Alternative Strength Training Programs To Try
Taking care of your body is a lifelong practice, but it doesn’t have to be boring. Explore three creative approaches to strength training that bring more movement, play, and variety into your routine.
Are you bored of the same strength training exercises? And does that boredom lead to not doing the exercises? There comes a point where you must accept (or not) that you have to take care of your body for your mental and physical well-being. Instead of staying stuck in the monotony and losing motivation, consider some fun, creative alternatives to strength training.
I’ve learned to incorporate strength training into my lifestyle to keep my body healthy for snowboarding, backpacking, instructing, and simply enjoying being active as I age. The benefits are rewarding, but sometimes the process can feel like agony city with mundane repetitions, predictable exercises, and routines that can make it difficult to stay motivated. As we age, it becomes increasingly important to maintain strength, mobility, and bone health, while physical activity also supports our mental well-being. So, I’ve decided that taking care of my body doesn’t have to mean following a robotic routine with no soul. There can be creativity, play, and even a little fun in the process. Here are a few approaches to strength training that can help break up the monotony.
1. Samsara Experience
Samsara Experience takes a holistic, fascia-based approach to movement and performance, helping everyone from everyday parents to elite athletes develop strength and athletic ability. Its workout programs draw inspiration from ancestral movement patterns, reflecting the ways humans have moved throughout history as runners, climbers, and fighters.
Samsara is designed as a lifelong journey toward athletic growth, with workouts that can be done at home or brought into the gym. For anyone looking for a more creative and holistic approach to training, it offers a way to build strength while exploring how the body naturally moves.
2. Animal Flow
Animal Flow is ground-based movement made fun, challenging, and effective. The system is designed to improve strength, power, flexibility, mobility, and coordination for people at all levels of fitness.
What makes Animal Flow different is its emphasis on continuous, dynamic movement rather than traditional sets and repetitions. The practice draws from disciplines including breakdancing, parkour, gymnastics, animal locomotion, and hand balancing. The result is a workout that feels less like checking exercises off a list and more like learning a new physical skill.
3. Dance Fitness
Dance fitness has been one of the most effective ways to support full-body health mentally, physically, and emotionally. Dance cardio classes can help improve muscular strength, flexibility, coordination, and cardiovascular fitness, while engaging the body in ways that traditional strength workouts sometimes don’t.
As you move through a class, you’re recruiting muscles throughout your body, especially in your legs, core, and arms. Dance also incorporates plenty of bending, twisting, and stretching, all of which can support mobility and flexibility. And perhaps one of the biggest benefits is the simplest: it’s hard not to feel a little happier when you’re dancing your stress away.
Good places to start: Zumba, Shine Dance Fitness, WERQ and Jazzercise
Find What Keeps You Moving
Strength training doesn’t have to look the same for everyone, or even look the same every day. The most sustainable routine may be the one that keeps you interested enough to keep showing up. Whether that means moving like an animal, dancing, exploring fascia-based training, or simply finding new ways to challenge your body, creativity can make strength training feel less like a chore and more like a way of life.
For those of us who spend our time in the outdoors, taking care of our bodies isn’t just about looking strong. It’s about having the strength, mobility, and resilience to keep skiing, snowboarding, hiking, climbing, traveling, and exploring for years to come. Finding a form of strength training that you actually enjoy may be one of the best ways to make sure you keep moving.
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