Exercising shouldn’t have to feel like a chore.

There are things to like about exercising. The endorphin high, the post-workout glow, overall fitness, the feeling your lungs seizing up, tasting blood in your mouth and eventually reducing down to a sweaty hot mess. There are pros and cons to exercising. No pain, no gain runs really well in the gym and fitness community.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean exercising should feel like a chore rather than a fun thing to stay fit. Hitting the gym or sticking to one fitness program can get monotonous, thereby pushing you to quit on your goals. And that’s not sustainable.

Here a few things to try to make exercising more fun.

1. Crank up the music – Instead of moving in silence or disliking the music being played at the gym, use your own playlists. Plug in while exercising and move to the beat. Updating your playlists according to your training plan will keep it light and fun. Fast paced music helps a lot.
2. Mix up the fitness plans – Exercise to your personality. Do you like the outdoors instead of a four walled gym? Take up a spin class, yoga classes, Zumba classes to break the monotonous routine. Mixing it up keeps working out fun and motivated to keep at it.
3. Exercise with your friends – Choose your gang to hit the ropes. Having a solid squad working out with has been said to release more feel-good endorphins. Your friends will also be a support group pushing each other to do better.
4. A little exercise is also fine – Even if you feel like taking a day off from resistance training, it’s always better to do some light treadmill or cycling workout instead of flopping onto the couch Netflixing.
5. Watch something while working out – Instead of watching your TV shows on your bed while eating salsa and chips, watch them at the gym while doing your favourite treadmill cardio.
6. Exercising apps help – There are tons of fitness apps available online. If working out in front of people is not your thing, download these apps and get started. These fitness apps also help in keeping track of your diet and gives you tips and well-timed reminders.
7. Discover your new athletic abilities – Weight training not your thing? Discover new athletic abilities by going hiking, swimming, surfing, yoga, hula hooping. Keep trying other fitness activities that you can vibe well with.
8. Reward yourself – It’s all about perspective. If you view exercising as a result of a guilt-trip for eating two whole cupcakes, that’s a pessimistic way to look at it. Instead think of exercising as a reward where you destress yourself after a long, hard day. It’s all about optimistic outlook at your fitness plan.