30 Days to Fitness

In our fast-paced lives, everyday demands can make it challenging to put self-care first. However, it's not about finding time; it's about creating time. That’s something that may already be well understood by those with a strong and steady yoga practice. But many of us can get caught up in the rush of our busy schedules, so it's important to acknowledge that caring for our health shouldn't be sacrificed.

Here, Dean Zweck, product development manager alongside some of the personal trainers at Total Fitness (totalfitness.co.uk) share 30 health and wellness tips to embed fitness into your every day. Read on for a selection of tips, advice, and health habits that will transform your month. Designed to seamlessly fit into your existing routine, you can easily incorporate these tips into your daily life, even if you just choose one!

1. Start your day with a glass of water. Staying hydrated is important for both our mind and body; it can boost your mood and improve cognitive function.
2. Get outside. Just 30 minutes of sunlight has such an impact on our wellbeing and vitamin D levels. Walk to school with the kids, take the dog out, or just park further away from the office. Luckily, springtime is just around the corner, but this is especially important during the darker months to help you easily add more vitamin D to your day.
3. Wear your yoga kit or gym clothes in the morning to motivate yourself, especially on the weekends. You’re much less likely to skip a practice or a workout if you’re already dressed and ready for it.
4. Start small, set realistic goals. It's not about handstands, running marathons or lifting heavy weights; it's about consistency with activities both your mind and body benefit from.
5. Workout with a friend. Exercising with a friend motivates you to explore new yoga styles, studios or different areas of the gym. It also helps create accountability and stay connected.
6. Healthy competition can be motivating. Of course yoga is not competitive, but competing in some small way with friends, family, or even yourself, is a fantastic motivator for your practice. Set yourself small goals or challenges for you to work on and feel the endorphin rush as you reach them.
7. Track your progress. Wearable technology is a great way to track your activity and see your improvements week by week. Your yoga teacher or a personal trainer can also be a great way of staying accountable, and they’ll be able to help support and motivate you and offer advice.
8. Learn new exercises in gym classes for confidence on the gym floor. Whether it’s Body Pump, Boot Camp, or Kettlebells, all these classes are a fantastic way to stay motivated and learn new skills through using equipment to help boost your confidence. The same goes for learning new yoga styles and skills on the mat.
9. Exercise anywhere. The yoga studio, the gym, at home, on holiday, and outside... yoga or pretty much any exercise can be done anywhere, providing flexibility and accessibility to maintain your wellbeing.
10. Incorporate posture-improving exercises. Enhance your posture by incorporating yoga, or exercises like weightlifting and Pilates into your routine. These practices can alleviate back and neck pain, aid digestion, and boost your confidence.
11. Aim for 30 reps. This will help endurance, strength and muscle building. Setting a specific goal will help to keep you focused and guide your next workout.
12. Prioritise recovery. Building recovery into your fitness routine is essential. It allows your body to heal and adapt, reducing the risk of injury and improving overall performance.
13. Fuel your body. Eating the right foods for your body is essential to support recovery. If you’re not fuelled up, you won’t have enough energy to work out.
14. Match your workout to your mood. Your needs matter when it comes to exercise. Be sure to assess your energy level, set clear goals and listen to your body to find the exercises that are best for you. If you’re not feeling especially energetic, then maybe a more restorative practice would work.
15. Try new and enjoyable ways to move your body. It's about finding ways to exercise and move your body in a way that suits you.
16. Create your own circuit to bring variety to your workout. Repetitive workouts can lead to a loss of motivation. Incorporating circuit training can add variety and be personalised to make your workouts more challenging.
17. Add in 30 seconds of HIIT to your cardio routine. Short bursts of high-intensity intervals are a great way to upgrade your cardio, it helps to burn more calories and get your body moving.
18. Work on improving your swimming technique. Swimming is a low-impact exercise and when working on simple techniques to improve your overall stroke, you’re also isolating different muscles too, working on your strength and endurance.
19. Use swimming and heat treatments as a form of recovery. As a low-intensity recovery exercise, swimming helps muscles and joints heal without stressing the body. You can also try a dip in a hydrotherapy pool, sauna or alternate hot and cold showers.
20. Switch up your strokes in the pool to work different muscle groups. If swimming is your preferred way of exercising, be sure to mix up your workout using different strokes to work more of your muscles.
21. Understand stress-inducing and stress-reducing exercises. Stress-reducing exercises include yoga, Pilates, swimming and walking. Stress-inducing exercises are your higher-intensity HIIT and weightlifting routines.
22. Take time to focus on breathwork. It's important to take time each day to be still, focus on breathing exercises to reduce stress, and regain control over your movements.
23. Allow yourself to be flexible. If you miss a workout, don't overdo it next time to compensate. Be kind to yourself, ease back in, and avoid the risk of injury or strain.
24. Combine yoga, swim and gym workouts, and other activities, for variety. Mixing gym, studio and pool workouts elevates your fitness routine, enhancing strength, flexibility, and endurance.
25. The gym is a place where you can go to fail. Exercise is something you can do until you fail. So, aim for that extra rep or mile on the treadmill – even if you don't hit it immediately, these small steps will improve your overall health and wellbeing.
26. Build positive attitudes towards fitness in young people. It’s so important to set children up with a positive attitude towards health and fitness early on; a life-long love of exercise can have so many benefits and help both their physical, emotional, and psychological development.
27. Avoid coffee in the afternoon for better sleep. Limiting your caffeine intake after 3pm might help you to achieve a restful, deep sleep. Everyone is different, so monitoring what you eat and drink day-to-day is a good way to discover if it could be impacting your sleep.
28. Unplug before bed for better sleep quality. Avoid looking at digital screens for 30 minutes before you go to sleep, as the blue light from our screens depletes our melatonin, which is vital to keep our body clocks in check.
29. Prioritise sleep. Set a consistent sleep schedule and stick to it, even on weekends.
30. Reward yourself. It’s about celebrating every win.