"I put instant coffee in a microwave and almost went back in time."

Stephen Wright

10 Ways to Make Fitness Fun

I don't know about you, but I'm lazy by nature. Sure, there are those out there who just take to exercise, any exercise. And you'd think, working in the fitness industry, I'd be one such soul. No such luck. If it's not fun, I've got Boston Legal on TiVo and that's going to take priority.

Because of this, when I was in my mid-twenties and decided to turn my life around, the eating part was easy—but the getting-in-shape part? Oy vey! After a few false starts, I discovered the trick, ultimately, was to make working out fun. Once that happened, it all fell into place.

How'd I do it? Well, here are a few ways. Enjoy!

1. Try something new. Sure, for best results, Power 90 requires 90 days, but after those three months, go do something else! After a fitness boot camp like that, you'll be amazed at the things you can now do—jog, rock climb, yoga, rollerblade, you name it. Not only will this motivate you, but you'll be cross training, working your muscles in new ways to prevent plateaus and increase results!
   


2. Play a sport. You'll see a lot of the benefits of number 1, plus you'll get the camaraderie of playing on a team. Furthermore, you armchair quarterbacks can finally put your money where your mouth is. If you're concerned that you'll make a fool of yourself, don't stress. Check with your local town hall or YMCA for sports classes and leagues filled with people at your level.
   


3. Get a buddy. Okay, so rugby might be a little intimidating. Why not settle for a workout buddy? It's a lot easier to try new things as a team. Start with walking and go up from there. Try tennis, hopscotch, anything. My personal favorite is grabbing an amigo and hitting the rock climbing gym. It sounds a lot scarier than it is. Believe it or not, you'll be scaling walls after as little as 30 minutes of training.
   


4. Get the whole family involved. For some of us, our exercise time conflicts with family time—so mix the two. Go hiking, skiing, or set up a little Sunday touch football. Kids have tons of energy. Use that to your advantage!
   



5. Go dancing. Single? Hate sports? Hit the dance floor. Dancing is a great aerobic exercise because it's easy to get lost in the music and spend hours shaking your thing.
   




6. Use an MP3 player. Same thing. Get one, plug in your favorite tunes and even the most repetitious chore becomes a rockin' good time.
   




7. Bedroom athletics. Okay, this is a family company, so here's a tough one to talk about. Suffice it to say two things. First, what goes on behind closed doors can burn tons of calories. Second, the more imagination you use, the harder you work. 'Nuff said.
   


8. Shop it up. On to another vice. You're working hard and your body's getting ripped. Time to reap the rewards and support the economy, all at once. Ladies, low-ride jeans and midriff tops aren't just for Jennifer Aniston. Guys, put the XXXL Hawaiian shirt away. It's time for a fitted tee.
   


9. Fitness vacations. The conventional wisdom is that time off is meant for lounging. Forgetaboutit! Go mountain biking in Moab! Go surfing in Fiji! Go camping! Not the outdoors type? Take a cruise and sign up for every activity you can! Or head to a beautiful location for a weekend fitness camp.
   


10. Share your wisdom. Odds are, you know more about fitness than you think you do. Guiding other people through the journey can be super rewarding. Start on the Beachbody Message Boards—tons of questions there. Who knows? It might even lead to a career in the fitness industry. But wait a minute. That would be about having fun in your job, and that's an article for another time . . .

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If you cut these things from your diet and do nothing else, you'll get slimmer and life will get better.

1. High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). I'd say all refined sugar but, somehow, I think this will be enough, since America's lobbied itself into almost all sweet junk food. It's not that HFCS is tons worse than sugar, but it has the lowest bottom line, meaning that it's added to the cheapest, and hence, worst-quality foods (using this last word very loosely).
   


2. Soda. Since cutting out item #1 eliminates sugared sodas, this rule is for diet soda. Filling yourself with phosphoric acid and aspartame is just not the cornerstone of a healthy lifestyle. Its zero cals are worse than nothing, since it negatively affects your body's ability to utilize nutrients for the other foods you eat.
   


3. Prepared dressings. I don't know who decided it's a good idea to douse vegetables with this stuff, but most salad dressings are a disgusting concoction of chemicals and trans fat, usually with some sugar thrown in. Stick with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, and your body will love you for it.
   


4. Margarine. Okay, there are some newer and better fake butters in the world, but you need a trained eye to pick them out. Keeping products with this word in them from appearing at the checkout counter will keep your arteries open for business.
   


5. Animal fats. If you eat meat, you can't cut this stuff out, but if you always opt for the low- or nonfat version of animal fats (except fish) you'll be way better off. Your body needs fat, but try to get yours from nuts, seeds, olives, and such.
   


6. Salt. Your body also needs salt. And the more you exercise the more salt you need. However, if you ever eat at restaurants, they ensure you're getting plenty. A good-sized "healthy" burrito has enough salt to get you through a moderately active day. With this in mind, it's hard to envision a scenario where you'd want to add salt to your food. So unless you're training for a triathlon, leave the salt shaker on the shelf.

For questions and/or comments on this article, please email us at mailbag@beachbody.com.

Responses to your questions may be seen at Steve Edwards' Mailbag.

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