The COVID-19 pandemic reminded everyone of the importance of physical fitness. With your cardiovascular health and lung capacity greatly impacting your chances of survival, making sure your body’s in perfect shape should be on top of your priority list. And with more than 8.47 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine administered globally, going to the gym and sports centers is once again possible. So, there are really no other excuses left stopping you from working on yourself.
If you’re geared up and ready to be in shape, then one of the best ways to do so is to follow the holy trinity of physical fitness. Working out, practicing yoga, and playing sports. By combining all these three, you’ll be setting yourself up for an easier and more beneficial process of becoming and staying fit.
The Benefits of Working Out
Working out nowadays is primarily done if you’re focused on muscle toning. But more than the aesthetic side of it all, working out presents countless health benefits.
Working out in the gym or even at home helps boost your cardiovascular health. It regulates blood circulation and aids in purging toxins from your blood. It’s also a good way to burn calories, control weight losses and gains, and reduce the risk of heart diseases. Consistent exercising strengthens bones and muscles as well.
Adjusting Your Routine
You can always sneak in a few hours of exercise a day. An early jog after you wake up can help prepare your body and mind for the long day ahead. Working out between 6 to 9 AM is ideal since it will not affect the typical working hours. But even the simplest activities can be useful if you have a busy schedule. Incorporate multiple exercises into your daily routine. Park somewhere farther from the office so you can walk more. Do some squats while working in your cubicle. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. The bottom line is to get moving.
The Benefits of Practicing Yoga
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Contrary to popular belief, yoga is more than just poses and humming. Practicing yoga is mainly known for its mental benefits. It’s therapeutic and helps with de-stressing both the mind and the body. It promotes mental relaxation, clarity, and calmness. It aids in relieving chronic stress patterns and helps in boosting concentration.
But it’s more than that. Yoga also helps improve flexibility ad mobility. Meditative stretching might not have an intensity as high as working out, but it still improves muscle strength, respiration, and cardio and circulatory health. It’s also beneficial in enhancing and maintaining a balanced metabolism.
Adjusting Your Routine
Much like working out, you can also do yoga anywhere you want. If working out in the morning can get your adrenaline pumping and set the tone of your day, doing yoga during work breaks can help you become mentally refreshed for the next half of your day. By doing yoga during your lunch break, you can relieve the stress from the hassles of the morning and prepare your mindset for the stress to come. You’ll be able to reach a calm state that can help you make more sound decisions.
It’s also ideal to do it in the afternoon since your body is likely stiffer in the morning. Practicing yoga when you feel looser can help improve your flexibility faster.
The Benefits of Playing Sports
Participating in sporting events is similar to working out. They both improve cardiovascular health and aerobic fitness. They both help manage weight losses and gains and lower risks of heart complications and diabetes. Working out and playing sports enhance muscular strength, endurance, mobility, and flexibility.
The main difference is that playing sports has a more social approach. You can observe it even from the names people call them. WORK out and PLAY sports. With a more social approach used in playing sports, the chances of staying consistent increase. And that is the key to staying physically fit. If you’re having fun with other people, staying physically active will not seem too strenuous.
Another difference is that most sports usually involve a holistic approach to physical activity. When you play basketball, football, soccer, badminton, and other active sports, your whole body moves. You must run around and use different parts of your body to accomplish different tasks and goals.
Adjusting Your Routine
Scheduling a short pickup game after shift not only helps you exercise but also boosts morale in the workplace. You can cap the night off with a game that will help everyone unwind while getting your sweat on at the same time.
You can also schedule sporting events on weekends and days off to ensure that you stay active even during your downtime.
The bottom line
Staying physically active can help prolong your life. But it doesn’t have to be another strenuous activity that you have to convince yourself to do. By having a variation between the three, you are saving yourself from getting burnt out while staying physically and mentally fit at the same time.
