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The best type of exercise is the one that provides endless benefits to our physical and mental health. While both men and women can reap the rewards of multiple different types of exercise, some types that women could benefit from more are listed below.

So, break out your favorite pair of women’s running shoes and dive into exercise and movement. It will not only make you look and feel better than ever but also make you feel excited and motivated to complete every day. 

Swimming

Dive into the world of swimming, a workout often hailed as the best full-body exercise for women. The water’s buoyancy acts as a supportive cushion. This allows for relieving your joints from unwanted pressure and allowing them to move with ease. 

Swimming is particularly beneficial for individuals with arthritis and osteoarthritis as it is less weight-bearing but still provides enough natural resistance to facilitate a proper workout. Additionally, it has been found to improve mental health and boost mood. 

Tai Chi

Tai chi is a Chinese martial art that combines movement and relaxation to support the body and mind. It is often referred to as ‘meditation in motion’ and consists of a range of graceful movements that smoothly transition from one to the next. 

Tai Chi consists of a range of graceful movements that smoothly transition from one to the next. This makes it a valuable form of exercise for people of all ages and fitness levels. It’s especially beneficial for older people, as it places a significant focus on balance, something we tend to lose as we age. 

Walking 

Walking is a highly underappreciated form of exercise. It may seem like a simple exercise to complete every day, but the benefits you can gain from including a walk of 30 minutes to an hour each day are extremely beneficial. It can help you control your body weight, strengthen bones, improve cholesterol levels, improve your mental health, and, most importantly, boost and support a healthy cardiovascular system. Numerous studies have shown that walking can even improve memory and reduce the risk of age-related memory loss. 

All you need to begin walking is a well-fitting and supportive pair of fitness trainers, making it an extremely cheap and accessible form of movement. Start with a short walk of roughly 10-15 minutes, slowly increasing the time every few days or each week. 

Strength Training

Incorporating weight training into your workout is crucial for numerous reasons. Many industry experts recommend strength training as an effective tool to raise your metabolism, improve posture, increase muscle mass, and generally improve your physical confidence. 

Lifting light weights won’t bulk up your muscles, but will keep them strong, improving your physical strength and helping you complete everyday tasks with more ease. Before you begin a weight training program, it is essential to learn the proper form you should hold to make it effective. Make use of information you can find online, or temporarily work with a personal trainer to learn how to make your exercises as effective as possible. And if you’re pregnant and need a little bit of a boost during your workout, make sure to check out Mamasupps for their line of pregnancy workout supplements.

Yoga

Yoga is a fantastic form of movement to do at any time, but it is particularly helpful during your period and in the week leading up to your monthly cycle when your energy levels are dipping, and a calmer form of movement is a welcomed relief. 

Heavily focused on connecting your body and mind, yoga uses specialized breathing techniques to reduce stress and encourage full-body relaxation. It also helps to improve your overall flexibility, which reduces the risk of picking up injuries. Pregnancy yoga can aid in relieving lower back pain while increasing strength. 

Kegel Exercises

Kegel exercises won’t make you look better, but they are incredibly beneficial for something just as important. They are an effective way to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles, which support the bladder. Strong pelvic muscles significantly reduce the chance of incontinence, and both men and women can benefit from including them as a regular part of their fitness routine. 

To do a kegel exercise correctly, you need to squeeze the muscles you would typically use to prevent yourself from passing urine or gas. This muscle contraction should be held for roughly 3-4 seconds before being released, completely relaxing your pelvic muscles. Repeat this process ten times, three to four times a day. 

Things to Remember

The key to turning fitness into a daily habit you actually enjoy is removing the negative connotation many people often associate with it. This can be done in two key ways. 

Go Easy on Yourself

Society expects women to wear multiple hats, and working out can often end up feeling like an unattainable luxury or yet another thing to complete on an already too-long list of things to do. The truth is, you don’t need to work out for hours on end every single day. 

Just 30 minutes of medium to high-intensity exercise, 4-5 times a week, is enough time to reap the many heart-healthy benefits of exercise. Alternatively, you can include one hour of exercise 2-3 times a week, which can consist of walking around your neighborhood or time at your local swimming pool, should it suit your schedule better. 

Finds Things You Actually Like

Exercise should be something that challenges you, but it also needs to be a form of movement you enjoy. The only way to see proper and maintainable results when working out is through consistency, and you will struggle to find the motivation to carve out time to exercise if it is not something you enjoy doing. 

If you don’t enjoy running, cycling, or swimming, consider joining a walking club or signing up for a fun dance class instead. With the advancement of social media platforms and phone applications, you can download apps that provide short and varied workouts to try in the comfort of your home, helping you find the movement you enjoy most.

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