New Year, new you, right?
With 2019 right around the corner, "Good Morning America" partnered with ClassPass to share the most helpful tips and tricks from some of Instagram’s biggest fitness enthusiasts to conquer all our fitness and health resolutions in the New Year.
ClassPass, the monthly fitness membership app, is featuring Hannah Bronfman, Shawn Johnson and Jessamyn Stanley in its new campaign highlighting how staying active plays a role in each of their daily lives.
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Curious how you can create, commit to and maintain new goals for yourself? We’ve got you covered! "GMA" spoke with each Instagram influencer to learn how they’ve mastered the art of staying fit.
Move throughout the day
“I travel a lot so I’m not always able to get myself to a work out class or gym so I always have to remind myself to just move throughout the day," said Bronfman, founder of HBFIT and author of "Do What Feels Good." "Whether that means not taking an Uber and going for an extra-long walk, or, if it’s freezing out, maybe I wake up 10 minutes early and I do some sit-ups, a wall-sit and a few planks to get my heart rate going in the morning."
"I think a lot of people think if you don’t go to a work out class or gym, that means you’re not getting your exercise in, so I want people to remember your body can be moved at any place, at any time," she added. "You can go through a five-minute yoga flow just in the morning or at night to stretch everything out. You can do 100 mountain climbers right next to your bed and get your heart rate up.”
(MORE: Veteran who lost both legs in Iraq war finds healing in yoga)
Trick yourself into a workout
“Sometimes it’s helpful for me to trick myself into doing things," said Jessamyn Stanley, a North Carolina-based yoga teacher, body positive advocate and the author of "Every Body Yoga: Let Go of Fear, Get On the Mat, Love Your Body." "The way I do it with yoga is to roll out the yoga mat."
"If you are the kind of person that is like, 'I don’t have time to practice yoga,' then roll your yoga mat out in the most inconvenient place possible like in front of the door to the bathroom, or in front of the bed, wherever you’d have to step over it in order to do the things you need to do," she explained. "The more you are stepping over and on it, the more you will realize, 'The least I can do is get on the mat.'"
"My way of tricking myself to go to the gym is to start [driving] there because once I start to drive there, I’m not going to go home. Once you get there, even if you don’t want to be there, give yourself the smallest amount you think you can do. Once you get to the small amount, five minutes or whatever it is — you’re going to get into the headspace and you’re basically tricking yourself into doing it.”
Try something new
“I fell in love with my sport at such a young age and had such a passion for challenging myself and pushing myself to the next level," said Johnson, an Olympic gold medal-winning gymnast and founder of Fyt Life. "I started to find different workouts and different fitness styles where I could challenge myself and transition my passion into that."
"I learned so many things in gymnastics, but the biggest takeaway [is], the more uncomfortable you are in a situation and the harder it is, the bigger the reward," she said.
Try a group workout
“When you don’t feel like working out, my top suggestion is to get some of your friends and do a group workout," said Bronfman. "I find that when you make plans with your friends, you really end up sticking to that commitment."
"Another tip is pre-paying for the class because ultimately you don’t want to waste money," she said. "So, booking a class in advance and booking a class with friends are my two top tips for staying on track.”
Schedule your workouts
“It starts with general scheduling of the day. What’s helpful for me is to literally write [my workouts] in my calendar," said Stanley. "If you schedule it the same way you would schedule picking up your kids from the dentist, or whatever it is you’re planning to do that day, give it the same level of priority and make it a recurring theme."
Find what works for you
“The main thing I would say is something said often by people who have conquered these fears is, 'Just go for it!'" said Stanley. "It’s totally chill to have an experience and be like, 'Yeah, I didn’t like that, I’m never going back to that class or teacher.' As long as you keep at it, you will find something that works for you.”
Mix it up
“I enjoy having access to different workouts, which is why I think Class Pass is so great," said Bronfman. "For me, it’s important to have the convenience factor. I love boxing, Pilates, dance cardio and of course I like a good toning, sculpting class. Those are my go-tos that I like to do almost every week."
She added, "I love doing something different almost every single day. That type of muscle confusion is really important for your body and I think you see the most results when you have an approach like that, so doing things that keep your body guessing are really awesome.”
Prep ahead to resist temptation
“Before you go to a cocktail party or out to dinner with friends, I think it’s important to give yourself that nourishment before going out," said Bronfman. "You do not want to be starving when you leave the house. If you’re going out to dinner, I suggest maybe having a cup of bone broth that will fill you up with great nutrients. Eating things that are nutrient-dense before you go out really helps you get full so you’re not tempted to eat as much when you’re out.”
Set a challenging fitness resolution
“There are so many classes that are dance classes that I desperately want to try to take," said Johnson. "It’s a resolution for 2019 for me. I’m very, very shy when it comes to dancing believe it or not. I don’t even know how I did 'Dancing with the Stars!' I don’t dance anymore, but I’m going to try to start. I love it, but I’m terrified of it.”
Have fun!
“I feel like 99 percent of the classes out there you can cater to your own ability," Johnson said. "I feel like anyone who is intimidated to try new things, to put themselves out there, don’t be, because everyone is at a different level and you can take any class and cater to your own strength and weakness and have fun with it."
