Feeling unmotivated to workout while you’re spending so much time at home?
This is a fantastic opportunity to make your dog your workout partner. We promise they won’t say no!
Not only will your dog be excited to spend more one on one time with you. You will also be doing both your health and dog a favor by introducing some excellent exercise routines into your life.
No matter if you have a Boston Terrier or another dog breed, chances are they are more energetic than us.
This is a great chance to feed off their energy as you build your own stamina!
My wild-eyed Boston Terrier, Nickel, definitely encourages me to get up from my desk and get moving with her.
10 Ways You Can Workout With Your Dog At Home
1) Puppy Push-Ups
Many of us don’t find push-ups enticing. However, they can be fun with our furry buddies. This exercise is best suited for people with smaller dogs (i.e., a Boston Terrier), looking to build their own strength.
To do a puppy push-up, simply add your puppy onto your back and see how many reps you can do.
This may work better with a calmer dog, as I wasn’t personally able to get my Boston Terrier to sit still long enough to attempt the pushup.
For an alternative, start doing regular push-ups and call your dog over.
See if they’ll lay underneath you or sit close to your face, then give them a kiss every time you come down from your push-up.
2) Stretch & Toss
Something I regularly do with my hyper Boston Terrier is to take a break from my sedentary job by grabbing her ball and doing some stretches.
We have a long hallway that works great for this!
I simply call her over, toss the ball down the hallway, and while she’s chasing it, I alternate different stretches.
When she brings the ball back, I throw it again and switch to stretching the other side of my body.
This is excellent for burning through her restless energy and loosening up my tight muscles after I’ve been sitting still for a few hours.
3) Hide & Seek With Treats
Let’s revisit our childhood by introducing our dogs to hide & seek – the treat version!
Hide your pooch’s treat somewhere in the house or in a puzzle toy.
Then complete a few repetitions of your favorite exercise, such as jumping jacks or jump roping, while they try to access their treat.
I recommend this exercise mainly if your dog doesn’t cooperate with some of these other exercises!
It’s challenging to get Nickel to not inhibit me from doing specific exercises. So distracting her with her own hide & seek game is a perfect compromise for us both!
4) Dance Off!
This is another excellent activity for those of us with dogs that become a little too distracted with these other exercises.
Grab your dog’s favorite ball or toy to play fetch with and toss it far, far away. Then turn on some of your favorite tunes and dance like nobody’s watching!
Your puppy will enjoy racing to retrieve their ball, and you’ll break a great sweat in a few minutes, as well as release any tension in your body.
I’ve done this alternatively when doing aggressive house chores.
Doing anything that will make me break a sweat, like scrubbing surfaces or mopping aggressively, works well.
Nickel will continuously bring me the ball, which gives us both an opportunity to workout.
5) Loving Lunges
Work out your legs and give your dog the attention they deserve all in one move!
Assume a lunge position and have your dog lay down beside you. Then pet your dog each time you lower yourself into the lunge.
Make sure you switch between each leg! Your dog will be more than happy to be petted during each lunge – Nickel particularly loves getting a belly rub!
6) Doggy Yoga
A popular exercise that even has moves inspired by dogs (think downward dog!), doggy yoga, or “doga” has exploded online.
There are so many varieties and benefits from yoga. Yoga is a great exercise to add to your roster.
Nickel enjoys sitting between my legs as I stretch out my arms, legs, and eventually bend over to touch my toes.
This is a great low impact workout that will make you more limber, and your dog will have a good time trying to figure out what their “silly” human is doing!
Can your Boston Terrier do a downward dog?
Try seeing if your dog will follow you into a downward dog pose.
I haven’t been able to get Nickel to mimic me yet, despite her doing this pose multiple times a day on her own, but I’m determined to keep trying until she does!
7) Active Fetch
This twist on fetch adds you chasing the ball along with your dog.
Bring out your inner dog by having your dog stand near you, then throw the ball and sprint for the ball as fast as you can.
Try to beat your dog to it!
So far, Nickel has outraced me nearly every time. However, this has undoubtedly made me break a sweat and getting the ball back from her after she retrieves it is another workout by itself!
8) Puppy Planks
Use your dog to keep you focused while holding a plank using these dog-friendly variations.
Firstly, test how obedient they will be with you on the ground by holding a plank and asking them to sit nearby as you hold the pose.
This is a great time to positively reinforce their obedience after your plank by giving them a treat!
Secondly, let them entertain themselves as they circle you during the plank.
Not only are you likely to get some puppy kisses, but you’ll be so distracted by them that you’ll be apt to hold your plank longer.
9) Doggy Wall Sits
I find the wall sit to be a particularly good way to feel the burn the next day!
Find a wall and support yourself against it as you assume a wall sit position.
If your dog is smaller, you can try picking them up and holding them during the wall sit. This will add some extra weight as you maintain the wall sit position.
If your dog is more massive, try petting them or having them place their paws on your knees as you’re against the wall.
This will add a bit more weight, and you may even be able to get your dog to shake hands with you as you hold this position.
10) Stair Running
I consider stair running to be the most aggressive exercise on this list personally, as I can only complete a few minutes before feeling completely winded.
Just like it sounds, stair running is running up and down the stairs with your dog.
I don’t even have to call Nickel for this one, she likes to follow me around and will join in on running up and down with me!
Final Thoughts…
Your dog can be an excellent motivator for you to keep up or start an exercise routine!
Try incorporating a few of these exercises into your daily routine and feel the stress sweat off you.
Your dog’s excited face will be more than enough to push you to stay consistent with your workout schedule.
Don’t disappoint the furry friend who is always there for you!
You both need exercise, and this is an amazing way to rely on each other! Nickel has personally kept me more consistent by inspiring me with her own incredible speed and high energy levels.
Best of luck to you and your furry friend as you test these out to see what works best for the both of you!
Don’t forget to have fun!
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