How to Make Exercise a Daily Habit? 10 Tips to a Healthy Lifestyle

One of the biggest consequences of working in a corporate environment is that many people end up living a sedentary lifestyle that is not good for their health. This is why, if you work in an office all day, you need to have a daily exercise routine to balance out the time you spend sitting behind a desk. 

Many employees are beginning to realize just how dangerous a lack of exercise can be, and have started taking measures to incorporate more physical exertion in their lives. However, while buying a standing desk, as many office workers are doing these days, is a step in the right direction, a lot more still needs to be done. 

If you are trying to find better ways to make exercise a daily habit, the tips in this article may help you. With time, you will find that your exercise routine no longer feels like a task, but rather quite enjoyable the more you do it. Read on to find out more!

Benefits of Exercise Daily and Working Out Everyday

By now, many people have heard about the dangers of not exercising regularly. In the US, heart disease is the leading cause of death, and many cases are because of people consuming too much unhealthy food and then neglecting to exercise. 

Yes, you may have made the health-conscious decision to upgrade to an ergonomic chair for the sake of your posture and lower back, but this does nothing for you in terms of countering your sedentary lifestyle. You need to find ways to get your heart pumping regularly, otherwise, you may suffer serious health issues as you get older. 

Exercising daily can do a lot of good for your health and well-being because it will: 

• Boost your mood
• Improve creativity
• Build agility
• Help you sleep better
• Decrease your future healthcare costs
• Give you more confidence
• Delay onset of dementia
• Decrease your risk of metabolic syndrome

You may come across a few health experts who may warn you about the dangers of too much exercise, which is something you may need to consider while you are creating your daily exercise routine.

However, unless you are going to be going all out and trying to run a marathon every day, exercising daily will not be harmful to you, and will help prevent some of the most serious illnesses that many people struggle with. 

10 Tips to Make Exercise a Daily Habit

If you have decided to take charge of your life by making healthier choices, one of the things you will need is a daily exercise routine. Studies have shown that eating healthy and having good work habits, such as taking regular breaks to exercise, can greatly lower your risks of developing heart disease and diabetes. 

The problem is that many people simply do not know where to start. If you have never been a regular patron at your local gym, you might find that switching from a completely sedentary life to exercising daily may be difficult. 

However, this is a daily habit that you need to develop at all costs, and here are 10 daily fitness tips to help you do it: 

1. Reward Yourself 

Having a daily workout routine can be very strenuous, and there are days when you wish you could just throw in the towel and go back to your old habits. However, you should not give up, and finding fun ways to reward yourself is a great way to keep you motivated and on track. 

You can, for example, tell yourself that you will not be able to enjoy an episode of your favorite series unless you meet a particular exercise target that you have set. This way, when the routing gets difficult, you can simply concentrate on the reward that is waiting for you, and this will help you to push through the pain. 

2. Make Exercising Part of Your Daily Plan

There are many bad work habits that can get in the way of your exercise routine unless you make a conscious effort to have a solid plan that you will stick to. 

A common example is how you will be tempted to spend your break time sitting and chatting with your colleagues in the breakroom when you have already spent all morning sitting in your office.  

Your breaks are the perfect opportunities for you to get some exercise and stretch out your muscles. However, you will only be able to do this if you have a plan for exercise everyday that you will devote yourself to.

3. Sign up for a Class

If you find that you are not enjoying doing your exercise routines on your own, or you are struggling to find new ways to workout, why not consider joining an aerobics or yoga class? Being with other people who share the same goals as you will be a great way to boost your morale and keep things exciting. 

Also, if you sign up for a class at your local gym, you will have the benefit of being guided by a professional instructor who can help you meet your exercise goals. There are many ways that you can injure yourself if you are exercising without proper knowledge of what you are doing. Being part of a class will help you to avoid that. 

4. Exercise While You Sit

Having a good and effective daily exercise routine does not mean you have to break a sweat each time you work out. If you are at work all the time, you might find that you have no time to leave your desk to exercise, and also that you can’t afford to sweat through your work clothes. 

This is why you should consider doing some exercise routines that can be managed even while you are sitting down. With the right exercises, you may even be able to carry on working while you exercise, which is also a great way to boost your productivity.

5. Turn Off Your Gadgets

The temptation to grab your phone and check your social media accounts is something you will have to fight hard to resist. At times, you may intend to just take a quick look at what your friends are up to, and before you know it, an hour has already been wasted. 

If you are going to stick to your exercise routine, you need to consider turning off your phone, tablet, laptop, and TV during the times you have set aside for exercise. At first, you might find this very hard to do because you are not used to the feeling of being disconnected, but with time, you may come to appreciate those moments of peace and isolation as you work to improve your health.

6. Use a Pedometer

Most cell phones these days have step counters (or pedometers) that can help the user keep track of the number of steps they have walked per day. Many experts agree that walking about 10,000 steps per day is a very effective cardio exercise. 

If you make hitting your 10,000-step mark one of your daily goals, you will soon find yourself trying your best to achieve it. This includes making excuses to take the stairs rather than the elevator, and parking your car further from the door just so that you can walk a little bit more. 

7. Exercise Before Eating

Of the many healthy office habits that you can adopt, one of the most effective is teaching yourself to exercise before you eat. If you do that regularly, your body will be able to digest your meal properly. 

Also, when you workout everyday before eating, you can achieve better results in terms of weight loss because you will force your body to use its fat reserves for energy. Next time you are at work, try hitting the gym for a few minutes of intense workouts right before you go for lunch.

8. Keep It Brisk

The advantages of running vs. walking are well documented. You can burn a lot more calories with a short, but intense exercise than you would with a longer, more slow-paced routine. If you want to see great results fast, try sprinting for a short time as part of your daily exercise.

9. Join a Friend

There are times when you may wake up without the willpower to tackle your daily exercise routine. This is when you will find that having an exercise buddy can be very helpful. Joining a friend is a great way to stay motivated and ensure that no matter how you are feeling, you will still manage to complete your exercise session. 

10. Take Small Steps

If your target is to lose a lot of weight, for example, you might find that the task can sometimes feel overwhelming. However, even small workouts are part of the development process for healthy exercise habits. Set small goals that you can attain because every little step will count. 

The great thing about exercising is that you do not need to do it all at once to get the benefits. Even dedicating a few minutes many times during the day will have as much effect as having one long session.

Tips for Making Exercise More Enjoyable

Although the health benefits of exercise are clear, many people still find it hard to enjoy doing it. One of the reasons is that they are thinking of exercising as if it is a chore, rather than something they can enjoy. 

Try the following simple tricks to keep your exercise sessions enjoyable: 

Step Away from the Gym

You do not need to always work out in a gym to benefit from exercising. If you feel like you need a change of scenery, go out and find a new place to do your routines. This is why you sometimes see groups of people exercising in the park or down by the beach. Stepping away from the gym once in a while can blow some fresh wind in your sails, which will help you enjoy exercising, even when doing the same routines you have always done.

Bring Your Friends and Family

When you surround yourself with the people who are closest to you, your daily exercise routine will no longer be something to endure but rather something you can look forward to. Having your family and friends with you while you exercise will help keep you motivated and make the routines a lot more fun. 

Many people are already so busy with work that they hardly find the time to spend with their family members. However, when you exercise daily together, this can be a great time to bond and enjoy each other’s company.

Turn It into a Game

If you can come up with a few health challenge ideas to make your exercise routine feel less like a routine, you will enjoy it a lot more. You can go online and search for exercise games that you can do with your friends and family.

Be Mindful of Your Routine

Sometimes, people forget about the benefits of the exercises they are doing, and start focusing on the pain of working out. However, you should try to remain mindful of each routine that you do, which will help keep things a lot more enjoyable. 

How to Stay Motivated to Exercise?

If you want to stay motivated while doing your daily exercise routine, there are a few things that you can try, such as: 

• Take regular breaks so that you tackle your routine in manageable bite-sized chunks.
• Stay positive even when you do not see any results yet.
• Look back at all the progress you have already made.
• Avoid self-criticism when you fail to reach a target.
• Stay away from negative people who might demotivate you.
• Avoid distractions, such as social media or watching TV. 

Final Thought

If you are thinking of starting a daily exercise routine, you may need to consider investing in some office exercise equipment to help support your new healthy habit. There are many great items you can find online, such as a flow board or an anti-fatigue mat. You can get your hands on one of these and get started on your journey to make exercise a daily habit.