With professors starting to load on the homework and clubs and friends becoming a priority, making time to take care of your body might be the last thing on your mind. No time for the gym? No problem. These five simple changes can help fit your body’s fitness into your daily schedule.
1. Walk Everywhere
Taking the stairs or walking instead of hopping on a bus is an easy way to break a quick sweat between classes. You don’t need a Stairmaster when your class is on the ninth floor of a building all the way across campus. If you live off campus and drive to school, try to park further away—even if it’s just a few extra spots—to get in as many steps as possible.
2. Have a Consistent Routine
Whether it’s hitting the gym twice a week or every day, consistency is key to fitting a fitness routine into your daily lifestyle. Only have 30 minutes on Tuesdays but over an hour on Fridays for some gym time? Plan a workout that you know you can fit into your timeframe, like light yoga on Tuesday and a longer run on Friday. Be realistic about how much time you can commit to working out and you’ll be surprised how much you can fit into your day!
3. Dress for Success
Although you may want to look your best in class, it’s never a bad idea to dress for your workout way before you head to the gym. Time is precious and eliminating that extra step between class and your time on the treadmill could mean fitting in an extra 15 minutes at the gym. If you prefer at-home calisthenics, being ready to go could save you from that post-class slump and get you squatting and stretching that much quicker.
4. Learn to Multitask
One of the most important things you can learn in college is how to multitask. Trying to stay in shape on a time crunch is no different. Have 50 pages of a book to read? Flip through while you’re on the elliptical. Waiting for your Easy Mac to finish cooking? See how many lunges you can do before it finishes. Lounging on your bed during an episode of American Horror Story? Shake off the heebie-jeebies with an ab workout during the commercial break.
5. Don’t Skip the Weekends
It may seem counterintuitive, but planning your rest days for the weekends is one of the easiest ways to get off track with your fitness routine. Ideally, you’ll have the most time on the weekends to pack in that extra-long squat session. Plus, with a hectic weekday schedule, it’s better to take a break from the gym on days you know are packed with class, work, and extracurricular responsibilities.
by Katie Shafsky