Regular exercise despite everyday stress? These tips will get you fit in 2026

Every day life is packed full: how can you find time for exercise and sport? Experts say you don't need to do hours of exercise. They provide ideas on how to start small. So you are on your best shape to try out the betting sites in Kenya.

Work, family, household chores, friends, doctor's appointments: many people's calendars are pretty full. This means that plans to exercise more quickly fall by the wayside – even though we know it would do us good.

But even small changes can help us incorporate more exercise and sport into our everyday lives. The idea that we have to sweat it out for hours at the gym or on the running track is a myth.

1. Bring more exercise into your everyday life

“Short bursts of exercise are better than none at all,” says Lena Henning from the Institute of Sports Science at the University of Münster. “Being aware of this and wanting to incorporate exercise into your everyday life is the first step.”

But how exactly? You can try associating certain places, times, or situations with exercise. If you go to the office in the morning, resolve to take the stairs instead of the elevator.

Or you can actively shape your commute by taking your bike or walking the last three bus stops. Further ideas: “Do a few squats while brushing your teeth or take a few steps while talking on the phone,” suggests Barbara Halberschmidt, who also conducts research in the sports psychology team at the University of Münster. It can also help to incorporate exercise into social activities, for example, by arranging to go for a walk with friends.

In general, “it's easier to start with small and simple steps,” says sports psychologist Halberschmidt. If you repeat these regularly, they become more and more routine – we no longer have to try so hard to motivate ourselves.

2. Combine strength and endurance training – even in small doses

“Every step makes you fit”: there is some truth to this saying. After all, walking helps to counteract a lack of exercise, as sports scientist Jürgen Gießing from the University of Kaiserslautern-Landau says. However, to really get fit, you need more than that: training. Because: “Not every movement is training or sport.”

In addition to everyday movement, we also need to challenge our bodies a little. The best way to do this is with a combination of strength and endurance training, which provides the greatest health benefits. Achieving this doesn't take as much time as some people think.

Strength training

“Regular strength training prevents age-related strength and muscle loss and maintains our largest sugar store and energy consumer: our muscles,” says sports scientist Jürgen Gießing.

According to him, just 30 minutes per week is enough to achieve measurable results. “If you train all the major muscle groups in your body once a week with five to six exercises—each to the point of muscular exhaustion—you will notice a change after just a short time,” says Jürgen Gießing. And if you stick with it for a year, you will most likely never want to miss your workout again.

Endurance training

Endurance sports such as running, cycling, and swimming strengthen the cardiovascular system. Here, too, it doesn't have to be for hours on end: even a total of 60 minutes of exercise per week in the target heart rate range has clear effects, says Jürgen Gießing. This so-called target heart rate range is 65 to 80 percent of the maximum heart rate.

The maximum heart rate can be calculated using a rule of thumb: 220 minus your age. For example, a 40-year-old has a maximum heart rate of 180 beats per minute. The target heart rate range is therefore 117 to 144 beats per minute. If you use a smartwatch or wearable device, you can easily keep an eye on this range.