We’re having a garage sale this weekend. We’re cleaning out all the clothes that no longer fit my daughter and we’re putting out for sale everything from shoes to pants to dresses and more. We’re cleaning out cupboards in the kitchen too and selling a dish set that we never use and much more.
You can do more to clean up your fitness act than just cleaning out the closets. Let’s talk about how we can give our fitness routines a spring/summer spruce and get rid of the parts of your routine that aren’t doing it for you anymore.
How to Evaluate Your Workout
In years previous, I’ve gone to a personal trainer for an hour or two when I’ve wanted to spruce up my fitness routine. The personal trainer would evaluate where I was at and how difficult the routine was. The personal trainer could then reorganize the workout, adding some new exercises to it and cutting the ones that were either too easy or not targeting the areas I wanted to hit.
What exercises should you keep and what should you get rid of?
- Lunges – Keep them because they work the major muscle groups in your legs including your quadriceps, buttocks and hamstrings. They also improve balance and more
- Cardio – Keep your cardio, you may want to swap the treadmill for the bike or the elliptical or the stair climber. I like to swap cardio out every three months in order to give my muscles a bit of a shock and to keep building all over endurance
- Sit ups – Sit ups are good, but don’t just stick with the old tried and true standards – try bicycle sit ups or using a balance ball to do your sit ups with
- Upper body workout – using free weights? Try switching to resistance bands or using resistance equipment
Reassess your goals. When you first started working out, what was your major goal? Did you want to lose weight? Did you want to shape up? Were you looking to build endurance? My spring workout was all about endurance, well now that I have my endurance back up – it’s time to focus on shaping. I want to trim some excess inches and more.
Resolutions & More
Consider going out and buying yourself some new workout clothes. You don’t have to if you don’t need them. But I like to pick up a new yoga top or workout shorts because for whatever reason, retail therapy acts like a great spruce for the fitness plan. If you haven’t replaced your walking shoes in the last six to ten months, it might be time to choose some new shoes for your feet. Take care of your feet and they will take care of you.
Finally, take a look back at your New Year’s Resolutions. Where are you with them? Have you slipped away from the track to get to those resolutions? Do you even want to continue with those resolutions or are you ready to set new ones? After all, you don’t just make resolutions at New Year’s.
How can you spruce up your fitness plan?
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