Home Exercise And Social Distancing
Many of you might be missing your gym routines and have limited equipment at home. Well, let’s see if I can help you out a little bit then. As we practice social distancing we might find that our partners aren’t quite so enthusiastic (or skilled) when it comes to taking on the roll as your Personal Trainer. Shadow boxing is good but you can’t beat the feel of pads or a punch bag so perhaps it’s time to find some exercises that you can do on your own. I’ve been a Personal Trainer since 1993 and started my classes in 1991 while doing my studies. If anyone fancies joining me on a set programme please let me know.
Equipment
I’m assuming that very few readers will have access to gym equipment so my aim is to keep the exercises equipment free. If you have an exercise or yoga mat that would be helpful. If not perhaps a large towel on the floor to protect carpets and skin. Other than that, let’s see if we can do something with the everyday things we find around the house. If you’re planning on using the landscape outdoors please be mindful of moss and slippery surfaces as you don’t want to be picking up any injuries by slipping over. Be mindful of your environment too. Make sure that there are no hazards around you that might cause injury.
Warming Up
Whichever exercise (or exercises) you choose to do you can warm up by performing an easy version of the exercise. If you find stepping a challenge try warming up by simply marching on the spot, doing a few knee lifts and balancing on one foot. If the basic step is easy for you try using the low step as a warm up before tackling the high step. The same principle will be useful throughout all of the exercises. Do a couple of sets of 15 – 20 repetitions of the easy version of the exercise to help prepare the muscles.
Exercises 1, 2, 3…
Step Ups – you probably don’t have a bench at home but a sturdy dining chair should be high enough for the big exercise. The small exercise could be something as simple as the steps on your staircase.
Focus on the Abs and keep your neck relaxed. Imagine a tennis ball between your chin and chest. Your goal will be to keep that distance between your chin and chest throughout the exercises. Try not to nod your head forward as you lift your shoulders. Place your fingers on your head behind your ears and use your fingers as support for your head rather than as pulleys to lift your head! Breath out on the way up and in on the way down. Good technique is better than speed.
A high impact ‘lung buster’. Be mindful of technique. Good style is much better than big numbers. Choose your height wisely if you have something to jump onto and make sure it is stable. Think about ‘health and safety’ – if you fall will you be landing on sharp furniture edges or a stone floor? Be careful and only do the version you are confident with. Fatigue leads to lack of coordination so be prepared to stop before accidents happen.
Press ups speak for themselves! Once again, be mindful of your environment. If you’re looking for a high surface to do your press-ups on a window ledge is usually a good height and shape BUT you’ll be doing your exercise with your head very close to glass! ALWAYS be mindful of your environment.
Burpees – without doubt this is my favourite all-round exercise. Power jumps are hard work but this one will really test your strength and stamina. Be prepared to start breathing heavily!
How Many & How Long?
To make life easy I suggest you work on a time limit rather than having a fixed number to perform. If you set yourself one minute for each of your chosen exercises see how many you can perform in that minute. You may need to rest after 20 second and again after 45 seconds. That doesn’t matter. Try keeping a record of how many you can perform of each exercise in one minute. As you continue to plot your progress you’ll see your rest periods becoming less and the number achieved becoming more.
Good Luck
Have fun and stay injury free. Do what you can and compare your progress to your own past figures rather than trying to compete against someone else. Drink water at any time during your routine and spend some time doing some easy stretches afterwards. If you don’t know any stretches you’ll find lots of them on YouTube. Post exercise stretches should either be ‘easy’ or ‘developmental’ stretches held for 30 seconds each. Don’t try anything fancy if you’re not used to it. Areas to stretch include calf, hamstrings, quads, chest, triceps and shoulders.
Have fun
Enjoy your exercises and if you want any guidance send me a message in a comment on this blog.
