Yes, exercising can be annoying, but you know what they say! It’s good for you! Regular exercise helps support strong bones and muscles, but also many other aspects of health. Heart function, weight maintenance, reduction of anxiety and depression are all benefits of staying fit. Both children and adults should get between 30 minutes and 60 minutes of exercise a day. Even better, exercise actually makes you a happier person. According to CNET, physical activity increases endorphins, dopamine, adrenaline, and endocannabinoid in the brain. These are all “happy” chemicals that stimulate joy and satisfaction. Next time you are hesitant to participate in school exercise classes or go outside for a walk, think about how your happiness will indeed rise. It will be worth it in the end.

Traditional school exercise can be boring and monotonous: running, stretching, sprints, and jumping jacks. Instead of getting stuck in a groove with routines, try thinking outside of the box with these cool exercises to get you going.

Freestyle Dancing: Dancing of all kinds is exciting, and there are a variety of types to peak specific interests. Hip hop, ballroom, folk dance, tap dance, the list goes on and on. If you like the idea, try searching dancing tutorials on YouTube. You’ll be sure to find something that fits your fancy. If you want to spice it up even more, invite a couple friends for a dance party.

Build an Obstacle Course: I mean how fun would it be to build an exercise challenge for yourself? It doesn’t have to be anything with bells and whistles. Use household items like pillows, wooden blocks, hula hoops, you name it. Jump over pillows, hop on blocks, hula hoop for 30 seconds. If you have the tools, great, you can really build an obstacle course in the backyard.

Yoga: Meditation and yoga are calm exercises, but still just as good. They help with deep breathing, relaxing, and toning muscles. Giving yourself time to rest in yoga positions like child’s pose, downward dog, or sun will slow the mind. Maybe after some intense jumping, you can take it down a notch with yoga.