Exercise Routine

Exercise should be a staple in every girls' life, whether it be through school sports, sports outside of school, or just a fitness routine that you keep up on your own! Personally, I like doing a variety of physical activity. I play on my high school's varsity field hockey team, I have a membership at a local gym, and I like to come up with fun workouts to do at home or with a friend in my free time. Working out is obviously different for everyone, but whether your goal is to train for a sports season, build muscle, or just stay in shape, you should be able to have fun with it! Here is my weekly exercise schedule that I follow when I'm not in a sports season:

Mondays and Tuesdays: 50 calf raises, 30 push-ups, 50 crunches at home. Yoga class at the gym for 1 hour.

Wednesdays: 50 calf raises, 30 push-ups, 50 crunches. Strength training for 1 hour (Weights, squats, abs, lunges, etc.)

Thursdays and Fridays: 50 calf raises, 30 push-ups, 50 crunches at home. 2/3 mile run outside or on the treadmill depending on the weather.

Saturday: Break day! Yay!

Sunday: 3 mile run

Tips for a good workout:

1. Hydrate, hydrate hydrate! Water is super important when you are working out.

2. Listen to your iPod. Music makes a hard workout so much more fun!

3. Takes breaks when needed. You don't want to overexert yourself.

4. Stick to a routine, such as the one above. You will find that you reach goals easier once a routine is set in place.

5. Goal-setting. Setting a goal for each workout is important.Your objective could be small, like wanting to break a sweat each day, or big, like wanting six-pack abs before summer comes!

6. You should slowly increase the reps of each exercise as time goes on, because your body will be adapting to the difficulty of your workout and you need to have a struggle each day.

7. Have fun with it! This is the most important tip, because if you're not having fun you're not going to want to do the workout.

Remember, your workout should be specially crafted for you, by you. My routine above is just an example! You can alter it however you see fit. Enjoy!

XX,

Vina