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
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.
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.
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!
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!
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.
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.
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!
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.
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.
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!
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!
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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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!