After hibernating all winter, it can be difficult to find the motivation to get back to the gym. Bathing suit season is fast approaching, however, and it’s time to set your spring exercise plan in motion. These simple tips can help you get off the couch and onto the treadmill.

1. Pace yourself. If you’ve relaxed your exercise routine all winter, it’s important to start slowly once you get back at it. Take a few slow jogs or do some gentle yoga classes to get your body ready for exercise.
2. Schedule your yearly check-up. If you usually visit the doctor once per year, try to schedule your appointment in the springtime. This will ensure that you’re healthy enough for exercise.
3. Invest in comfortable workout gear. Pack away the insulated jackets and warm running pants and purchase workout clothing made of lightweight, breathable fabrics instead. A waterproof rain coat is also a good idea if you run outside because you can expect a few spring showers.
4. Get outdoors. If you normally work out at a gym, opt to get your cardio in outside when the weather is nicer. Spending time outdoors is a great incentive to work out, and mixing things up always makes you feel more motivated to exercise.
5. Have fun! Whether you work out with a friend or join a community soccer league, warm weather offers lots of options for making your workouts more fun.

10 Spring Fitness Tips [She Knows]
Spring Back into Your Exercise Program [WebMD]

CC-BY-2.0/Flickr/timtak

Painting With a Twist has an interesting back story. After Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005, friends and Louisiana natives Cathy Deano and Renee Maloney thought their neighbors could use an activity to help them de-stress. They started holding painting classes and encouraged the budding artists to bring their own wine. Eventually it blossomed into Painting With a Twist, which now has 81 franchise locations, including one in Spring, near The Woodlands.

Bring your favorite bottle of wine or other beverage, invite some friends, and a professional artist will walk you through how to create a painting, step by step. All of the painting supplies are provided. If you don't have any painting experience or artistic leanings, that's okay, because the goal at Painting With a Twist is to simply have fun. And who knows, maybe you will be happy enough with your final result that you will want to hang it on your wall!

Painting With a Twist
570 Sawdust Road
Spring, TX 77380
(281) 465-4995
paintingwithatwist.com
Read the reviews on Yelp.

CC-BY-SA-2.0/Flickr/cernaovec

Northshore Park is one of the most popular spots in The Woodlands, and it's easy to understand why. This seven-acre park, situated on Lake Woodlands, has served as a central gathering spot for more than 20 years. From late spring until early fall, the park hosts free concerts on Sunday evenings, and the music ranges from jazz to The Beatles to country. The park is also the launching point for the annual Dragon Boat Race.

It has a playground for the kids, barbecue pits, picnic tables, a volleyball court, and soccer fields. You can bring a boat or kayak and sail around the lake, and kids will enjoy feeding the ducks and other birds that flock to the park. Northshore Park is also a popular spot for sport fishing.

Northshore Park
2505 Lake Woodlands Drive
The Woodlands, TX 77382
(281) 210-3900
woodlandsevents.com/parks/panther-creek/northshore-park
Read the reviews on Yelp.

CC-BY-2.0/Flickr/Alexis Fam Photography