Four great activities to add to your summer fitness plan and amp up the calorie burn.
The good kind of burn that is…Not sunburn, but calorie burn.
Summer is terrific for relaxing and taking it easy, but it can also be a perfect season to commit to more serious fitness. With longer daylight hours and perhaps a more relaxed work load or school schedule, the summer months offer more leeway than the rest of the year for getting out and active. There are plenty of ways for people at all fitness and experience levels to get in better shape.
Here are four great activities to add to your summer fitness plan, which amp up the calorie burn and means you can enjoy that extra scoop of summer ice cream guilt free!
- Love Those Laps: Swimming
Swimming is the ideal summer sport because the pool is where you want to be in July’s thick heat, and because there’s no better all-around cardiovascular exercise that works the upper body, lower body and core. To target different muscle groups, vary your swim stroke, and don’t skimp on freestyle and butterfly, which burn the most calories and build endurance. A 150-pound person burns approximately 385 calories per 30 minutes of swimming butterfly, and 350 per half-hour of freestyle.
- Get In the Swing: Tennis
Tennis is a popular year-round sport in the Lowcountry, but summer’s longer days mean you can play on unlighted public courts and avoid the heat. Tennis is great for hand-eye coordination, for interval-type training (stops and starts, burst of energy) and for strengthening your socialization muscles too – which are equally important for overall well-being. A 150-pound person burns about 250 calories during 30 minutes of hitting tennis balls.
- Hit Your Stride: Beach Walking
The sand adds extra resistance (and an extra 30% calorie burn) while the scenery adds extra enjoyment, so hit the beach for a morning or evening brisk walk or jog. For a 150-pound person, a half-hour of brisk beach walking or jogging nets between 167 and 400 calories, depending on how fast you’re going.
- Pedal Power: Bicycling
Dust off your rusty beach cruiser and get cruising if you want to burn some calories while enjoying the breeze. Whether you pedal down the beach or just down the street, bicycling is a great exercise during hot months because you naturally stay cool, even while torching the calories. For a 150-pound adult, one half-hour of beach cruiser riding at an easy pace burns about 272 calories.
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