Spring is Here!

Woohoo! Spring is here! Finally, after a long cold, wet winter, we can look forward to lighter nights and warmer days.

The lighter nights and the sun make us feel so much better. The amount of daylight that we get has a huge effect on our serotonin and melatonin levels which affect our mood and sleep. No wonder we feel in a better mood when summer comes along 😊.

What better time to revamp your fitness routine. Gone are the excuses such as it’s too cold, too dark or too wet! (Yes, I know it rains in summer too 😊). However, we are much more likely to want to get outside and move more when the days are longer and warmer.

Springtime is a great time to get active and motivation is usually at a high after being cooped up inside during the winter months. We might want to tone up, lose a little body fat ready for our summer holidays, wear strappy tops or simply be more energised.

Here are our top tips for revamping your workouts:

Get outside! There is nothing nicer than being in the fresh air and being able to exercise outdoors. This is so important for your mental health as well as your physical health. Go for a walk and really take in your surroundings, whether that’s a stroll near your home, a walk in the park, woods or on the beach. A jog or a run is a great way to rejuvenate and make you feel strong and healthy. Play with the kids – games such as hide and seek, or tag are great for getting you moving whilst having fun at the same time.
Join a Class! You get so much motivation and adrenaline from joining in a supportive class – getting you amazing results and a real endorphin buzz! Take a look at our dance style classes: Zumba and dancercise, or how about a HIIT hit with our HIIT Aerobics? You could also try our fitness Yoga class, our BodyBlast class or Ab Blast! With so many to choose from, there’s a class you’ll love – or change it up each week to keep it exciting!
Get yourself an exercise buddy! Exercising outside with a friend is great for motivation. Whether that’s chatting as you jog, setting up a circuit with different exercises (one of mine and Elli’s favourite things to do during the long hot lockdown summer! 😊) or even joining in a Zumba class! Some of our lovely members got together every Saturday morning whilst we were live streaming our classes to do our Zumba class in their cul-de-sac! How’s that for motivation?
Up your workout routine! Regularly mix up what you do to exercise. Confuse your muscles by doing different types of exercise, changing the number of reps that you do, altering the rest time between exercises, upping the weight or simply changing your grip or stance to work different muscles. All these things give your body a varied workout hitting different muscles regularly. Aim to be regularly irregular 😊.
Sign up to do an event such as ‘Race for Life’ or ‘Couch to 5k’. This is good for accountability as there is an end result that you are working towards. It will help you to stay focused on your goal, whilst still having fun.
Make exercise part of your daily routine. You don’t have to do the same thing every day (see point 4 above) but try to set aside 10 – 30 minutes a day to do some form of exercise. That can be anything from a brisk walk, jog, a class, the gym or any other form of movement. It could be before you go to work or maybe when you finish work, before you do anything else. Our 30-minute circuit is great to do on your way home from work. You’ll be home only a short time later having done a full body workout! Also, with our memberships, you can come as often as you like! 😊
Reward yourself. Have something to look forward to. This might be a drink in the pub after a long walk, or a meal out with friends after your ‘race for Life’ event. Think about how you feel after exercising as this will help you to commit to doing regular exercise.

Above all, enjoy the lighter nights and keep moving!

Much Love

Caroline & Hannah xx