HIA Series | Play is for Everyone!
Action 5: Identify activity/sport that you enjoy & make time for it every week
Take 2 deep breaths...
Now, while staying relaxed, think back to a good memory in your childhood where you were playing and enjoying life carefree.
…
What if I told you there is a way to recapture some of that magic.
No, I haven't yet found a healthy way to abolish responsibilities that seem to multiply as we age. Instead, I would like us to focus on making time for some active fun, and making this a priority to regularly enjoy the youthfulness still left in us!
The importance of fun and play in our lives.
Playing and having fun seems to be underrated as we age into adulthood. With adulthood comes many responsibilities and opportunities to worry about things. It’s good for us to take these responsibilities seriously and to want to use our time efficiently to take care of others, improve ourselves, and feel productive overall. Unfortunately, it's easy to get caught up in all the hustle of adulthood and become too serious, more stressed, and consequently letting our fun side diminish.
The cool part about prioritizing fun and play throughout our week is that we can actually help our mind and body better handle the responsibilities, stress, and further ambitions we have for ourselves.
[1] This is because these activities can promote:
The sense of joy and accomplishment (which can also spread into the other areas of our life).
A regular stimulus to elicit our brain’s higher functional abilities (such as problem solving and coordination).
A greater sense of identity and something to look forward to: both of which can decrease depression and improve our optimism.
If joining a group, an opportunity to build our social-emotional skills through more natural connection with others that we have an activity as a foundation of something in common.
If done with your spouse, kids, family members, or friends; an opportunity to strengthen your bonds with each other by spending more time together and often making some great memories.
Having these types of activities as a staple in your life (ideally weekly) can help you feel more emotionally recharged and capable of doing all the other things that need to be done. Don’t discount the power of having something you look forward to doing!
[1] At its core, “play” is mostly about your mindset. The three main components that can help you identify an activity as “play” are
Engaging = you're interested in the task at hand
Enjoyable = you're having fun with the experience
Content = you’re not expecting anything from anyone for doing it
With this understanding, “play” doesn't necessarily need to be something physically active…BUT if we can find physically active pursuits or sports we enjoy doing as our “play,” we provide ourselves with a 2-for-1 benefit with the precious use of our time.
We get the mental/physical benefits of fun and play
We get the physical/mental benefits of moving more
This all sounds good but…
I don’t think I have the energy.
One big challenge you may experience after deciding you want to add some physically active play into your week, is the reality that you may feel tired after working or tending to all of your other responsibilities on any given day. While playing a sport may sound fun, it also sounds fun to lay down or sit and watch a show.
There’s nothing wrong with enjoying some physically restful activities too. However, if you’d like to improve your health and physical abilities, consider enjoying that restful time after dedicating yourself to being active first.
This mindset will also help you follow through with your training program on the other days of the week.
Realistically, there will be days that utterly drain you or you didn’t get much sleep the night before; and on these days rest may be more beneficial. But often, it's not uncommon to feel sluggish after work or completing your to do list. It's easy for our brain to associate being done with something as being done with everything for the day and signaling to our body to down shift toward rest and relaxation.
If you’ve ever decided to persevere and do your workout or meet up with friends after feeling wiped out from your day, then feel yourself catch a second wave of energy, and then feel better afterwards; you have experienced this common trick our bodies can play on us.
So aside from the days where you truly need more rest, two powerful actions you could take in spite of how tired you feel most days are to
Plan ahead what you’d like to do, and when and where you’re gonna do it (put it on your calendar)
Decide you’re going to at least show up regardless how tired you feel (with the option to leave early if needed)
Bonus: if you find an activity with another person or group, you will have someone counting on you to show up if that is something that would positively motivate you.
I just don’t think I have the time.
Another challenge you are likely to face when trying to incorporate some play time is the constraints you have on your time throughout a day.
There may be a majority of your days in a week where it feels like getting away for some active play is next to impossible. If you’re in these conditions and feel trapped by them, take a moment and consider if there are any opportunities to combine physically active play with what you are already doing or who you are already spending time with.
Here are some ideas:
Could I combine some of my social time with an enjoyable activity?
This could be meeting friends weekly for a game, or a hike, or you fill in the blank with whatever sounds fun... instead of drinks or food (maybe do that afterwards if there’s time on some days).
Could I combine some of my family time with enjoyable activity?
This could be with your spouse, kids, or family members that live with or near you.
You could all possibly enjoy a game, walk & talk, help your kid(s) practice improving their skills for a sport, etc. together before evening dinner or on weekend afternoons.
Another idea you may want to consider is to ask yourself:
What would it look like if I wasn’t so busy?
I’m not saying it’s always possible to change your circumstances, but you can always take inventory of what trade-offs there might be if you decided to cut back on some of your current commitments and carve out some time for fun.
If you decide the positives associated with prioritizing something active and fun in your week outweigh whatever you’re currently gaining from that 1-2 hours, then you can go ahead and make the necessary moves to enjoy that time, while improving your physical and mental health!
On the other hand, if you are really just locked up with commitments right now but still like the idea of having some active fun, you could make it a goal to work towards a schedule that would allow for fun time. It might not happen right away, but with it being something you want to work toward it is way more likely to be possible in the future (it’s very unlikely for this time to just fall into your lap).
I don’t think my body can handle it anymore.
Even if you have the time and desire to engage in some regular active play you may question your body’s ability to still do what you used to enjoy doing without suffering consequences of extreme soreness, tweaks, or injuries.
When getting started again, it’s important to start with an easier activity on your body that you still enjoy doing (as an example, maybe hold off on soccer initially and start with easy to moderate hiking). Start with common sense and then use some trial and error to find what is right for you right now.
THEN (one of my favorite connections) recognize how powerful a good training program can be to improve how you move, feel, and unlock your ability to enjoy more physically demanding pursuits/sports.
There really is a mutually beneficial relationship between engaging in active play that you enjoy doing and following a focused training program to improve your physical abilities.
A good training program can improve the variety and amount of active play you can enjoy.
Active play can be an opportunity to experience, express, and appreciate the improvements you have been making from your training.
In both cases, they can serve one another to increase motivation, enjoyment, and satisfaction of committing to both as a part of your regular week. Win, win!
However, keep in mind you may need to be patient with how long it takes your body to adapt to handle higher demanding activity. I mean this with all respect, whatever level of ability and confidence you are currently at didn’t happen overnight. Likewise, deciding to follow a good training program will not get you the ability and confidence you desire right away. It takes a consistent and focused effort, which over time becomes a very rewarding feeling as you earn what abilities you have.
While you’re sticking with your training routine and you have your currently appropriate active play as your go to, you can gradually test the waters swapping in 20-30 minutes of an activity you would enjoy getting back into. During, and within a couple days afterwards, listen to your body and see how it responds.
If things feel good, repeat that 20-30 minutes over the next 2-4 weeks. If things remain good, then experiment with an additional 20-30 minutes if desired. The temptation will come when you initially feel good while engaged in your sport/active pursuit and you may think you’re good for another hour or two. Your body, however, may punish you soon after or over the following days.
By following this structure for easing back into things you are much less likely to suffer harsh physical consequences from doing too much too soon. By staying healthy and continuing to make progress in training, you can enjoy unlocking more and more options for active pursuits and sports you enjoy!
I don’t know what active things I’d like to do anymore.
Resource #1: If you’ve been out of the active play game for so long that you have forgotten how to enjoy such things, after apologizing to the past kid version of you, take another moment and think back to all the fun things you used to do as that kid. List out anything that still sounds like it could be fun to try again.
Resource #2: If you still only have a short list or no list of ideas, the next thing you could do is talk with family members or friends that you’d like to spend time with and see if there is anything active you would like to do together more regularly. List out any ideas that have potential.
You’ll notice I’m a big list guy. This is because lists can take stress away from your brain by not having to remember everything and they will allow you to remember all your preferences or to-do’s way better than without one. Just keep your lists organized and somewhere you can quickly refer to when needed (whether hard copy or on your devices - my favorite way is using the Keep Notes app).
Hopefully, at this point, you have a handful of decent ideas that you can try out (ideally give them a few tries before judging too definitively whether you enjoy them or not). Keep in mind the physical and social environment you do anything in will have a big impact on your experience, regardless of the activity. So think about an enjoyable place, whether you want to be alone or with others, and if you do want to be with others, invite people you’d like to do that activity with or join a group and hope you meet some cool people (the odds are in your favor that you will).
One other thing to consider is that if you spend most of your day inside, choosing an active pursuit or sport that is outside can provide even further benefits to your mental and physical health. Although, I would still recommend having some inside ideas on your list along with your outside ones because the weather can be unpredictable.
Resource #3: Finally I want to help you beef up your list of ideas by providing you with 25 Sport Game Ideas and 25 Active Pursuits. Add anything that sounds appealing and leave anything that doesn’t. Plus there are a lot of other ideas out there so maybe this will help get your brain in gear to start thinking of other ideas that suit you.
Disclaimer: I am in no way trying to offend anyone by labeling something a sport or not a sport (if you want to consider anything you're competing at a sport that is totally fine with me). My intention is that we’re all engaging in regular, physically active actions that we enjoy for one reason or another. Here’s how I chose to separate the categories:
Sport Games = Generally has set rules and a simple scoring system that is objective.
Active Pursuits = More open ended, with or without a scoring system that is more subjective. I also include non Track racing in this category because the actions can be used in many different ways (being more open ended).
Sport Game Ideas:
Table Tennis (Ping-Pong)
Pickleball
Badminton
Racquetball or Squash
Tennis
Golf (walking)
Frisbee Golf
Ultimate Frisbee
Baseball or Softball
Volleyball
Sand Volleyball
Flag Football
Basketball
Lacrosse
Hockey (Ice, Field, or Floor)
Kickball
Futsal
Soccer
Track and Field Events
Tetherball
Spikeball
Wallball
Dodgeball
Laser Tag
Paintball
Active Pursuit Ideas:
Walking
Running/Walking
Hiking
Rucking
Obstacle Courses
Swimming
Rock Climbing (indoor or outdoor)
Skipping Rope
Trampoline Jumping (at home or at a gym)
Dancing
Yoga
Pilates
Water Aerobics
Instructor Led Classes or Videos (wide range of possibilities)
Cycling
Mountain Biking
Rollerblading or Ice Skating
Gymnastics and/or Calisthenics
Parkour and/or Slacklining
Exploring and Enjoying Parks (Community, State, or National)
Outdoor Photography or Bird Watching Walks
Self-Guided Manual Labor Projects or Upkeep
Volunteer or Paid Manual Labor
Martial Arts
Sport Actions (anything from above without the game rules)
Hopefully you have some ideas to try out at this point…
It’s also totally fine to find one thing that makes you happy and spend your active play time focusing on that. I would still recommend a list, just to have in your metaphorical back pocket, so that if you ever want to change things up or branch out a little you already have some solid ideas to do so.
Personally, my pre-planned go-to active fun is playing soccer at least once a week. I’m not able to join a league right now, but I’m able to get in a good high level training session once a week (that I really enjoy) and I try to jump in with the high school boys I coach when I can. Other than that I try to go on walks with my wife and dog, go on hikes whenever we camp, and play sports or yard games whenever the opportunity arises.
How the Fit for Life lifestyle factors in fun and play.
If you’re a part of Fit for Life then this idea of active fun and play is already baked into the design of your program. Fit for Life provides you with 3-5 days of guided sessions and then you can fill in the rest with anything active you enjoy or value doing.
Here are a few ways you could utilize a sport or active pursuit alongside the guided training offered:
(Option 1) plug in your sport/activity as one of your 30+ Active Days. You could do this with one or both of the weekly 30+ Active Days on your schedule.
(Option 2) plan to enjoy your sport/activity on one of the two days each week where there is nothing assigned.
If you decide to join any of the booster programs you will have an additional 2 days of guided sessions, so you could then enjoy your sport/activity on one or both of the remaining days.
(Option 3) enjoy your sport/activity on the same day as a guided training session (if you have the time, desire, and physical capacity to do so).
You also have the power to move sessions around on your schedule in the app as needed. So if you schedule something active and fun to do with a friend or join an organized league, you can easily move your training schedule around to accommodate everything.
Whether you are a part of Fit for Life or not, choosing a day to enjoy some active play would check off the first Highly Impactful Action we covered already: Intentionally move for 30 minutes or more every day (for that day).
You’ll find as we dive into each action that many of them overlap. This should put your mind at ease knowing that it doesn’t need to be a full time job trying to implement all these actions into your week. These actions have been picked to promote a more enjoyable life, not an overwhelming one.
I hope you will take a little time and consider prioritizing at least one day each week to enjoy a sport or active pursuit that provides you with all the joy and benefits that playing can provide!
Happy training!
Direct Sources I Used:
[1] National Institute for Play: Play for Adults
[2] CNN Health: Adults can find joy through play too, Trudy Meehan, 2023