Variety is Healthy

As we get further into the year, there are more challenges that come our way. Work gets busy, family has needs, friends want to you to go places and see things. In other words, life happens. The gung-ho New Year’s resolution setters are already packing it in and assuming that only the die-hards are still using the gym or the running trails.
It is an easy assumption to make. After all, you did try many things over a long period of time before giving up. You did try many things, right? You did stick with it for a long time…right?

Sadly, the answer is often no to these questions. The more I think about it, the more I realize that it’s not just one question or another. These questions are actually answering each other. You can’t try many things if you don’t stick with it long enough. You also will have trouble sticking with it if you don’t try many things to find one that you really like.

Variety is not just a fun thing to enjoy. Variety is a factor in your health. If you get some variety you can live healthier. By applying the literal meaning of the word variety to your daily routine, you are able to improve your health. Think about it: what do you do all day? Work. It is the same day in and day out, right? Throwing some exercise into the mix would provide health benefits, but more importantly, it would make your day more fun.

Variety is something we all want. If we have options and get to choose the ones we like best, we are always happy. There is nothing else that makes us happier! You’ve heard the saying: “Variety is the spice of life.”. It’s true.

Die-hard exercise folks know this. They know that when given a choice, life is more fun. They have chosen to exercise. Within that choice, they also know that they have many other choices. They can do whatever they want for exercise.

If you show me someone that is on track with an exercise routine, I will show you someone that knows their options and chooses the option or options that they enjoy the most. It makes sense that they are exercising regularly because they have chosen something that they enjoy. If you don’t enjoy an option, you won’t do it. Sure, you may try it once, but you won’t go back and that one workout session will not help you in the long-run.

When the long-term exercisers look at the long-run, they are not worried about the fact that they may not want to do it next week or next month. They are looking forward to doing it again and again. There are a few ways you can get to the point that you are looking forward to exercise:

1. Try many modes of exercise

By definition, variety means having different forms or types. When starting an exercise routine, plan to try new and different things. Going to the gym is one thing. The countless things you can do in the gym offer you a chance to do many things and see many good results.

2. Try many ways within each mode

- Location: I enjoy running. What I don’t enjoy is running in circles or covering the same route over and over again. I have many routes mapped out and I try to rotate them throughout the week, so I am seeing different sites, covering different profiles (hills, flat, both) and surfaces (sidewalks, paved paths, roads, etc.). If I had to run the same route every day, I would get bored and quit.

- Intensity: Running is another good example of intensity options. Long and slow is one way to do it. Short and fast is another way to complete a good run. There are benefits to both on their own and by mixing it up, you can keep your routine fresh

- Time: Sometimes time gets the best of us all. Squeezing in a quick workout has to be an option if you want to be successful at fitting exercise into your routine. You can do this even if you have time. Just try to keep intensity up and keep workouts shorter if you feel that you are having trouble fitting them in.

I could go on for pages about different ways to change up your workouts. That is the beauty of exercise. It doesn’t matter what you do. It doesn’t matter where you do it. It doesn’t matter who you do it with. It doesn’t even matter how long you do it or how many times. If you move your body, you burn calories, improve health and best of all, you feel good.

Why doesn’t everyone succeed if we feel so good when we exercise? Variety is the difference between success and failure in many cases. We all want to exercise. We all want to be healthy, but there are challenges that come up. The biggest challenge for most people isn’t time, work or any other external factor. The biggest challenge for most people is the ability to get creative.

Creativity is not often associated with muscle and sweat. It is usually thought of as something for a stage or studio, but creativity is the key to variety. If you can think of new ways to make yourself move, you will move. If you can think of new ways to make moving fun, you will move and be very successful as you keep moving.

That is all. Get creative with your schedule to allow time for exercise. Get creative with your exercise to allow for you to enjoy it and keep it up. Why is variety so important? Variety will help you stick with exercise. Variety will help you live healthy.