Don't Miss A Beat With Your Fitness During The Cold Months!

With winter on the horizon, some of you may be feeling slightly anxious about what this may mean for your workout routine.  You love getting out into the fresh air and going for that run multiple times per week and you might also be taking part in some outdoor summer activities as well.
But, when the weather turns cold, getting outside for these activities is no longer an option.  So what are you to do? How can you stay active during the cold winter months so that you don’t lose your fitness level?
Let’s go over some quick and easy ways to stay active during these cooler months.
Try An At Home Circuit Program
First, I’d highly recommend that you use this time to start working on strengthening your muscles.  Remember, a strong runner is a well-performing runner. If you lack muscle strength, you won’t be able to run nearly as fast and your endurance may also suffer.
Taking the time to build up your core, lower body, and upper body is all wise to help promote better running during the summer season.
Pick a program to follow such as the Butts trainer, Abs trainer, Legs trainer, or Push-ups trainer and you’ll have a different workout for every day of the week.
Used over time these can help you make dramatic improvements in your fitness level.
Join A Group Fitness Class
Another great way to boost your fitness is to consider joining a group fitness class at your local gym.  Whether you choose to take kickboxing, a circuit training class, Zumba, or a spinning class, these are excellent ways to help take your fitness up a notch.
You can easily do to this a couple of times per week, balancing out with whatever other training you’re doing and you might even meet some new people as you do them.
Fitness classes are excellent for meeting like-minded individuals who will help you stay on track with the programs that you’re on.  As the saying goes, you are the sum of the 5 people closest to you, so if you don’t have many active friends, this might just be the perfect opportunity to get out and meet some.
Hit The Treadmill And Train
The next great way to stay fit during the winter season is to use the cardio machines to your advantage.  Getting on the treadmill and performing your running there will give you a chance to really focus on your running technique and boost your distance.
The great thing about treadmill running is that it’s very easy to track your time and distance, so you can really monitor your progress more closely.
Start building up your runs, picking up a trainer to follow as you do so. You could easily train for a road race in the spring using the C25K-5K trainer, the 10K trainer, or the half marathon trainer, depending on your skill level.
Since there are no divots in the road or changes in path, the treadmill is a great way to really see just how well you can run, all other potential influencers aside.
If you’d prefer to just take a break from your usual runs, don’t feel bad as well about simply using the elliptical or spin bike as well for your workouts. It’s a great opportunity to get in some cross training and will help you stay mentally fresh with your workouts.
Consider Trying Yoga
Finally, you might also want to take the cooler months off to really let your body go into full recovery as you try a completely new form of workout. Yoga for instance, can still provide muscle strengthening benefits as it also boosts your flexibility and endurance as well.
Try it for a few months while you can’t hit the pavement and you might just find a new exercise to add to your workout routine year-round that you enjoy.  As yoga is a non-impact activity, it’s a great one for runners to get involved with to give their body a break from the high impact nature that running presents.
So there you have some fast and easy ways to maintain fitness over the winter months. If you get creative, think about what you really enjoy and want to take part in, you should have no problem staying fit and making those winter months fly by until you can get back outside in the summer.
 
What’s your favorite way to stay fit over the colder months? Share your workouts here.