Health Breakdown of 4 Popular Cardio Routines

When working out with time restrictions, people can feel overwhelmed trying to get in the best workout possible. After research, I have been able to breakdown how many calories are burned for the average 150 pound college-aged student. While every body is different and results vary, this will give a general idea so that the best workout can be achieved in a 20-minute time frame.

As shown in the graph, running gives you the opportunity to burn the most calories, followed by using the elliptical, sprinting, and then rowing. In all of these, the harder you are able to push yourself, the more calories you burn. Because of this, if you are able to push yourself harder in one workout than another, you might be able to burn the same amount of calories. As always, do what feels and works best for you.  

4 Ways to Build a Community Around Fitness

It is not always easy to workout in your few moments of free time. In order to help with motivation, it is recommended to have a community of support to encourage you when you aren’t feeling like making time.

Friends/Family:

No one is able to motivate you quite like your family and friends. Tell them when you are planning on working out, see if they will go with you or at least check in to make sure you get it done. It is always more enjoyable to workout with a partner. You can chat and push each other without realizing it. My most enjoyable workouts are when I am with my friends because I treat it like hanging out instead of fitness. Sometimes this just means playing soccer outside or going on a bike ride through a nice path. Choose to do something within fitness that you actually love, and it won’t feel like work.

Fitness Classes:

Having a class that you regularly attend will make you more excited and comfortable in your workout. Typically an instructor will build a new workout each week, which will push you in ways that you don’t typically push yourself. Having a regular time that you workout each week is the best way to keep it regular. Cross-training, hot yoga, Spinning, and Zumba are all workout classes that I LOVE and recommend others to attend regularly. Each of these classes are different, but they all encourage me because I want to keep up with other people in the classes.

Groups:

There are groups for all types of fitness activities. For example, there are running groups, sports groups, biking groups, rock climbing groups, and many others. Being involved with a group is a fun way to find encouragement, meet people with a common goal, and build trusting relationship with them. At my university there are countless fitness groups I am able to be a part of, even though I commute. There are weight lifting and running groups that I have attended and enjoyed. I like it because there are people of all skill levels coming together and encouraging me in my personal fitness journey.

Smartphone Apps:

Apps are a great way to keep a sense of community while acknowledging how busy you are. Under Armor Record is a great app that connects busy individuals to a virtual fitness community. If you enjoy running, you are able to look at routes that other people in your community have ran. This is a great way to connect with other people, even if you aren’t physically with them. It is also free. Beachbody has an app that gives you a large variety of workouts taught by physical trainers. Some of the workouts use weights, some don’t, but all are able to be completed within the comfort of your home. It is easy to connect with the different instructors and they will push you to your limit, even though they can’t physically see you. This app does cost money, but can be much cheaper than traditional fitness classes. 

By involving in one, two, or all of these options, it is way harder to find an excuse not to workout. Additionally, it gives you the chance to work harder, make time, and feel more accomplished.

4 Healthy Snacks When You’re on The Go

Making time to eat big meals while commuting to school and work can be difficult, especially during lunch. It can be really tempting to grab unhealthy snacks a fast food during the rush of the day. Here are some healthy alternatives that I never leave home without.

Popcorn:

Let me quickly explain that I am NOT talking about the movie theater butter options. What I prefer is to make it homemade. I use coconut oil to pop the popcorn, and then lightly salt and add nutritional yeast on top. YUM! And it really satisfies your hunger and has many health benefits. Nutritional yeast is something I add to snacks and you can barely taste it, but your body will thank you. I make the popcorn once, throw it in a container, and I’m set for the rest of the week. If you are out of time though, Boom Chicka Pop has some great healthy popcorn options that you can buy right at the store.

Pistachios:

What is more satisfying than cracking open a pistachio? I usually buy these in the biggest possible bag of the Wonderful brand (Get Crackin’). I choose this brand because I love the salt and pepper ones! They have the perfect kick of flavor that satisfies my senses. I also love pistachios (and any nut for that matter) because they are PACKED with protein. I know how hard it is to get in the amount of daily protein your body needs when you’re on the go. I always tell people, never be scared about the calories in nuts, because they really are healthy calories your body uses to fuel.

Sesame Sticks:

I have been OBSESSED lately. I will link a recipe where I have made them homemade, but I typically just get them at my local healthy food store or grocery stores for convenience. The fun part is that there are so many different flavors to choose from.

• Honey roasted
• Cajun
• Cheddar
• Salt and pepper
• Jalapeno

The list goes on! I will even take the original salted ones and dip them in peanut butter. I like these because they satisfy your sweet and salty cravings but are way healthier than chips or other junk food. They are high in fat, but it is healthy fat. Eat and enjoy in variations.

Dehydrated Fruit:

Okay, I’m not talking about raisins and dried bananas here. I’ve noticed that sometimes when fruit is dried, it either gets really dusty, or loses its flavor. My favorite is to get dehydrated strawberries and blueberries at my local health store (shout out to Raisin Rack). To me, they taste and have the same texture as fruit roll ups. I haven’t found a good recipe yet for making these at home (because they all just come out dried), but I have heard that you get best results if you buy a dehydrating machine.

The best part of all is that these all can be combined for an amazing trail mix!

Setting Aside 10 Minutes for Yourself

As commuters, many of us frequently wrestle with one recurring question:

“Do I have time to go to the gym today?”

All too often, it is easy for a commuter to make reasons not to go to the gym so that they may return home to relax, begin working on assignments, or go to work. Trust me, I get it! However, there are many benefits to taking time out of your day to work out. It is important for college students to maintain some level of daily physical exercise, even if it means taking only 10-30 minutes out of the day to do a brief workout at home or on a lunch break.

I’ve listed a few of my favorite workout routines below.

The Rainy-Day Workout:

I love this workout because it only takes 10 minutes, but you can repeat as many times as you want. I was able to find it on a blog entitled Running in a Skirt, by Julie Wunder. I first used it on a rainy afternoon when I couldn’t go on a run and I didn’t have time to drive to the gym. Total completion time for all five rounds takes about 10 minutes, depending on how fast you go through the moves, and on your physical ability. Once you go through all the moves once, you can elect to repeat it again from the top to challenge yourself. This workout will get your heart pumping, tone your muscles, and make you feel more focused throughout the rest of the day.

Quick Start Workout:

This workout, by Darebee, is great if you prefer to exercise first-thing in the morning to get stretched out and ready for the day. Even going through each exercise just once after you wake up will help you wake up, increase blood flow, and jump-start your day. Doing this in the morning always makes me feel more focused throughout the day. Darebee recommends that you do the routine three times through and use two-minute breaks in between sets. However, if I am being honest, I skip the two-minute break to save time.

Power Lunch 10 Minute Workout:

This is another great option for those with limited time. It is by Julie Wunder again, in her blog, Running in a Skirt. I highly recommend her blogs for quick home workout routines. Most people can spare 10 minutes during their lunch break to get in a quick workout. While this workout may seem simple, it can be quite difficult to maintain some of these poses for an entire minute. I like this one because I don’t get too gross and sweaty, but I engage my entire body.

There are many other quick workouts available online that will be effective, but these are just a few of my favorites. The idea is that, despite our demanding schedules as commuters, we can all take a small amount time each day to work on ourselves, even if it is just 10-30 minutes with no equipment.