How to Make Exercise Go By Faster

You know you need to exercise, but when you do, it seems to last forever! You might make it through resentfully or you might even give up. Don’t be discouraged! Here are some tips to make the time go by quickly when you exercise, and hopefully make you exercise even longer and thus lose more weight.

IF YOU RUN, WALK, OR BIKE OUTSIDE

• Change direction often. Make your route go various directions instead of down a long road or around a large perimeter. Changing direction frequently makes you feel like you are making more progress. Different scenery is a nice distraction as well.
• Choose a route you know. An unfamiliar route may make it seem longer before you get back to your starting point. By knowing your route, you can track your progress accurately.
• Measure your remaining distance in small increments based on landmarks. Don’t think, Eight blocks to go. Think, Two blocks to the gas station before I turn right. Then at the gas station, Only three more blocks to my neighborhood, and once in your neighborhood, Three blocks to the house!

IF YOU RUN ON A TRACK OR SWIM LAPS

• Change your pace or stroke every few laps. For example, run two laps for a warm-up, then alternate between sprinting and jogging a lap, and cool down with two laps.

IF YOU EXERCISE AT HOME

• Watch your favorite TV shows. Next thing you know, thirty to sixty minutes have gone by!

IF YOU EXERCISE AT A GYM

• Change machines every ten minutes: ten minutes each on the treadmill, elliptical, stationary bicycle, and stair stepper becomes a forty-minute workout. Add ten minutes each of weight lifting and stretching and you have a full hour of exercise!
• If you like to stay on just one machine, change the settings or your pace every ten minutes.
• Read a book or magazine while on a machine. Nothing makes time go by faster than being absorbed in an intriguing book or article.
• Watch the gym's TV or the personal one on the fitness equipment.

NO MATTER WHERE YOU EXERCISE

• Listen to a pumping playlist on your iPod (or stereo at home). It will not only make a workout go by faster, but will also make it more fun. Make a playlist for each type of exercise you do to create variety and the right mood.
• Work out with a friend. You will have someone to talk to, keep you company, and encourage you.
• Alternate exercise methods. If you run the same route every day, you may easily become bored. But if you only run it twice a week and do other forms of exercise the other days, your route won’t seem so tedious.