Your Phone Could Be Your #1 Workout Motivator—If You’re Using It Right

You’d be hard pressed to find someone who doesn’t get lost in funny memes and dog videos on their social feeds. But spending too long scrolling on the couch (or in bed) can result in calories that aren’t burned off and brains that haven’t received endorphin boosts from movement.

Not to mention, when it comes to decreasing your risk factors for common cancers and heart disease, living a more active lifestyle is usually at the top of the list.

Taking a cue from Amgen—a biotechnology pioneer and founder of the Breakaway from Cancer® and Breakaway from Heart Disease™ national initiatives to increase awareness of resources available to people affected by cancer and motivate people to understand their risk factors for heart disease—we’re here to inspire you to get up and get out. Because when used for a purpose, your phone can help motivate you to get moving. Here are five ways to get started:

1. Sign up for a challenge.

Setting weekly fitness goals and tracking your progress through a social fitness app like STRAVA, which tracks cycling and running activities, is a useful way to keep yourself accountable.

If that’s still not enough motivation for you, how about if $1 for every mile you walked, ran, or cycled was donated to a worthy cause? Sign up for Amgen and STRAVA’s Breakaway Challenge, a national social fitness movement that aims to motivate people to work toward healthier lifestyles and a commitment to walking, biking, running, and general fitness, and you can do just that!

Here’s how it works: STRAVA will aggregate the total miles contributed to the Breakaway Challenge, and Amgen will match the first 400,000 miles with a $400,000 donation evenly distributed to its independent non-profit partners. Participants can join the Challenge by downloading the STRAVA app to their mobile device and joining the Breakaway Challenge, or by visiting www.AmgenBreakawayChallenge.com.

2. Set a movement alarm.

If you know you have a lazy Sunday ahead of you, set an alarm to remind yourself to get up and move around at least every half hour, which is the amount of time recommended by experts. Every time it goes off, that’s your cue to do 10 jumping jacks or squats in your living room, go for a quick walk, or take a spin on your bike around the neighborhood.

Tip: Did you know that you can customize an alarm with your favorite song instead of choosing one of the standard sounds? Choose an upbeat, fun song that’ll really motivate you. (You can download a song on iTunes or Google Play.)

3. Try an audiobook.

If your excuse for being glued to the couch is a really good book, finish it while you break a sweat. Just download your page-turner on your smartphone using Audible or Google Play Books. Then during your next cardio workout or walk, turn on your Strava app to get moving—and listening—at the same time. Now that’s smart multitasking!

4. Practice mindfulness as you move.

Take your next meditation session outdoors to get in some extra steps and de-stress simultaneously. Walking meditation is a more active version of sitting meditation, and apps like Spotify and Insight Timer have tons of guided walking meditation options available.

5. Use a habit-tracking app to push yourself.

People loveeeee habit-tracking apps—and for good reason: they’re super motivating.Several of these apps let you input daily habits specific to your lifestyle, and you can check them off as you go. Many of them also allow you to track how many days in a row you’ve completed your tasks.

If you’re up to something like 200 days of walking every afternoon, for example, the desire to stay on your streak might just be what you need to push yourself to get off the couch! To log your daily running, biking, or running (and more), use a habit-tracking app like Productive or Streaks and kiss your couch goodbye.

From: Good Housekeeping US

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