UNCONVENTIONAL WORKOUTS FOR FEAR OF THE GYM

By PW Nutritionist Grace Scott

January. The gifts are opened, the tree has been taken down and you’re still recovering from the new year celebrations. Resolutions are now on our minds and the most common one, exercise! However, do you fall into the 21% of the UK’s population that has a gym membership which is eating away at your bank balance but never actually gets used? For many this is due to social anxiety, the fear of being judged in the gym or not knowing the correct exercises to do. Well good news! We at Protein World have put our thinking caps on and have come up with some fun ways to help you get a little exercise in without needing to step foot inside a gym.

Ice skating sensation
For many cities, Christmas markets will continue to run up until mid-January, including the ice rink! Ice skating is an excellent form of exercise and it’s such fun that it won’t even feel like a workout! Ice skating is low impact which means it is easy on the joints and will improve overall core strength, balance and co-ordination. As an excellent form of cardio it can burn up to 387 calories in an hour and that’s just skating slowly! As well as sculpting your body, primarily your legs and bum and not a squat rack in sight. Even if the Christmas ice rinks have packed up and left, check for your local rink online and take the family or friend as a great day out!

Shop 'til you drop
What better time to hit the shops than the Boxing Day sales, and although this could be bad news for your bank account it’s great for your body. Carrying heavy shopping bags in both hands emulates a well-known exercise called farmers walk.  The muscles worked are predominantly the upper body including your shoulders, upper back and arms. Be sure to maintain a good posture when carrying your load, shoulders back head up and say goodbye to bingo wings and hello to toned arms.

Keep Calm and HIIT it
Finally, if neither of these take your fancy there is always the classic HIIT workout at home. These high intensity interval circuits are designed to be short but effective at burning fat, and generally all you need is a bit of space to jump around in your bedroom or living room! Targeted at every part of the body it’s much less time consuming than a conventional gym workout and often more enjoyable. Our top recommendations include The Body Coach Joe Wicks or fitness PT’s Alice Liveing and Chloe Madeley’s YouTube channels for easy to follow, effective HIIT sessions.

Remember to fuel your workout with the correct nutrition and recovery shake. Our Slender Blend is the perfect post workout shake, containing 25g of protein, low sugar and low calorie - it’s the perfect addition to your daily routine.