Don’t let exercise be the first thing to fall off your busy schedule. Learn how to work in a workout―and make it really effective.

Make your home a fitter place

To help you flex your muscles more often, leave a set of dumbbells near your microwave and do curls while heating up dinner. Put a yoga mat next to the bed so you can do downward dogs when you get up or at bedtime. Hang a resistance band on the bathroom doorknob and strength-train while the tub fills up. Or use a stability ball as a desk chair to engage your core when paying bills.

Inconvenience yourself

Instead of always doing things the easy or fast way (standing on escalators, using valet parking), rethink the services that curb your activity level. Even tiny changes can make a difference. So don’t have someone else run upstairs to grab something for you, for example; fetch it yourself.

Exercise in quick spurts

A new study has found that people who did just four to six 30-second sprints reaped the same heart-health benefits as those who logged a moderate 40- to 60-minute workout. Two ways to get your heart racing: Skip for three minutes, or sprint to and from the rubbish bin three times (ignore the neighbors’ curious looks). If you live in an urban area, sprint blocks sporadically (just pretend you’re running for the bus).

Reinvent date night

If your usual evening out consists of dinner and a movie (read: sedentary), consider bonding in a more active way, like dinner and dancing or taking in a museum exhibition.

Enlist a pet 

Exercising a dog will get your arms and legs pumping. (A Canadian study found that dog owners spend about 300 minutes a week doing canine-related physical activity.) No pooch? Help a neighbor or volunteer at an animal shelter.

Article sourced from www.realsimple.com