing exercises. I also do this when I first go to bed at night while diffusing my sleep and breathe support essential oils. Your body needs a good amount of oxygen to facilitate feeling the burn! Don’t forget to breathe!
To keep my ab muscles toned I regularly imagine a cord pulling my navel back to my spine. It feels good to feel my muscles working even f I’m not “exercising” at the time.
While relaxing and watching television at night, i work on stretching, especially focusing on legs after running!
For a well rounded routine I include yoga, high intensity interval training and weight training to incorporate a holistic approach to my fitness routine. . . . energetic workouts, calming connection to my body and building strength physically, mentally, spiritually. :)
Start slowly!! If no equipment or gym is available, put on some music and start dancing!! Stop when you need to and enjoy yourself!! Put some En-ER-Gee on your feet and Joy over your heart and get moving!!
My son loves to ride his firetruck while I walk every evening. We high five chase each other, having a great time.
I love my Ningxia Red every day in a veggie/fruit smoothie, yoga stretches 2-3imes a day along with peppermint and clarity diffused not maximum focus at work and long walks with my dog every evening.
Taking daily walks in my neighborhood
I like to play chase with my 1 1/2 year old son. He thinks it is a hilarious and he is really fast so I get a good workout.