How to Make Cardio Enjoyable

Lot's of people hate doing cardio. They are just going through the motions for 30-60 minutes, and then wonder why they find it so boring.

How can you make it more enjoyable?

• Set performance goals 

Doing any activity with no other purpose other than to just to burn calories will be boring. This is what most people do when it comes to cardio. Instead of doing that, set yourself a performance goal to help with motivation. The fun in training is when you make progress. 
If you normally use the rowing machine, set a 2000m time and aim to beat it in 2 or 3 months. This will give you something to aim for. 

• Listen to music, or watch a video

​I regularly do this when I'm using an indoor bike. I'll listen to 10 songs and the 35-40 minutes will fly by as my mind will be distracted. I know someone who went through several series on Netflix while doing his cardio. He would watch one episode for every cardio session.

• Find activities that you enjoy

​You don't enjoy traditional machines? Use the prowler, sled, battle ropes or kettlebell exercises. Cardio also doesn't have to be done in the gym. Take up dancing, go for a hike or go for a long bike ride. It’s not what you do that matters, it’s that you do something consistently. Taking up a sport is another good idea. a game of 5-a-side football is a great cardio option.

• Have reasons to do cardio that don't have anything to do with weight loss

Too many do cardio simply for the goal of burning fat. There are many other benefits it will provide, better conditioning, improve your health, build physical and mental strength and stress relief. 
Cardio by itself is a poor way to lose weight. The way to lose weight is to be in a calorie deficit, and while cardio does help with that and I do recommend it for losing weight and general health, it is much easier to not eat 500 calories than it is to burn it through cardio. For example, running for 30 minutes only burns around 280 and 520 calories.

• Interval training

​Interval training can be more fun and doesn't take long to do. You can be done in 15-20 minutes if you don't have much time to find it boring. I often do hill sprints as I find it much more enjoyable than running, and I'm normally done in 20 minutes.

• Do our outdoor circuit class​

​I hold two outdoor group sessions on Monday at 7am, and Saturday at 8am. These classes are suitable for all levels of fitness and for males and females.
We do a variety of exercises such as battle ropes, pushing the prowler, pulling a sled, farmers walks, sledgehammers, tyre flips, kettlebell swings, rowing, squats and many more.
It's a fun session and all the feedback has been good with people saying how much they enjoy the training and the social part of it.
​Each session is £6.