Macon Magazine

Shawn McClendon is an ACE-certi ed personal trainer and tness writer who helps men and women over 40 to make their tness comeback. Follow him on Substack (@shawnb2b tness) and YouTube (@shawnb2b tness). thing, there's undoubtedly many options for you in Macon or Central Georgia. Also know that it can be as simple as you queueing up your favorite playlist on your phone and dancing the calories away in your own home. Martial arts is another potentially great way to get in shape that you may not have considered, especially since people tend to think more about putting kids into martial arts classes rather than enrolling themselves. You might want to consider joining a class, as you'll not only get in better shape, but you'll also create more intrinsic discipline within yourself and learn self-defense. With local options like Karate, Tae Kwon Do and Jiu Jitsu, you'll likely engage in general conditioning (jogging, etc.), stretching, calisthenics, practicing forms (choreographed sequences of ghting movements), and sparring. Not to mention that you can show o your cool movements to your friends once you have a few classes under your belt. Now some may tune me out when I mention this third option but hear me out for a minute. The playground is a great way to get in shape. Yes, I know that you're older with kids that you take to the playground, but here's the question I have for you: Who is keeping you from playing on the playground with your kids? Whoever even said that you could no longer play on the playground yourself? Consider the options that a playground provides for fun tness. From the Filmore Thomas Park on Log Cabin Drive, to Tatnall Square Park across from Mercer University, to Carolyn Crayton Park downtown, playgrounds provide slides, swings, climbing structures, pull-up bars, and other equipment that is absolutely great for overall tness. On top of that, playgrounds often have basketball courts, tennis courts, and baseball elds nearby for those who want to engage in a pick-up game or two, as well as walking trails for when it's time for you to cool down. If you allow yourself to do it, playing in a playground is surely a way to get in shape without trying, since all you'll be doing is having fun. It goes without saying that you should ease into any new exercise routine and consider checking with your physician beforehand, particularly if you've been inactive for some time. Dancing, martial arts, and playgrounds represent out-of-the- box options for exercise that, if done consistently, may get you into better shape than you'd probably expect. T here's a good chance that if you ask anybody – myself included – about the steps that should be taken to start getting in shape right now, the answer you'd receive would consist of some variation of running, weightlifting, and perhaps a traditional tness class. This said, I'll also be the rst to tell you that getting in shape is absolutely not restricted to these conventional methods. Because exercise is fundamentally movement, there are exercise options that are available to you that will get you in great shape that are more intuitive, and, for some, way more fun. First o , let's consider dancing. Dancing is a type of involved movement that, while it has many forms, is a shared practice of every culture around the world and is as old as time itself. Dancing is typically a more vigorous form of movement than "normal life" forms of movement like walking. It can involve the whole body and can often be classi ed as high intensity, making it great exercise. From close-to-home line dancing examples such as the "Electric Slide" and square dance to international traditional dances such as the amenco (with its Spanish air and foot work) and Prisyadka (with its Eastern European deep squats and kicks). Doing even just a few minutes of dance a day will undoubtedly improve cardiovascular tness, lower body fat, and perhaps even contribute to strength gains (depending on the dance, of course). To be fair, there are a variety of dance exercise classes that exist nowadays to attract people who like to dance, such as Zumba, hip-hop dance, and the previously mentioned line dancing, so if dancing is your "Who is keeping you from playing on the playground with your kids? Whoever even said that you could no longer play on the playground yourself?" October/November 2026| maconmagazine.com 93 Ice Cream with Dad is an intergenerational program of Macon Violence Prevention and Macon Mental Health Matters that takes place in parks and playgrounds. Photo courtesy of Macon-Bibb County.

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