Exercising in 20-degree weather is not for me.
At one point this winter, every state had snow. Snow in the south is not normal and exercising outside in the cold is asking a lot of us warm weather people.
I enjoy a brisk cool walk, but I’m not venturing outside to walk anywhere in below freezing temperatures. So I had to come up with a plan to burn some energy indoors, while watching the snow fall and the water freeze.
With a little creativity, I came up with an exercise plan that kept me active during the few weeks of extremely wintry weather. We’re back up in the 60’s today, so life is once again good. I feel for those of you who have months of extremely freezing weather. You’re welcome to come south and enjoy the sun.
I realized that I could have a fully satisfying workout while stuck indoors. All it took was a little creativity and a desire to get up off the couch.
Consider using these 4 activities to stay fit until it’s warm enough to go outside:
Cleaning the House
I know, not the best idea to start with, but we need to get started somewhere. Household chores are actually helpful when it comes to burning calories. If you’re home and snowed in, you might as well kill two birds with one stone – work out while getting the house tidy
- If your home has multiple bathrooms, you’re in major luck because spending half an hour scrubbing the tubs burns around 200 calories.
- Your windows are probably overdue for a clean. You can burn 125 calories in about 30 minutes wiping them down.
- Reach for that vacuum cleaner and tackle the whole house if you can. Half an hour of vacuuming burns about 90 calories.
What’s in your House?
Look around and see what you can use to your advantage. If you take a moment to look around, you’ll realize that your house has more alternatives for workout equipment than your local gym!
- If you dig through your kids’ bedrooms, you’ll likely be able to find a cute, multi-colored jump rope. As long as you can use it and not knock off the light fixtures or trip yourself, you can expect to burn about 190 calories in 15 minutes or as many as 400 calories in half an hour!
- Your stairs are an excellent exercise tool. Start running up and down those steps for the ultimate workout. Fitness gurus include step exercises in their challenging workouts, so you’ll be on the right track.
- Those little step ladders you have in a closet somewhere are great for stair climbers. Turn your music on and start stepping. You can burn about 100 calories in 15 minutes..
- Putting away laundry and toys seems like an effortless exercise, but if you pack something away in high cupboards you can make it worth your while. Every bit of effort you have to expend to pack stuff away by jumping and tip-toeing is worth every calorie you’ll burn in the process.
Turn on YouTube
YouTube has many exercise routines to offer the most avid exerciser. What’s your exercise passion? You’ll be able to find one to fit your fitness schedule.
Hang out with the kids
Make it a fun day and enjoy yourself romping around with the kids. You’ll get plenty of exercise, burn lots of calories, and make warm memories you’ll all remember for years to come!
If you want to achieve consistency with your fitness efforts, the last thing you should think about is taking a break from exercise because you’re stuck indoors. Take advantage of the weather and get all the exercise you need indoors with these energy burning activities. Share your indoor energy burning activities in our Facebook member’s group – Healthy Living for Life.
