How to plan for 30 minutes of exercise a day

Taking some time out of your day to get your body moving can seriously benefit both your physical health and mental wellbeing. Yet the pace of life can make it difficult to incorporate regular exercise. Getting even 30 minutes of exercise a day is good for our bodies and our minds. The best way to get started is by making a plan that is both realistic for your schedule and, more importantly, enjoyable for you.

Tips for planning an exercise routine

Here are some things that can make planning your exercise out easier:

Get a planner

Get yourself a planner or diary and set out what you will do over five days, with two rest days. You could also use a calendar and hang it on the wall so you can check it each day and cross it off as you go. This will help you plan it out, and it will also help you stay motivated. You can alternatively use a calendar on your phone if you do not want to use a physical planner.

Set goals

Your exercise goal should be something achievable that you can measure. If you challenge yourself to ‘run more’, you may quickly find you don’t know what ‘more’ means in this context and get discouraged and demotivated. Instead try the goal of going for three runs a week.

These don’t have to be long runs necessarily; even a ten minute jog is better than nothing. Starting small and with a clear goal can help you ease in.

Plan your meals

Make sure you’ve had enough to eat and drink before you tear into exercise. This means thinking about what you’ll eat before you exercise and when. Creating a meal plan at the same time as planning out your exercise could help to make sure you get it right.

Try exercising at different times to find what’s right for you

Figure out if you’re a morning, afternoon or evening person.  Some people prefer to get their exercise over and done with first thing or getting in on their lunch break. Do whatever works for you so it feels less like a chore.

Take small steps

Think of the simple things that you do every day to build in your exercise, like taking stairs instead of a lift, getting off the bus two stops early etc. Try to build these small things into your day and you’ll start to be more active.

Be prepared

Try and organise everything you need the night before so that you can get going without any delays when the time comes that you planned to exercise. This way there won’t be any delays, and you won’t be able to put it off.

It’s also a good idea to know your plan and route if you’re going outside – this means you won’t add time to your exercise if you get lost.

Find ways to motivate yourself

Try different things to motivate yourself to exercise. This could be recruiting a friend to go running with you, putting together a great playlist to listen to when you exercise, or planning a reward for when you’re finished your exercise, like a long shower.

Mixing it up

When starting off on a new exercise regime, it can be easy to get bored quickly, so it’s important to mix up the types of exercise you do. This will also work different parts of your body in different ways, so heres are some tips:

Choose different routes

If you’re walking, running or cycling, look at choosing different routes from time to time to make sure you don’t get too bored.

Make the most of your surroundings

Some parks are now installing body weight equipment and other exercise machines that you can use outside. Change up your walk or run routine by spending a few minutes with the equipment. Instructions are usually on the equipment, make sure to read first.

Try different forms of exercise

Get on YouTube and check out some tutorials around yoga and pilates. It’s a nice way to mix up your exercise during the week and comes with instruction.