10 Tips To Make Exercise More Enjoyable

Exercise is my passion and I’m always so motivated to share everything I know with the Sweat community. But even I still find that some workouts can get repetitive, especially cardio at home! So I thought I would put together a few of my best tips to keep exercise interesting to help you get through those tough times!

How to make exercise more enjoyable

Exercise should be something that you can look forward to! If you get into a rut, here are a few ideas that can help you get your workout motivation back. 

1. Keep it real

If you’ve never run 5km, then setting out to run a marathon will probably result in injury! Start with an achievable exercise goal. You will get stronger as time progresses. 

Focus on developing ‘body positivity’ and you’ll start to respect your body and accept it for where it is right now. This will motivate you to take care of your body with healthy meals and regular exercise. 

If you are just getting started on your fitness journey, the High Intensity with Kayla program has four beginner weeks to help get you started. You can modify the exercises and repeat these weeks as many times as you need to. Be accountable to yourself, and listen to your body! 

2. Try something new and different

If you aren’t enjoying the exercise that you are doing at the moment, that could be a sign that it’s time to change your workout. If you are using the Sweat app, try a challenge or have a go at a quick workout! 

3. Keep the workout short (but intense)

Make your workouts more exciting by keeping them short but intense. If your workout is getting too easy, increase the weight. You can also try taking shorter rest breaks so that your heart rate stays high (not stopping to chat or scroll through Instagram!) and the workout will be even quicker. 

I like using music to ramp up the intensity of my workouts. You can listen to my playlists in the Sweat app if you have an Apple Music or Spotify account.

4. Join a challenge

Participating in a challenge can keep you motivated. Many gyms or studios also have regular challenges that you can get involved with, or you can create a challenge of your own with friends!

5. Involve your community

This could mean scheduling a family walk or having a friend or family member who checks in to make sure that you have made time to look after yourself each day. Finding a workout buddy can keep you accountable and help you to stay on track. 

It’s much easier to stick to an exercise routine with the support of the people you care about!

6. Track your progress

Whether you use a phone, a watch or other activity tracker, or you just write down your exercise achievements in a notebook, keeping track can keep you motivated. 

7. Go outside

Why not get some Vitamin D while you exercise? The gym isn’t for everyone. My workouts are designed to be done anywhere — at home, in the gym or even in a local park. 

8. Set a goal

A goal gives you focus and motivation. When you set your fitness goal, make sure that is it specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. Examples of SMART goals include committing to a 12 week program like BBG or BBG Stronger or setting a goal to be able to do 10 full push-ups by a certain date. Choosing a fitness goal that is meaningful and fun will help you to stay motivated to achieve it. 

9. Make exercise fit into your lifestyle

When exercise is part of your lifestyle, you don’t have to work hard to make time for it. This can be as simple as developing an attitude to ‘move more’ throughout the day. For example, you might park the car further from your destination and walk, or commit to getting up and moving around regularly at work.

10. Focus on the benefits

Don’t focus on the difficulties of adding regular exercise into your routine, focus on what you will gain! Not only can you get a better sleep when you workout you may also find that you have more energy. Exercise can help with mental clarity so you’ll be more focused at work and throughout your daily life. Doing a fun workout in the middle of a stressful week can reduce your stress and help you to feel more balanced and in control. 

There are heaps of physical benefits to working out, including a healthier cardiovascular system, stronger muscles, and generally just feeling great! 

Fun workouts are the best workouts!

I bet that once you start making working out more enjoyable you’ll find it much easier, and you’ll push yourself harder too. 

If there aren’t enough reasons to make exercise fun here, see what my community recommends!