Variety Is The Spice Of Fitness: Here’s Why You Need to Diversify Your Weekly Workouts
When it comes to sweating it out, many of us are creatures of habit. Whether you’re a cardio queen who steers well clear of the weights area or a CrossFit goddess who wouldn’t dream of spending an hour on a yoga mat, many of us are guilty of sticking to our comfort zones. While your commitment to regular exercise should be applauded it’s actually very important to vary your fitness routine. Spicing up your workout routine throughout the week is not only key to stimulating different muscle groups and preventing boredom but it can also help you prevent injuries and kick your metabolism into high gear for maximum weight loss results. Of course, having a varied workout routine and visiting more than one studio or gym is easier said than done. Most of us struggle to pay for one gym membership as it is so often participating in more than one form of exercise is out of the question. For those looking to bring some variety to their weekly sweat session, a multi-gym access membership like FitKey is the affordable answer to keeping your workout routines fresh and exciting.
We all know that there’s no shortage of different types of exercise to try – from low-intensity disciplines like yoga and pilates to high-intensity sessions like CrossFit, Sweat1000, and SWITCH Playground, there’s something to suit every type of gym bunny. But, just like a well-balanced diet, it’s also important to maintain a well-balanced workout routine that combines everything from strength training to cardio and even stretching. If you tend to gravitate towards more intense forms of exercise then it might be time to sign up for a few yoga, ballet, or pilates classes.
I’m obsessed with high-intensity sports and exercise and I’m happiest when I’m on the netball court or feeling the burn in a Sweat1000 class but I’ve found that stepping onto a yoga mat once or twice a week has helped me in so many ways. I tore my ACL a few years ago and, in addition to my body being exhausted from too much cardio, my injury was also in large part due to the fact that I never did any strength training or real core and stretching exercises. The repetition of three intense netball games a week also meant that my muscles, joints, and ligaments never got a chance to rest and recover before putting them into action again.
Yoga has helped my body come a long way and I can feel my muscles getting stronger and my mind getting calmer during each class. For a 1-hour yoga class, I use a completely different set of muscles to when I’m on the netball court and I love being able to feel my leg muscles and core getting stronger with each session. Yoga also helps me to be mindful of my body and see which areas of my body I need to strengthen or even rest. In addition to yoga, I also make sure I fit in strength training twice a week. Whether it’s a session at Sweat1000 (which combines cardio and strength training into one hour-long class) or a SWITCH Playground session, these sessions help to keep the muscles surrounding my knee and my whole body strong and ready to take on any challenge.
So why didn’t I do all this sooner? It was mostly because I was a proud cardio gal who felt hatred for the gym – especially the weights area! But part of it was also a lack of resources – a gym membership is pricey and while I wanted so badly to try new things like boxing fitness or pilates I couldn’t afford to tack on an extra R120 or more per class for the things I wanted to try. Discovering FitKey has definitely been a life-changing experience for me. For just R595 a month FitKey gave me access to different types of workouts at a wide variety of studios across Cape Town, And, it even allowed me to keep training, at no extra cost, at studios in Joburg when I travelled for work.
Besides working out my body in different ways, switching up my exercise routine during the week also offers a really enjoyable change of scenery. It’s also helped me speed up weight loss and preventing plateauing. When you do the same activity all the time, your body gets used it and becomes very efficient at that one thing and eventually you’ll burn fewer calories even when you’re doing the same amount of exercise. Mixing it up in the gym and doing a little bit of everything has taken the strain off my lower body and allowed me to build a strong heart (which helps a tonne with my endurance), muscular legs and a powerful upper body.
Using an app like FitKey make it super easy and affordable to have a balanced workout routine. Every day there are loads of classes of every type to choose from so it’s easy to look at my diary and plan my workouts for the week. I know I have netball on Monday nights and I like to follow that up with a yoga class on Tuesdays to stretch my muscles and reset everything before putting my body to the test again in a high-intensity class like boxing. Having all the classes easily laid out in the app and ready to book at the press of a button makes sticking to my fitness plan so much easier. Check out the FitKey classes schedule here to see what I mean.
Curious about spicing up your workout routine? Give FitKey a try! With FitKey there are no joining fees and no contracts or obligations. You simply pay the monthly fee of R995 for the unlimited package when you want to use the membership and you’ll have access for a full month from the day you pay. There are also a range of other membership plans available starting from R295 for Fitkey 3 (3 classes a month) to R695 for FitKey 10 (10 classes a month). Momentum Multiply members get up to 10% off their monthly FitKey membership.
**BONUS: use this WomenStuff referral link to get an additional R50.00 off of your first month!**
