Unusual sports and workouts

littlemili

I'm sooo freaking bored of elliptical. For Christmas and my birthday, I am considering asking for membership to some kind of unusual sport club. Not a gym - they are also dull for me, but something where I can enjoy the sport and burn calories as a happy side-effect, not as the main goal. I'm thinking of stuff like ice skating, rock climbing...
Any ideas? What do YOU do to burn calories aside from regular gym stuff?

MB_Positif

that's a cool idea. i would like to learn some sort of martial art...also one of my friends took trapeze lessons!

ratellcm

My sister joined a learn to row program and loved it, and now she does Kendo (a martial art). I've always wanted to get into boxing.

daves160

I practice Taekwondo, and I also cycle and run. All three are awesome ways to get a good workout, plus are SOOOO enjoyable.
Weights I do about 2-3 times a week as a supplimental workout.

AmyG1982

Parkour (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkour), dance classes, martial arts, pole dancing

jecka31

Boxing!! I took a boxing class at my school's rec center and it was so much fun. Plus you can take any frustration you out by punching.

I mountain bike with my husband in addition to my running (when weather permits) and I find it relaxing. Its an awesome workout and I get to spend an hour (+) in the woods.

Expatgirl

I enjoy chopping wood and lifting rocks for creating a rock garden. Lots of upper body work there.

basschick

Dancing! Contra-dancing, Irish dancing, salsa, Zumba, Bhangra (Indian dancing), hip hop, etc. A friend of mine is taking a tap dance class and loves it.

jgoatgirl

I work at a doggy daycare and boarding facility. I have "doggy muscles"
If you like animals, rescues always need volunteer doggy walkers.

0112317

Running/hiking/snowshoeing -- no membership fees

ehunte

I land paddle which is like stand up water paddling but on a longboard. Lots of fun and a great total body workout!

bluefox9er

1. I run in full shoulder pads and helmets when I was well enough to run, and suicide sprints, even though I haven't played for 25 years. Once I get my new regime of painkillers, I'll be doing this again, the added weight makes a HUGE difference to the intensity of the exercise.

2. Nintendo wii " golds gym" boxing is a fiercely agressive workout, with a HRM I could easily burn around 550 calories per hour..and it makes you WORK real hard.

3. I sometimes power walk with a trash bag as a ''base layer'' beneath my sweatshirt to sweat more

and yeah i am a little crazy :-)

engineman312

I get bored easily myself, thsts why I love doing triathlon work outs. You do.swimming, running, biking, and some lifting. Keeps things interesting. You could also try crossfit, martial arts, mma, boxing among others.

tameko2

Rock climbing is an incredibly good workout but it IS a bit costly and time consuming (unless the rock climbing gym is really nearby). Its amazing for strength though, works every muscle in your body and especially your back, shoulders, etc. Also without a partner you usually can't climb very high (bouldering around low is still good but gets dull)

I play Dance Central on the Kinect (and DC 2) when I want a workout that's also funsies. Its an amazingly good workout because the camera picks up a huge range of motions so you get to do all kinds of fun things. Not quite as muscle intensive as rock climbing but more so than you would like.

A lot of ladies on here like Zumba but I'm not good with class schedules so I haven't tried it yet.

We also added C25k to our workouts lately - Its only a 30 minutes 3x a week commitment so you can fit it in around other workouts and it makes you feel really good to make that kind of progress

MrsSpinks

Pole fitness is really fun and a full body workout! Works all your muscles, even ones you didn't know you had!!

danger_kitteh

I am part of a military fashioned fitness bootcamp. Way better results than moping around a gym trying to be motivated. Plus there is the added benefit of your platoon members become some of your best friends.

ArroganceInStep

Try capoeira if they have classes in your area. It's a fantastic workout.

Any kind of martial art, cycling or rowing clubs, group sports.

You have lots of options.

GaiaGirl1992

i agree with pole dancing LMAO. that's fairly unique!!
others i would do are martial arts, rowing, or maybe bring friends to the gym?

scarletleavy

I love rock climbing! I climb every week.

I see ice skating is on your list. I skated for many many years and it's actually a really great workout and quite a lot of fun. I'd definitely suggest that.

What about yoga or pilates?

shellimus

I haven't tried this, but my co-workers are doing kickboxing and jujitsu. They love it!

littlemili

These ideas are AWESOME. Please keep them coming!

So far I love the idea of martial arts, rock climbing or pole dancing.
Unfortunately anything that might risk my hands getting damaged even a little is out since I'm a violinist, but wow, I can't believe how great these suggestions are. Tons better than gym membership.

nukehiker

how about a work out at one of those indoor trampoline places ? like www.skyzone.com or something similar ?

bluefox9er

Ohh..basketball or semi-organised hoops is an amazing amazing cardio work-out,too!!

ArroganceInStep

Unfortunately anything that might risk my hands getting damaged even a little is out since I'm a violinist

Depends on how careful you have to be.

Consider Yoga, Tai Chi or Martial art classes with little to no contact, or cycling/rowing/running clubs

Specifically with martial arts, but any good club or group should be able to adapt to your needs or at least tell you in advance that they won't be able to.

CakeFit21

Rock climbing is really fun and very challenging mentally too as try to stay on the right paths.

I live in an area where rowing is really popular. There are a couple of rowing docks where you can learn to row on the lake instead of the rowing machines. It's such a good workout, (obviously the rowing machine is) but on the water everything is about balance. Such a good core workout on top of all the other obvious muscle groups. They always have beginner classes and the membership is the same as a gym. Once you're ready you can go out as much as you like anytime of day, by yourself or with others. It's so peaceful on the lake in the morning, it's amazing.

Scoobiesnax

I'm not sure how careful you need to be with your hands but up here in canada a lot of people are getting into Ultimate Frisbee, and also Dodge Ball. Yes...I kid you not. Dodge Ball. It's a great cardio workout and is good for agility, hand-eye coordination, great cardio workout too. Ultimate Fridsbee is a good workout as well...and is a really social activity.
Best of luck in "shaking things up"...I know what it's like to get stuck in a workout rut.
Cheers !

janet_pratt

I ballroom dance, study aikido, do crossfit, ice skate in the winter, cycle in the summer, occasionally do indoor rock climbing and I'm training for a triathlon sprint next July.

Bhan133

I'm from Ireland and Ultimate Frisbee is really starting to grow quite fast. Fantastic sport, great fun and you forget how much you need to run when playing