Mix It Up: Spring Edition
Written by: Thaddeus Taylor
In case you haven’t already heard, let me be the one to make the announcement: SPRING IS HERE! The days of waking up in the dark, and finishing work as the sun goes down are officially (temporarily) over. Although winter definitely has some positives (I absolutely love heading to the Rockies and finding some fresh powder to shred every week), the majority of us have witnessed the negative effects that the dark cold months can have: people become less active, not wanting to venture outside because of the temperature, people starting to feel Seasonal Affective Disorder or “Seasonal Depression”.. the list goes on.
As a society, we usually wait for an event to cause a change in our lives. Whether that be New Years’, because of a “New Year New Me” attitude, a major birthday, or a holiday season that causes us to act out of holiday joy. If this is the case, why not use this change of weather and the season of spring to switch up our routines, reset and mix it up a little? Below are some ways that we can initiate this spring refresh.
Switch up your exercise routine
If you’ve been getting that feeling like your’e kind of just going through the motions during your exercise routine you are not alone. You know… The feeling as if you’ve kind of stopped seeing the results and have been struggling to increase the weight, or beat your personal best on your runs? If this is the case it may be time to make some changes to that program. Periodization is an exercise design technique that promotes long-term performance by altering details of an exercise routine and is seen with athletes and coaches of all levels. (1) This includes varying the intensity, volume, frequency, and specificity of said program which will shock your muscles and prevent your body from staying in that plateau stage where it gets accustomed to a routine.
Utilize the spring weather by adding in some agility ladder footwork, or skipping instead of always going for a run on the treadmill. The possibilities are endless! (If you need ideas or suggestions on alternative exercises or programs that you can try, don’t be afraid to reach out to one of our Athletic Therapists or a Health Professional in your community!)
Try a New Activity
Along with turning the clocks ahead an hour comes more hours of light during the day as well as more opportunities to “Seize the day”. This gives us the perfect chance to get out of our comfort zones and try something new. Dust off those old bikes and take them down a trail, get your niece or nephew to teach you what Spikeball is so you can whoop their butts, or take yourself on that hike that’s “Just out of town” that you’ve always wanted to try.
Carpe Diem!
Here are some easy exercises you can do right now!
Sources
1) https://homebase.org/operation-healthhome/basics-of-periodization/
Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash