Exercise! It’s Not as Hard as You Think……

It is January, and that can only mean one thing. Overcrowded gyms filled with people executing New Year’s Resolutions, sweating through short-lived exercise programs.

We all know exercise is important to our health, but it is difficult to sustain consistency.

exercise cartoon 2

Courtesy depositphotos.com/ronleishman/edits by author

In the midst of all this pressure, there is an appalling health warning that ‘sitting is the new smoking.’

This is bad news for exhausted people with desk jobs who drive everywhere, and vegetate in a recliner every night before falling into bed. For some of these sedentary slugs, the only movement in their lives happens in the bathroom after their morning coffee.

But what if this ‘bad news’ presents new and improved options for people who need more exercise? After all, if merely standing represents increased activity, think of all the other possibilities.

I’ve come up with a preliminary list of ‘new’ exercises:

    • Treading water is the new swimming
    • Going up and down stairs is the new hiking
    • Getting in and out of a chair is the new calisthenics
    • Stretching before getting out of bed is the new yoga
    • Crossing legs is the new kick boxing
    • Wriggling in and out of a wet bathing suit is the new water aerobics
    • Bending arm to sip wine is the new biceps curl
    • Staying in bed is the new resistance training
    • Pointing toe is the new ballet
    • Kegel exercise is the new core strengthening
    • Bellying up to the bar is the new ab workout
    • Retrieving eyeglasses from under the bed is the new squat
    • Coughing is the new deep breathing
    • Shivering is the new aerobics
    • Scraping ice off windshield is the new endurance training
    • Shoveling heavy snow is the new power lifting
    • Falling on the ice is the new gymnastics
    • Walking with crutches is the new cardio

Who needs a gym membership or a personal trainer when you can integrate these exercise into your everyday life?

Okay readers, what about your “new” workout ideas for 2016? Can you add to my list? Ready, set, go!

Molly Stevens

About Molly Stevens

Molly Stevens arrived late to the writing desk but is forever grateful her second act took this direction instead of adult tricycle racing or hoarding cats. She was raised on a potato farm in northern Maine, where she wore a snowsuit over both her Halloween costume and her Easter dress.