Here Are Gold Medal Strategies for Olympic-Sized Fitness Challenges
By Sara Butler
Watching the 2022 Winter Olympics from the comfort of your couch is exhilarating. The aerial feats, the agility, the way those curlers sweep, it kind of gets you in the mood to be active and push your own body just a little bit -- beyond reaching for the remote control or your bowl of popcorn.
The Olympics is absolutely an inspiring event and witnessing these athletes performing at their peak is something incredible to behold. Why not harness a little of that wonder for yourself and see what you can do? No, we’re not talking about starting to train for an Olympic sport (biathlon, anyone?), but maybe what you should consider is participating in a wellness challenge to help you jump-start your health.
Wellness and fitness challenges, especially those found online, are easy to come by. They’re a fun way to encourage people to get healthier, focus on fitness, and simply improve their overall wellness. These challenges are also perfect for those who struggle with motivation or sticking to a healthy routine. Here are some of the benefits you can expect from participating in a health challenge that gets you from admiring an Olympic athlete to feeling a little bit more like one!
You’ll Exercise Control
Taking control of your health and wellness is one of the biggest benefits of regular exercise and healthy eating. By participating in a health or fitness challenge either in person or online, you’ll get encouragement from others and the support you need to be successful. Sure, personal accountability comes into play, but you’re likely to be more successful if you have others to help keep you on track and stay true to your commitments.
You’ll Find It Motivating
People tend to thrive in communities, whether they’re in person or online. When you join a health or fitness challenge, you’ll connect with other people who are taking part and build relationships in a friendly way. As you get older, meeting new people is tough but this is one way to meet new people with the same interests as you and make some real connections. Those connections will motivate you and help you meet your goals.
You’ll Make Goals -- And Exceed Them
Speaking of goals, they’re easy to think up but a lot harder to accomplish. When you join a fitness or health challenge, then you’ll be taught how to create reasonable goals that are achievable. For people just starting out on their road to better health and wellness, this is an important lesson. If you set your goals too high, then they can actually hurt the outcome of your challenge rather than help. Health and fitness challenges, by their very nature, help provide reasonable goals to work toward in a way that makes you feel challenged -- and encouraged -- throughout. You can celebrate your small victories along the way with the friends you make!
You’ll Have Fun
Making sustainable habits with new friends and creating new goals for yourself may not seem like a great time, but it really is. With the new people you’ll meet, you’ll find new workouts that you may like, learn tips that are helpful to push you toward better habits, and challenge yourself in a way you can be proud of.
Where to Find a Challenge
Finding a health or fitness challenge isn’t difficult. You can do something as simple as Google it. The American Heart Association often runs online health and fitness challenges that focus on heart health, and other health and wellness-centric websites also do the same. Even Facebook has online communities you can search through. It’s up to you!
The next time you’re watching those insane athletes speeding down the side of a very steep mountain on television, don’t just admire what they can do -- use it to push yourself to do more and get a little healthier!
The information, including but not limited to, text, graphics, images and other material contained on this page are for informational purposes only. The purpose of this post is to promote broad consumer understanding and knowledge of various health topics, including but not limited to the benefits of chiropractic care, exercise and nutrition. It is not intended to provide or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your chiropractor, physician or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before undertaking a new health care regimen, and never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this page.