Tips for staying active over the summer
Working out may seem strenuous and expensive when you think of attending your local gym. The hassle comes down to calculating how many times you have to go to the gym each month to get your money’s worth from your membership, as well as calculating the time and money it takes to get there and back. Although thinking of going to the gym may seem like a bothersome ordeal, getting in daily exercise is essential for your physical and mental health; it helps to get your blood circulating, gets your metabolic pathways actively cycling, and is a great de-stressor from the annoyances of everyday life.
Guelph has many workout activities and events held throughout the summer, some free and some at a relatively low price. If you want to practice some yoga over the summer without having to pay a steep membership fee or travelling too far to go to a studio, you could buy your own yoga mat and watch a YouTube video from a trained yoga instructor in the convenience of your own home. Practicing yoga on your own can be done inside or outside. Given that the weather has considerably warmed up recently, practicing yoga outside could be a cheaper alternative to hot yoga or Bikram yoga. Some great yoga YouTubers to begin your summer workouts with include: Interval Yoga, Yoga with Adriene, and Yoga Online.
Another great way to workout at home for free would be watching workout videos created by Casey Ho, the creator of Blogilates. Ho combines pilates with strength training to create amazing workouts that get your body feeling like an exercise machine. She has many workouts that target specific areas of the body such as arms or legs, but she also has videos that target the whole body. Ho’s Blogilates videos are free on YouTube, but her 28-day Pilates Intense Interval Training (PIIT) workouts come at a one time cost of about $45, while some PIIT videos are free on YouTube.
The City of Guelph is also holding free recreational activities around the community during June, to celebrate Recreation and Parks month—everything from Zumba and aquafit classes to community soccer games.
Lastly, if you just want to exercise and get a breath of fresh air, you could form a running group or take walks around your neighbourhood to fulfill your daily exercising needs through one of Guelph’s 95 parks, and 150 kilometres of trails. All in all, physical exercise is what you make of it.