By Jenny Gusella
These days there are endless workout options, from spinning to barre to HIIT to personal training, bootcamps, home DVDs and more. There’s also tons of information and scientific research floating around about the benefits of one workout versus the next. With your head spinning from information overload, you finally decide to seek an expert opinion, so you ask a trainer like me, “OK. Tell me the truth. What is the best workout?”
The best workout is the one that you will actually do. Whether it’s because it’s the quickest, or you love the instructor, or your friends go to that gym, or your favorite coffee shop is next door, or because you genuinely love the workout, there is no reason too small if that reason is enough to get you to complete the workout.
The human body is much more simple than we think. Eat food, move around, sleep, repeat tomorrow. Of course, in between those things is an entire life – a career, familial responsibilities, not to mention social pressures, self-doubt, etc. All of those things complicate the basics, but you have the power to uncomplicate fitness. Are you stressed that you don’t have an hour to spare to workout? Simple solution: do a 45 minute workout. Are you dreading doing that 3 mile run you promised yourself you’d do? Simple solution: Don’t do the run. Do some squats, lunges and pushups, or go for a bike ride, or walk your dog.
Yes. I just said, “don’t do the run.” Running in particular is a topic that comes up so often in this line of work. So many of us dread running, and yet force ourselves to do it anyways, as if it’s some sort of requirement. I am here to tell you: YOU DO NOT NEED TO RUN IF YOU DON’T WANT TO. Ever. (Unless you’re being chased.) I am also here to tell you that you do not need to be “a runner” to go on some runs. If you like it, do it, if you don’t, do something else. It truly is that simple. Think about Forrest Gump. Why did he start? “I just felt like running.” Why did he stop? “I’m pretty tired. I think I’ll go home now.”
The next time you find yourself in a workout rut and are about to ditch the gym, ask yourself if there’s maybe another physical activity you’d rather do instead, and try to direct yourself down that route. Don’t worry if your workout doesn’t “scorch the most calories” or “target 90% of your muscles” – just move!