Spice Up Your Cardio Routine

Feeling like your cardio routine is in a rut? If you've been doing the same stale workout over and over, it's likely your body has adapted and you've hit a plateau. When this happens, continuing to do the same ‘ol same ‘ol will lead to minimal results and can zap your motivation. The fix? Adding variety to challenge your body in new ways. Try these creative tips to revive your cardio routine:

Mix Up the Intensity

An easy fix to refresh your workout is by varying the intensity. Shift from a constant pace to intervals of high and low intensity. For example:

• On the Treadmill - Start with a 5-minute warm-up, then followed by alternating between 2 minutes of sprinting and 2 minutes of walking. Repeat the cycle throughout a 30-minute session and finish with a cool-down.

• While Cycling - Mix 1 minute of intense, high-resistance pedaling with 2 minutes of relaxed spinning. Keep this up for about 20-30 minutes.

• During Swimming - Switch between sprinting a lap and swimming at a recovery pace.

Even short 30-second bursts of high-intensity workouts can make a big difference when paired with recovery phases.

Try New Activities

Tired of the usual jogging, cycling, or elliptical? Switch it up by trying these activities that will work your body in different ways:

• Join a Class - Take a cardio kickboxing, dance fitness or martial arts-inspired class.

• Embrace the Outdoors - Go for a hike if you usually just walk or run.

• Experiment With Different Sports - Try rowing, rock climbing, jumping rope or boxing.

These new activities will challenge your muscles in unique ways and help burn calories differently.

Use Circuits and Combinations

Another way to add variety is to combine cardio moves with strength training in a circuit format. This allows you to get an effective cardio and resistance workout at the same time. For example:

• Cardio and Strength Circuit - Alternate one minute of jump squats, mountain climbers, and high knees with one minute of push-ups, squats, and lunges.

• Ladder Circuit - Combine running, rowing, or biking with strength exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, and kettlebell swings.

The constant switching between cardio and strength exercises keeps your heart rate elevated while challenging your muscles.

Utilize Equipment

Incorporating small pieces of equipment like resistance bands, battle ropes, agility ladders or plyo boxes can instantly upgrade a bodyweight cardio workout. For example:

• Plyo Box Exercises - Try lateral box jumps or step-ups to increase intensity.

• Resistance Band Moves - Include lateral walks or rows between intense cardio bursts.

• Battle Rope Actions - Boost your heart rate with rope slams or waves.

These simple tools make basic cardio moves more challenging. By changing the type, intensity, and duration of your workouts, you can effectively revamp your cardio routine. Keep things fresh and varied to push past plateaus and achieve ongoing results. You're welcome!

Hack Your Habits with This Simple Trick

We all have goals and habits we want to build, whether it's exercising regularly, reading more books, or drinking enough water each day. However, creating new habits can be challenging. Studies show it takes an average of 66 days for a behavior to become automatic. That's where habit stacking comes in. This simple strategy can help new habits stick by piggybacking them onto existing routines.

What is Habit Stacking?

Habit stacking involves linking a new habit you want to build with an established habit or routine you already do automatically. Instead of trying to shoehorn a totally new habit into your day from scratch, you link or "stack" it onto an existing habit that's already ingrained. That makes it way easier to establish the new behavior and turn it into an effortless part of your routine.

The reason habit stacking works is that our brains are really good at chunking behaviors together into routines. By leveraging an existing habit loop that is already wired in your brain, you make it easier to pick up the new habit. Over time, the two habits become associated in your neural pathways.

Here's an example

Let's say you want to start flossing daily because your dentist keeps getting on your case about it. Instead of just trying to randomly remind yourself to floss every night, you stack it onto your existing tooth-brushing habit. So your new routine becomes: brush your teeth then floss. Done.

By piggybacking the new "floss" habit onto the entrenched "brush teeth" habit, you don't have to worry about forgetting or motivating yourself to floss. It just becomes the natural next step after brushing. Genius, right?

The Habit Stacking Formula

So what does the habit stacking formula look like? Well, something like this: "After/Before [CURRENT HABIT], I will [NEW HABIT]."

You can stack habits in any order that makes sense. Maybe you want to start meditating, so you stack a 5-minute meditation habit after your morning coffee ritual. Or you want to foam roll, so you stack that before your evening shower. The possibilities are endless for using habit stacking to build positive new habits with less friction.

Building a Habit Stacking Routine

By consciously mapping out your habit stacks, you make your routines more manageable and less susceptible to being derailed. It's like creating a mini success plan for yourself. Here are a few best practices to get started with habit stacking:

1. Make a list of your current daily habits and routines.

2. Be realistic about what you can stack. Don't go overboard and try stacking 10 new habits at once. Decide on 1-3 habits you want to start building. Remember, slow and steady wins the race.

3. Make the new habits very specific and bite-sized to start. For example, "do 5 push-ups" rather than "work out."

4. Match up your new habits with your established routines, specifying the "after/when" trigger.

5. Start stacking! Focus on consistency with your new habit stacks for at least 2 months.

6. Review and adjust as needed. Stack on additional habits once the previous ones feel automatic.

To Sum Up

Habit stacking removes so much of the resistance and willpower drain involved in building new habits. It's such a simple but powerful way to hack your productivity. Give it a shot and see how effortlessly you can level up your routine.

Top 5 of the Week

Top 5 Habits for a Healthy Morning Routine

1. Hydrate First Thing - Start your day by drinking a glass of water. Hydration after waking up helps kickstart your metabolism, hydrates your body, and can help you feel more awake.

2. Eat a Nutritious Breakfast - Choose a breakfast that balances protein, fats, and carbohydrates. Examples include oatmeal with fruit and nuts, a smoothie with greens and protein powder, or eggs with whole-grain toast.

3. Stretch or Do a Light Workout - Engage in some light physical activity such as stretching, yoga, or a quick walk. This helps to wake up your body, improve your mood, and boost your energy levels.

4. Set Clear Goals for the Day - Take a few minutes to plan your day. Write down your top three priorities. Setting clear goals helps to provide focus and structure, making you more productive throughout the day.

5. Practice Mindfulness - Spend 5-10 minutes in meditation, deep breathing exercises, or journaling. This practice can help reduce stress, increase your focus, and improve your overall mental clarity.

Incorporating these habits into your morning can help set a positive tone for the rest of the day, boosting both your physical and mental health.

Quote of the Week

"Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement." - James Clear, Atomic Habits

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Answer to Last Week’s Trivia

Which is the highest-grossing R-rated film in North America? “The Passion of the Christ” (2004)

"The Passion of the Christ" (2004) held the record for the highest-grossing R-rated movie in the United States and Canada, earning nearly 371 million U.S. dollars in the North American box office.

Trivia Time

Which condiment was used as medicine during the 1830s?

Stay tuned next week for the Answer.

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