Previously, we looked at Petfit.com and the exercises we can do with our dogs. The offering for the cats are limited but there are 3 cat-centric exercises in the Training Room. They are not as creative as the dog's exercises and mainly centered around cat teasers and dancing lights.
Both "Light" Abs and "Light" Cardio involve using the flashlight (similar to a laser pointer) to engage and entertain our cat while we exercise. This may work well with curious cats but not so great for others. Out of my five cats, only the 2 males were interested and followed the dancing lights. The 3 females were not enticed at all. Panacea, the shyest one, covered her eyes with her paws and dug deeper under the covers!
For Curious Cat Curls, toys (i.e. Cat Teasers) are tied around dumbbells with elastic bands. Cats go after the toys as the toys go up and down with the curls. This worked out well for my cats since they are used to the cat teasers (unlike the flashlight). They chased and jumped after the toys as I did my biceps curls and lunges. Use the long, stretched elastic bands. Avoid the short thicker bands with the stronger recoil unless you want to risk injuring yourself. Fortunately, I had my glasses on when one of the toys came zinging back to my face as I "curled" the dumbbells.
The exercises for our cats may not be as innovative as the dog exercises. But they are good modifications to cat games that can also get our heart rates up. Instead of sitting on the sofa with the flashlight or toy wand, these exercises will give us a workout as we get our cats up and moving.
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