Day 2: Exercise for 3 minutes to refresh your mind

This is day 2 of the 6-day Energy Challenge. To start at the beginning, click here.

When you’re wiped out, getting up and moving may seem like a chore. But the less active we are during the day, the more tired we feel.

Today’s challenge is a playful, slightly silly three-minute exercise.

Why is this a crucial part of an energy challenge? Because short bursts of exercise can help reduce fatigue, relieve stress and improve your mood.

Once you start, your heart rate increases, increasing the flow of oxygen to your muscles and brain, says Margaret Rice, professor of neurosurgery, neuroscience and physiology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. This rush, she said, can make you feel more alert for at least a while afterwards.

She also said dopamine – a hormone involved in pleasure, alertness and motivation – is likely to increase within those three minutes of exercise. That might explain why you feel more focused and excited when you’re done.

In addition to the energy boost, a little exercise can also provide health benefits. In a 2022 study Among more than 25,000 British adults, researchers found that those who performed a total of three minutes of vigorous exercise per day had lower mortality and a lower risk of cardiovascular disease than those who did not.

Ready to get moving? You don’t need much more than your imagination.

Move like a pro.

For three minutes you imitate a boxer, a ballerina, a tennis player, a basketball player, a runner and, to cool down, a yoga practitioner.

Kelly McGonigal, a health psychologist, lecturer at Stanford University and author of “The Joy of Movement,” has also been an exercise instructor for more than two decades — and this activity, she said, is a crowd pleaser. It’s fun, it can be adapted for all levels and you can wear your regular clothes.

Dr. McGonigal suggested doing this exercise first so you can start the day energized. But basically, you can do it whenever you have three minutes and need a lift.

Set the stage.

First, find a place where you can move comfortably. Then perform each of the following for 30 seconds, for a total of three minutes. (You can use the animated timer below: It will show you the next move when it’s time to switch.)

Act like an athlete.

When you are ready, begin the following activities.

“Don’t think about it too much, just do it,” said Dr. McGonigal. “You can’t do this wrong.”

Here are a few suggested steps to get you started:

Boxing. Give a few punches, pretend to hit a heavy bag, or alternate between fast and slow punches.

Ballet. Raise your arms above your head to form a circle. Extend each leg forward and point your toes. Stand on your toes and come back down. Do a pirouette or a jump.

Tennis. Try a backhand and forehand swing. Bounce on your heels and fire back. Throw a “ball” in the air and crush a portion.

Basketball. Dribble the “ball”, take a shot or jump in the air and block an imaginary opponent.

Run. Jog in place, pumping and waving your arms, or throw your hands in the air and sail through the finish line (victory dance optional).

Yoga. Adopt any pose or position that makes you feel grounded, such as standing in “mountain pose” with your hands on your heart.

At the end of the three minutes, notice how you feel. Is your heart rate up? Are you breathing deeper? Do you have more energy? Has your mood improved a little?

I’ve field-tested this with three generations of people, including my kindergarten neighbor, my teenage nephew, and my 81-year-old father. My father refused at first, but when we started ‘boxing’ he couldn’t resist joining in and demonstrating an uppercut punch. During the basketball segment, my cousin crowed about blocking my “jump shot.” By the end they were all laughing – and energetic.