Life’s a lot nicer when more of it is fun.
Here’s a potentially unpopular opinion: I don’t like exercising. If I didn’t have to do it, I literally wouldn’t. It’s boring, exhausting, and generally unpleasant. So, million dollar question: how does someone like me stay in shape? Answer: make it fun. Call me childish, but when something is fun or game-like, my attention span for said thing immediately triples. If you’re like me, here’s a few ideas to make the process a little more entertaining.
Competition: A friend of mine once told me that the reason he got into boxing was that he relished the knowledge that he could kick someone’s butt and look good doing it. Martial arts are definitely a confidence booster, but really, any kind of competition is a great motivator, provided you’re not a sore loser (or sore winner). Conflict spurs growth, after all. If you’ve got a training partner, have push-up contests or arm wrestle, or you can find a group of people to play a sport with.
Dance: “Here’s a dance you ought to do, let me introduce to you: posin’!” Dance is physical, cathartic, and when you’ve got your favorite music playing, crazy fun. You don’t even need any kind of form or training, just move that body however the music moves you, and don’t stop till you can’t dance no more. As an additional fun idea, try superhero posing. You ever seen those really complicated team poses they did on Power Rangers? Stuff is hard to master, let me tell you.
Video Games: I know video games seem antithetical to exercise, but there are a few clever ways to marry the two. During his playthrough of a long game, a friend of mine would never use the fast travel function, letting characters travel manually. As long as the car was driving, he’d do jumping jacks and push-ups and whatnot. Or, if you want something a little more hands on, there are games that get you up on your feet like Ring Fit Adventure on the Nintendo Switch.
