5 easy ways to incorporate exercise in your daily routines

As a student I know that most of us won't always have the time or goodwill to go to the gym or to change clothes for exercising otherwise. While exercise is important for looking better and feeling better, I also often happen to wonder 'but when should I do that?' or 'meh, I don't want to dress up for that'. Therefore, I will now post some advices about incorporating exercise in things you do on a daily base, regardless of how much time you have. 

The first advice is to walk or ride your bike whenever you can. Of course, when it is raining cats and dogs, you are excused, but taking the bus on a sunny day while you only have a 10 minute walk or 5 minute bike ride ahead cannot be justified by anyone. A nice bonus is that you get to catch some sun, which means that your body receives vitamin D, which stimulates the production of calcium, which - in turn - is good for your bones, nails, and teeth. 

The second thing to do is to replace the elevators and escalators by stairs. Sure, for a 10 floor building, you may start out with walking only half of the stairs and then continue by elevator/escalator, but in a 4 floor building there is no excuse unless you are in a wheelchair or bound to walking with crutches. 

My third advice is something I tried out myself. Given that you can stand the looks of people when they see you doing it, you might hold your bottles of water in your hands and train your biceps as you walk.Simply buy or fill two 0.5 litre bottles with water and hold one in each of your hands. Then, when you walk on your left foot you train your right biceps and the other way round. Once you arrived at your destination, drink the water. Because it is good for you. 

The fourth thing you might do is for when you stand in a queue or in the bus/train.Squeeze your butt, hold it for a few seconds and then relax again. It is fairly simple and nobody has to see you doing it when it is crowded or when you stand strategically, but you will see results if you manage to do this a couple of times on a daily base! 

Last but not least: your abs! You can train them by squeezing them all day long. Doing this will give you a better posture, a slimmer silhouette and you also train your abdominal muscles to become slightly stronger. Although the real thing is doing sit-ups, this exercise is effective for those do not want to lie down on the floor. 

So, what do you do to stay in shape? Do you make the most of little moments like I do or do you plan actual exercises and gym sessions? Let me know! 

The last day of summer

Tomorrow will be my last day of the summer! Monday morning, my alarm will beep and wake me up. I am probably not the only one. You can sit down and be melancholic and reflect on your summer, but you can also try to make the most of that last day of freedom and I can tell you how to do it. 

Of course, it depends on what type of person you are, but the most important thing is that you enjoy this last day. 

So, for the sporty people: maybe your sports club or team has a match to play on a kind of summer tournament. Make it fun by not just playing the match and say 'goodbye, see ya at the next training' , but propose to your team to go out after the match and make some fun! If you have no matches to play (or if you are involved with individual sports), you might as well work out a bit on your own. I personally love to go hike in a nearby forest or ride my bike around my town and its surroundings. Running is another good thing to do, although not so much my cup of tea. 

For the creative people: you might be enrolled in a more or less creative college course like Photography or Conservatory. In this case, there is no reason to worry about lack of assignments through which you can let your creativity speak, but if you are creative and enrolled in a non-creative college course, this last day should definitely be used to make something out of it! Go paint, draw, take pictures, sing, write, whatever your creative mind tells you to do and have fun with it! 

For the fashionistas: you do not want to look like everyone else in class, so you need to fix some outfits for the new year in college. Go experiment with whatever you have in your wardrobe, and - even though it might still be hot where you live - try out some outfits for colder days as well, as autumn is knocking on your door and maybe even peeking around the corner already. If you feel your wardrobe is not satisfactory, go out for some shopping. 

For those who just want to relax: if the weather is nice, just go outside wherever you want to and with whomever you want to. Sitting down in a park with a book and some nice snacks and drinks can be very relaxing, but your backyard might do too. Maybe this is also a day to invite one or more of your friends for girls'/guys' afternoon of catching up with each other's lives. Just do whatever makes you feel calm, ready and steady for the new year in college. I am a fan of reading; what do you like to do? 

For those who have to work: whether it is volunteer work, a job, or an internship - work is work. Since it is unlikely that you will have to work from 7 AM through 10 PM, look at your timetable and plan some nice things around your work schedule (see tips above). You can also use the last day of summer as an excuse to go out with colleagues, if they are nice, or just have some extra fun at work by bringing cupcakes or something. 

I am one of the people who has to work, although it is technically not a job, but I am just going to make the most of it. I'll head to the city early, have a nice lunch there, go to work and then have a nice dinner afterwards (my mother is a very good companion for such things as she really likes going to shop!)

So, what type of person are you? What type of activity suits you? Or are you one of the lucky ducks who has one or two more weeks of holidays ahead? Let me know!