Written by Rita Jabbour

Thumbnail Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

@_ritajabbour

Dear university students, I know that your life is completely overloaded with multiple responsibilities and commitments which means it is quite difficult to find a time in which you are both motivated and willing to exercise. And in those rare occurrences in which you do have the time, there is always a movie you’d rather be watching, a TV show you’d rather be catching up on, or a party you’d rather go to. Even though you were feeling energized enough in January to include “exercise” as a new year’s resolution, that empowering feeling that the new year drags in has more than likely already died out. Why is it so difficult to make the decision to exercise regularly and stick to it? Likely because doing so requires too much of the time and energy we would rather spend on other, presumably more rewarding, tasks. Still, it is important to take some time out of our week to move our bedridden bodies. It is no secret that keeping fit requires some, if not necessarily intense, movement. At the same time, staying fit and healthy does not have to mean visiting the gym 4 nights a week or engaging in relentless workouts. It can be done by simply paying a little more attention to your daily routine and lifestyle.

So, here are a few low-effort tips for staying fit and keeping track of your health:

Walk for 20 minutes a day. While this may seem like a terrifyingly grueling task, it’s really not that hard if you think about it. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the recommended exercise for adults is 150 minutes a week, or about 21 minutes a day. And, as far as low-effort activities go, taking a walk is pretty simple. Therefore, make the decision to go outside and walk, or hop on a treadmill, whichever seems more appealing. Starting out with a leisurely walk is a great way to get your legs used to the movement and exercise. Once you get a hang of walking, you can upgrade to a power-walk, jog, and maybe even a run.

Another tip for staying fit is trying to get up and stretch every hour or so. This is significant during exam periods and other times in which you are spending excessive periods of time in one position. Based on research presented by the Mayo Clinic, staying seated for a long time can eventually result in several health issues including obesity, increased blood pressure, and high cholesterol. Thus, it comes as no surprise that it is important to move around throughout the day to maintain your fitness. This does not have to be anything extravagant like taking a jog every hour, but simply standing up and moving around your space for a few seconds can ensure that your muscle tones are monitored and your ability to move is intact. To keep track of your time and when you should walk around and stretch, try using the Pomodoro technique. It encourages you to work with the time you have to divide your day into 25-minute intervals that are separated by 5-minute breaks. These breaks can then work as reminders to get up and move for a few minutes.

Tip three is to befriend the number 10. It really is a lovely number. Once you begin relying on this number, you’ll find that exercising is quite simple. For example, when you have a few minutes, try doing 10 sit ups or crunches. When you find another couple minutes during your busy day, go for 10 push ups or squats. You have to start somewhere. Repeating any small exercise just 10 times can get your body pumped and introduced to the grand world of exercise. This suggestion allows you to stay within your favoured space instead of going out of your way to visit the gym or a hiking trail. In other words, you are left with very little room to come up with excuses. By doing quick 2-minute exercises at random instances in your day, you should eventually feel comfortable increasing the frequency and rate of these movements until you end up with a full at home workout. Check out this link for a list of 30 At-Home Workout Moves: 20-Minute Set, All Levels, Without Equipment (healthline.com).

Now, what good is exercising if you are not paying attention to your diet? Maintaining a well-balanced diet is a crucial step to staying fit. This means including foods from all the food groups such as fruits, vegetables, legumes (lentils & beans), nuts, whole grains, and meats. According to the World Health Organization, an adult’s diet should consist of 400g a day of fruits and vegetables, and should not have more than 50g of sugars or 5g of salt per day. “Unhealthy diet and lack of physical activity are leading global risks to health” (WHO, 2020). Consequently, having a well-balanced diet is essential to staying fit. What you eat is just as important as how you exercise. Paying a little attention to your food intake may require some additional effort but it is definitely worth it.

Another tip is to consider your water intake; it is just as important as your diet. According to Mayo Clinic, men require at least 15.5 cups of water a day while women require minimum 11.5. Water is essential to your physical well-being since every cell in your body depends on water to function properly and survive. Obviously, not drinking enough water can lead to dehydration and that is never an enjoyable condition to experience. With that said, you should be pleased to know that something as simple as monitoring your water intake means that you’re engaging in one of the steps to stay fit. You can even try downloading a hydration tracking app (like Daily Water Tracker Reminder, or Hydro Coach) and food intake app (like Fooducate) to record and evaluate your diet.

Finally, after all the diet tips and exercise recommendations, what you really need is a suggestion for something you can do effortlessly. So, play your favourite song out loud. You are bound to listen to music at least once in your day. The next time you feel like putting on some music, do it intentionally loud. Play a song, stand up, start moving, and do not stop until the song is over. Make big movements with all of your body, stretching all your limbs as you jump around for a few minutes. If taking a walk or doing an at-home workout seems like just too much work for you, this tip is as easy as they come. Just stand up and move. Shake, shimmy, and jump. Do whatever you want to move your body. The only catch is that you have to do so for the entire length of the song without stopping until it ends. After that, you are more than welcome to fall back onto your bed and dive into your online gaming or TV show. Do this for a few minutes every day and you should be well on your way to becoming the person who has the will to partake in a more extensive workout.

In conclusion, staying fit can, in fact, be done with little effort. Although you can get better outcomes when you put a lot of effort into your daily routine, you can still manage to stay fit by trying to move your body for at least 20 minutes a day. Whether that is by running, walking, exercising at home, or partaking in a fun dance or group fitness class, any movement is better than none. At the same time, keeping fit means paying attention to your diet and your water intake. Nevertheless, you have to start somewhere to reach the level of fitness you desire for yourself. So, choose a simple activity to include in your daily routine and go from there.

Keeping Fit with Little Effort

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