Winter workout motivation & tips

Most people admit to hitting a slump during the coldest months of the year. Days are short and the weather is bad so it's harder to get out for your usual walk or run.

But we're big believers that where there's a will there's a way, so we've put together some motivating tips to help you find the get up and go to get those workouts in on cold mornings!

The Average Person Puts on 1-2kg During the Winter Months

Winter is the time to rug up on the couch with a bottle and your favourite comfort food, right? You can let the fitness clothes stay folded in the wardrobe because, with your layered up clothing, you can avoid showing the extra kilos during the cold months anyway!

Wrong! Winter is a great time to concentrate on health, build muscle, trim up & have a head start on the majority of the population by the time the sun starts shining again!

Skipping a workout from time to time isn’t a massive deal – we’re all human after all. But a short break can easily stretch into a prolonged one, and that number on the scales can creep up quickly!

20% Of Aussies Are Effected by ‘the Winter Blues’

As many as 20% of Australians admit to feeling mild to severe depression during the chillier months – which is a condition known as 'seasonal affective disorder' (SAD).

But the best way to not succumb to feelings of 'blah' is to get moving! Exercising helps our bodies create more of the warm & fuzzy hormones called endorphins. Hitting the treadmill, cross trainer, rower, or exercise bike can certainly give you this boost. The first five minutes are the most beneficial.

If Anything, Winter Workouts Are More Convenient!

We know how it goes in the short days of winter – it’s still dark by the time you leave for work in the mornings and dark again by the time you get home, making it pretty unsafe to go to the park for a walk or run the dark streets.

But let’s look at the positives – working out in the chilly winter temperatures is far less exhausting than the oppressive heat of the summer, and gives you extra motivation to get the blood pumping quickly to warm up! And in winter, why leave the house to work out if you don’t have to!? No matter the space confinements you have at home, you’ll still be able to find space for a good home workout in winter from the comfort of inside your own four walls!

What Do You Need for a Home Gym?

If you have the luxury of a spare room or extra space in your garage, bedroom or living room, it’s so easy to set up a home gym. Depending on your preference you can put a treadmill, cross trainer, exercise bike or rower in there and get in a good cardio workout each morning. Or if you prefer resistance training, a home gym, or even a gym bench is a good addition to get in some strength training from home.

And if you think the upfront costs of buying one of these machines would be an issue you can even set up a payment plan with us, which can effectively let you take home the equipment and pay it off gradually at about the same cost as a gym membership!

For those in small apartments or units where space is an issue, there’s still plenty you can do to get in a good workout at home! Get yourself an exercise mat, a exercise ball, and some gym weights and you can get in a great workout each morning or evening, before easily storing away these small pieces of equipment!

Comfort Food Doesn’t Have to Mean ‘Bad’ Food

While it’s tempting to load up on things like roast dinners, mash and gravy, melted cheese toasties and other comfort food to warm you up in winter, you don’t have to pile on the calories to feel warm and toasty from the inside out!

For breakfast: Your Nanna’s favourite breakfast, porridge, is a fantastic start during winter. Avoid the flavoured variety as they are full of sugar and salt. Top with yummy fruit, berries or healthy slimming cinnamon.

For lunch: Enjoy some warming homemade soup. You can mix up the ingredients each week – the possibilities are endless – salmon, lentils, broccoli, spinach, sweet potato, pumpkin, squash, lean meats & so much more!

For dinner: Slow cooker meals are another easy method of warming our bodies with healthy yummy food and make for great left-overs the next day.

Hot tea: Throughout the day, herbal teas are fantastic for weight loss and as anti-oxidants.