take the work out of working out

take the work out of working out

Have you ever wondered why working out is so much work? Work - as in a job; as in something you have to do; something difficult, boring, not fun. Why can't it be "play" instead of "work"?

Last weekend I played with my kids - their games, their speed. I kicked a soccer ball around with an 8-year old, which morphed (as it always seems to do) into a competitive game of 1 on 1. I swam in a wave pool at a water park with a 12-year old, swimming and goofing around for as long as he wanted to. I slid head first 25 feet across a slip-and-slide in the backyard, over and over again.

Want to know what I didn't do this weekend? I didn't work out. Yet I got more exercise than I usually do, and I feel great.

I'm not saying we all need to break out the slip and slide to get in shape. (although it wouldn't hurt!) But I do think the more fun our workouts are, like playing games (play-outs?), the more likely we are to continue doing them over the long term.

-Chris Butterworth