Exercising is good for you in many ways. At first, getting started with a workout routine can be hard until it becomes a habit. Whether you’re a newbie or a seasoned exerciser, one way to motivate yourself to exercise is to make a game of it. Let’s look at some ways you can gamify your workouts to help you stay motivated and have fun.
Set Goals and Rewards
You can gamify your exercise by setting different goals and rewards for accomplishing them. For example, you could set a distance or number of daily steps. If you reach a goal, then reward yourself. Goals don’t have to be big. In fact, you are more likely to accomplish them if they are small.
You will want to track your progress as you work towards your goals. As a result, you’ll know if you’re making progress. It doesn’t have to be complicated. In fact, you can use a notebook to keep track of your activities and notes. On the other hand, plenty of wearables can automatically track your workouts, making it easier to follow your progress.
Leaderboards, Points, and Badges
Research suggests that competition can help you work harder and stay motivated. Leaderboards can show you how you’re doing against other people, or you can use them to rank yourself by comparing your previous and recent workouts.
Regardless, leaderboards are a great way to gamify exercise and compete with friends and family. Everyone can have a lot of fun competing and keeping each other motivated.
Points and badges, like leaderboards, are a great way to gamify your exercise. For example, you can give yourself points for completing workouts and reward yourself for reaching specific milestones. In fact, some apps will automatically award points and badges for your effort.
Challenges
Challenges can be an effective way to keep you motivated. For example, you could create a 30-day plank or a 10,000-step challenge. Challenges may be more fun if you include your friends and family.
Working together towards a common goal is an effective way to increase physical activity. Friendly competition can be motivating and also hold you accountable. In other words, no one wants to let their team down. So grab your friends and have the winner of each challenge pick the next challenge and reward. Then, get started and have some fun!
Fitness Games
Games are fun and can keep us engaged. So, why not gamify your exercise by playing games that require you to exercise? Fitness and VR games require some form of exercise to play and use technology that tracks body movement or reactions.
Playing games like Dance Dance Revolution or Wii Fit U lets you have fun and get your heart pumping. Alternatively, some apps such as Zombies, Run!, and The Walk provide a more engaging experience by combining storytelling and workouts.
Gamify Your Workouts with Music
You can use music to gamify your exercise. Creating different playlists of your favorite upbeat songs that you enjoy can help you stay focused and keep you motivated during your workouts. Moreover, you can create different playlists for different types of workouts.
If you do interval training, you could work a little harder for one song and recover during the next. Alternatively, you could try to match your movements with the beat of the music. This can help you maintain a consistent pace and rhythm. Another idea is to create a specific challenge based on the music. For example, see how many push-ups you can do or try to hold a plank for an entire song.
The Takeaway
Gamifying your exercise can be motivating and fun. There are several ways to gamify your exercise, such as through fitness games, apps, or friendly competition with friends and family. If you’re having fun exercising, you increase your chances of sticking with it and achieving your goals.
If you can achieve your fitness goals, then you are more likely to make exercise a lifelong habit. However, always listen to your body. If you need a day off, take some time to recover.
FitTrend’s mission is to help you along your self-improvement journey, promote an active lifestyle, and help you achieve your goals. Our journal can help you track your workouts, weight, mood, calories, and more. Also, FitTrend allows you to connect supported gadgets to your account to make it easier for you to update your journal automatically. Create your account today and start using FitTrend for free!
Disclaimer: No content on this site should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician.
