If you're like me, sometimes going to the gym or for a 5-mile run seems daunting. In general, I love working out. It's a great stress reliever and makes me feel really good after it's over. I've come to realize the hardest part is making myself go, and sometimes, it really is impossible to force myself out the door.

Here are some of the coolest ways I've substituted working out, with activities that are just as great for you–but can be a lot more fun.

1. Hiking

If you have access to a trail around you, or even if there's one within driving range, I highly recommend going. I've gone on some of the same paths dozens of times, but each experience seems different. Especially with music, it doesn't feel like you're burning as many calories as you are. A hilly route with a 10-minute mile pace gets you close to 300 calories an hour.

2. Rock climbing

Doing research, I realized there's a lot more opportunities for fun activities like rock climbing than I originally thought. Places like Planet Rock are fairly common in a lot of cities, and you burn anywhere between 500 and 900 calories in an hour.

3. Swimming

I try to go swimming once a week or at least biweekly, because aside from being fun to splash around, it's a great relief for your tendons and joints. Leisurely swimming burns around 250-400 calories an hour, and it's the perfect summer activity.

4. Raving at a concert

Better yet, go to a festival if you have the time. At festivals, I spent about 6-7 hours rocking out at the stages per day, and on average you burn around 350-400 calories per hour. So yeah, you could say I'm pretty ~fit~ now.

5. Water skiing

A lot of public lakes have access to resources if you're like me and don't have a boat... or water-skis to use. This is a really intense lower body workout if you've never done it, and you will definitely feel the burn the next day. You can lose up to 700 calories an hour, so definitely reward yourself after with a good helping of ice-cream.

6. Tennis

Public parks tend to have a court and so do a lot of schools. If you grab a friend and head out, you'll lose track of time and definitely break a sweat within a couple minutes. A singles game can get you close to 600, whereas a doubles is between 500 and 650. Hell yes.

7. Kayaking/Canoeing

I did this for my birthday a couple years, and it's so entertaining it doesn't feel like exercise (until you can't move your arms the next day). You can do singles or doubles for kayaks, and either make it chill or try to tip all of your friends.

8. Ultimate frisbee

Grab a group of friends and head out to the park. The rules aren't super complex to learn, and even if it takes a bit, it's still great exercise during the whole process. You use muscles from your triceps down to your back and calves, and your summer body will thank you for this 500 calorie-per-hour burning game.