With the surge of coronavirus in not only Melbourne but also Sydney and Queensland, it’s understandable if you want to avoid the gym. A gym-quality workout at home is totally possible, except for distractions from the TV remote and various pantry goodies.
Read below to learn how to get the most out of exercising in your living room (or bedroom) effortlessly as walking on the spot.
1. Aerobic exercise
When your heart is pumping and you’re breathing harder, you’re doing wonders for your cardiovascular system. In the long-term, lung and heart health is maintained, blood pressure is reduced, and the risk of diabetes is lowered. All good things!
All you need to do is to turn on your uplift playlist, lift your knees high, or step and kick. If you have more steps, step side-to-side or forward and back. For more intense workout, raise your arms up and down as you pace.
Tips: stream for free online cardio workouts, from kickboxing to high-intensity dance classes if walking isn’t your jam.
2. Strength training
Strengthening muscles is also really essential for bone health. Luckily, you don’t need bulky gym equipment, or even a lot of floor space, to get the same results, in fact you can use ordinary household items like cans of baked beans, or a water bottle, to substitute in for dumbbells. Your own body weight can often be enough.
Squats, tricep dips off the couch, and static holds aka bridges for 30 seconds are all easy forms of weight training you can do at home. Repeat each exercise eight to 10 times for a set and do two or three sets. Add more exercises or more repetitions as you improve.
Tips: There are also plenty of pilates classes online you can do for free.
3. Stretching
You can stretch yourself to a calmer mind and body.
Keeping your body nimble and flexible is important for keeping a range of motion in your joints. If you neglect to stretch, your muscles become shorter, tighter and this can cause a range of issues like back and neck pain.
You can either follow a type of exercise that incorporates stretching, like yoga or tai chi or just create a list of stretches to do once the muscles are warmed up.
Ultimately though, a well-rounded routine should include all three of the above, but the good news is a mere few minutes a day of each will be infinitely better than nothing at all.
