How to Workout Smarter in the Winter



I want to workout smarter this winter because I hate exercising indoors which I have to do since I live in a cold weather climate. By smarter I mean working out less but getting the same, if not better results.

In the summer I love waking up early before work and going for a long run. I know I’m not like most people but I love the peacefulness of the morning- it’s a time for me to self reflect. I’m lucky enough that I live in a fairly safe neighbour.

It’s a drag to get out of bed at 5 am in the winter. The sun isn’t even up by 7 am when I leave for work. So in the winter I turn to my treadmill but I don’t have the attention span to run on it for a long time. It’s hard for me to commit to a long run on the treadmill when all I have to do is hit “off” and it’s over.

Two years ago I found this blog called Fitness Black Book and I read it whenever I get a chance. The blogger Rusty shares his knowledge on how to workout smarter. Rusty was a former gym rat- he use to spend hours in the gym. As he got older he became more knowledgeable on the topic. You really don’t have to workout for hours to get results.

Under Rusty’s guidance I’m really working on re-programming the way I view working out. Less is more. As a 20-something trying to balance work, sleep and a social life I’m finding it harder to devote over an hour daily to workout. I know it’s only going to get harder as I get older. I use to schedule my life around my workouts, now I try to find some sort of balance which is to workout smarter.

To workout smarter means getting your heart rate up faster in burst of energy. What I like to do in the treadmill is run twice as fast on the treadmill for a minute or two. Then I bring it down an half a mile or so. My goal is to run 25 minutes a session max but usually I’ll only do 15 minutes. I just make sure I’m leaving that treadmill sweating.

It’s especially important to workout smarter in the winter because we’re more likely to gain weight. The reasons for this are that we’re less active and more likely to rely on our cars. Also, our bodies want to store extra calories to keep us warmer so we tend to eat more. Let’s not forget that Christmas or chocolates on Valentine’s Day.

The key to working out smarter is to work out harder for shorter periods of time. That’s how I convince myself to get my butt out of bed in the morning.

Click here for more diet inspirations.


Back to SMART GOALS FOR SUCCESS homepage.