Being comfortable at the gym during normal times can feel like a great feat. Now, the shared sweaty equipment and the heavy breathing of university athletes may seem like a breeding ground for potential disease spread. And then there’s always the intimidating machines, the constant smell of chemicals and sweat, and the 20 minute walk from home. For these reasons, I decided I needed to get more creative with my workout routine.
At the beginning of this year, I created a workout space for myself in my dorm room. I invested in a yoga mat and some resistance bands from Amazon and set up space at the foot of my bed. Making use of the space in my room was satisfying in itself, and made me feel excited to work out every day. I bring out my speaker and my favourite playlists to create a whole space where I can completely focus on myself and my activity. I think that creating an area for the sole purpose of taking care of your physical health is so beneficial. Especially during this time, my little dorm room gym has been the highlight of my day.
Over the past couple of years, I have learned that in order to feel like I have had a productive workout, it’s crucial that I find activities I actually enjoy doing. Finding a physical activity that can be fun may take trial and error, but if you want to add fitness to your long-term routine, this is a worthwhile endeavour. Running is not everyone’s idea of an enjoyable workout, but maybe an online Zumba or Pilates class is more to your liking. Different people find different activities engaging, which is why there are so many options for ways you can stay active. Sometimes, it is just a matter of finding the best fit for you.
For me, a fulfilling workout routine includes stretching, cardio, and strengthening. I can change up the way I do each one of these, which makes it an easy and fun routine to practice. A quick stretch to warm up your body can be easily found with a Pinterest search. Recently, I have also been finding a lot of exercises on TikTok, including pre-cardio and simple yoga moves to get your body warmed up. Some notable TikTok accounts to follow for this are @earthyandy , @thatpineapplegirl, and @han.jarr.
Before I started creating my own fitness routines, I thought cardio equalled running. As I have gotten more into active living though, I’ve realized how wrong this is. To do a cardio workout you need to get your heart rate up, and you don’t need a lot of space to do it. Melissa Wood Health, Chloe Ting, and Claudia Sulewski are a few of my favourite YouTubers to follow for fun and engaging cardio that doesn’t require a track. Halle Burns is another YouTuber who is also in college and has been filming her active living lifestyle all from her dorm. Another way of performing cardio, that may seem obvious (but I think painfully underrated), is simply by going on a walk. Besides the fact that walking may be one of the most convenient types of activity you could possibly engage in, there are also a lot of ways you can make it fun. Taking a study break from online classes, throwing on my headphones and a podcast, and exploring a new route around my hall has been one of the greatest mood boosters I have come to find. Walks can be a great way to take some time to yourself, but also a great social activity, especially right now. Some of my favourite places to walk in St Andrews are Lade Braes, West Sands (if you walk far enough you get to see some sheep!) and Fife Coastal Path. The natural beauty of this town we live in is enough to make a walk worthwhile.
When I’m feeling lazy, strengthening can be the hardest type of work out for me to want to do. Ironically, it is also the type of workout that genuinely makes me feel stronger. For me, strengthening workouts include abs, arms, legs, or glutes workouts. On Youtube, Chloe Ting and Melissa Wood Health have great bodyweight strengthening workouts, and @han.jarr on TikTok also shares her routines. The Nike Training Club app and Shock: Womens Fitness app are great resources to use as well.
Overall, being creative with your workout routine is not only a great way to stay healthy, but also a fantastic way to reduce stress and boost your mood. No matter how long your workout lasts, doing a little something active every day will surely show results and have you feeling recharged and refreshed.