Your kids’ after-school activities. Long hours at work. These are just some of the reasons why many people don’t want to spend hours doing cardio every week.
Sometimes, it’s not only a time issue but also a matter of simply hating cardio in the first place. If you’re a “cardio hater,” your physical therapist can help you find a way to fit more cardio into your weekly routine. In turn, this can increase your chances of success with physical therapy and with your health journey. Here are three sneaky ways to incorporate more cardio into your life, even if you’re a cardio hater:
- Do bite-sized pieces
Incorporating cardio into your day doesn’t mean you need to do one long cardio session. One of the main reasons that people dread cardio is that doing half an hour or more may seem overwhelming. However, you can approach it more like physical therapy. You know how the physical therapy exercises that you do are sometimes short and sweet? Take the same approach to cardio, even when you’re not with your physical therapist.
Shoot for half an hour of cardio a day, but chop it up into three 10-minute pieces. For example, a 10-minute brisk walk or jog before work could start your day. Add a brisk 10-minute walk during your lunch break and another after dinner, and you’re set for the day. You probably won’t feel like you were doing a lot of hard work, either. Remember that high intensity matters when you’re doing these shorter sessions, so go hard for the whole session to get the best results.
- Expand your horizons
Expanding your exercise horizons is a great way to get in cardio in a sneaky way. Your physical therapist can give you some great ideas for cardio, including options like:
- Swimming
- Biking
- Hiking
- Mountain climbing
- Dancing
What all the activities listed above have in common is that they’re fun. One of them may be something you already love to do in your spare time. These activities also get your heart rate up and allow you to get the cardio you need. But they’re not repetitive or boring. Talk to your physical therapist about a cardio schedule. It’s ideal if you can do a fun form of cardio five days a week. It can also be a supplement to your physical therapy but should not replace it.
- Engage your interest
Another way to get in more cardio is to engage your interest. Staying engaged with cardio can be challenging even for people who enjoy it. Fortunately, there are now apps for that. There are a number of apps that are designed to track your progress in a variety of cardio exercises. From tracking your number of steps each day to monitoring your heart rate and beyond, having an app can help you stay interested and accountable.
You can even try one of the gaming apps that reward you for walking, biking or running. Check out apps that keep track of your mileage and engage you with an exciting virtual world, such as:
Excel Sports & Physical Therapy can help you find ways to get in more cardio
Need to incorporate more cardio into your daily life? Our team at Excel Sports & Physical Therapy can help you meet this goal even if you don’t like cardio. We offer free screenings that can pinpoint issues that are making cardio more challenging for you. Our team can then build you an individualized therapy plan intended to help address these issues. We can also offer some suggestions on ways to make cardio more fun and engaging.
Contact our team today for more information about the therapy services we offer or to schedule an initial appointment.
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