5 Ways to Exercise--At Home!

I have always loved a good workout! I've been active my entire life. Growing up in country, I hiked, biked, and ran all the time. I started organized track and field in fourth grade and ran all the way through high school. I did ballet and ballroom dance through college for exercise, too. I much prefer to be outside than working out in a gym. But lately, it's been super cold and gross outside. Here are 5 ways to get a good workout in your living room!

My cat, Dorian, loves yoga!

1. Yoga. I've been doing yoga for over a year, now--and I've never taken a class! Do I have the "perfect" form? Probably not, but I've learned what works for my body and how to listen to what my body needs, so it's worked really well for me. Here are a couple sites I used to get started:

• http://yoga.about.com/
• http://www.yogajournal.com

2. Barre Technique. If you have ever been to a ballet class, you have probably started at the barre. So take it to your workout! It sounds easy, but it is a workout. Make sure you have a mirror and you use correct posture and technique, or you could really hurt yourself. Here's a good site to get you going, but if you don't have an experienced ballet instructor who can check your posture and positions, it might not be a good idea to try it on your own.

• http://dance.about.com/

3. Exercise Ball. This thing is not only great for a workout, but sit on it while you watch TV--your abs and obliques might feel a little sore the next morning! An exercise ball is really good for a variety of exercises. You can target certain areas and also do a full body workout. Here's the most complete list of exercises to try:

• http://www.ball-exercises.com

4. Dance with the Stars. I competed in ballroom a few years ago and loved it! Dancing with the Stars is huge right now and these DVDs are pretty fun. They aren't completely accurate when it comes to "correct" ballroom steps, so don't get good at them and think you know how to dance, but they are really fun to do!

5. Do Housework. Sounds silly, but a few weeks ago, this study came out. In 1965 women did 25.7 hours of housework and in 2010 women only did 13.3 hours of housework. Women in 2010 were, on average, 22 pounds heavier than women were in 1965. So get up off the couch and run a vacuum around your house!

Hope you're staying warm and staying active!

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi