Let your exercise this summer be joyful – guide to an easy workout

Here are some tips to make the rest of your summer active and joyful. You also get a quick workout that you can do virtually anywhere. There are no pointers here – you should do what you want to do, what gives you energy. Think joy rather than achievement!

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Focus on movement, play and joy instead of performance

Something very interesting is happening and, in my opinion, fantastic about us Swedes when the summer and the sun comes. We bloom, comes out of our nest after winter. We're happier and take every chance to catch every few rays of sunshine. During the holidays we do not want to miss any sunny opportunities or time with loved ones. This can make it difficult for some of us to keep our workout routine and that may lead to increased stress.

Would it be easier to keep on excersising during the vacation if we change our thoughts on how it "should" be? I think that's the case for a lot of people.

What if you choose to focus on movement, play and joy instead of performance? Reduce the amount of stress trying to manage everything you think you should, by changing your "I have to" to "I want" . See if you can find what you want to do and why you want to do it. If you find your "want" and "why", it is easier to stick to it.

Find natural moments of movement

Another way to keep training during the summer is to use the natural occasions for physical activity. Exercise together with friends or family on the beach or why not play beach football or something else while there. These interruptions from your ordinary routine can develop you physically when you challenge yourself in doing something you are not used to.

If you have children, play with them or spontaniously excersise together. But don't forget to include joy and playfulness. Most of us have a high level of stress in our daily lives and we don't have to bring that stress into the holidays as well.

Try outdoor yoga

Exercise comes in many different shapes and forms and can easily be adjusted to the outdoors. I think that outdoor yoga is amazing due to the opportunity to connect several senses, which enhances the experience. Feeling the wind and the rays of sun against your skin, hearing the summer breeze, the birds singing and maybe the cricket playing and the gentle scents of smell of grass, trees and flowers.

If you feel like you don't really know what to do, there is lots to choose from online. Yogobe offers a lot of inspiration and online yoga classes you can do any where, any time.

Think creatively – use what you have

What if I don't have access to the gym? Yes, I have been asked that question many times. And I answer the same here as I have in the past, you have a body and it goes very far and if you want to burden your body with more than body weight, you can find things to use everywhere. It can be pet bottles full of water, logs, old car tires and more, only the imagination sets the limits. You can also bring with you a rubber band, that take no major place in the bag but can challenge your workout.

When it comes to training, you can also find a lot of inspiration and workouts online here at Yogobe. At the end of this blog post, you get a workout where you only need your body weight.

Enjoy nature

Hiking and running in nature is fantastic for recovering. You reduce stress in the body just by staying in nature, by the water, in the forest or the mountains. Bring a friend and go out, hang out and have a walk and talk or run instead of having a coffee. Often the conversations are actually better when we move than when we sit still.

You can also take family or friends on a run or hike with a packed lunch in your backpack. Stop at some nice places and have a picnic, it will be a lovely experience for both the body and the mind.

Despite the uncertainty we still live in, try to make the rest of your summer stress-free, playful, physical and joyful!

Quick workout for the summer

Do 2-3 turns of the following:

• Squats 20 reps
• Lunges with rotation, 10 reps on each side
• Hip lift, 10 reps
• Push-ups, 10 reps
• Superman, 10 reps
• Alternate Jack Knife Crunch, 10 reps on each side

Read more about exercise and meditation

• 15 minutes of meditation – like a vacation day, by Bianca Barck
• Run, Flow, Let Go – a five minute workout that makes you feel REAL, by Neo Moreton
• Training with resistance band, by Julia Glutz

Strength and mobility training online

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