So with the ever changing landscape we are living it at the minute, it is important to be adaptive to remain fit and healthy. With the recent forced closure of gyms around the country, there is no reason why you cannot perform a high intensity, fun, challenging exercise routine at home.
What Exercises Should I do?
Well here are some great compound exercises to perform at home. Compound exercises are ones that use lots of muscles when performing the movements, meaning we get more bang for our buck when we perform them. Click on each exercise to see a Youtube version with correct technique.
- Squats
- Push ups
- Plank (hold as long as you can or start off aiming for 30secs)
- Lunges
- Bird dog
- Donkey Kick
- Deadlifts (if equipment is available. Or improvise with something like milk bottles filled with water)
- Crab Walk (if band is available. We sell them at the clinic if you can drop by and grab one)
General rule of thumb is to try and perform x 10 repetitions x 3 sets of the above exercises. You will find some of these exercises more challenging than others so you’ll need to tailor the amount of reps and sets to your age and fitness level.
Couple these with cardiovascular exercises such as skipping, high knee taps, burpees and the use of an exercise bike (if available) and you can smash out a 30-45 minute challenging exercise circuit using minimal equipment.
Mental Health
Whilst it is easy to focus on physical health at this time it is as equally important to not forget about our mental health. A couple of fantastic techniques for the body and mind are the use of yoga and meditation.
A great, free yoga channel is called Yoga With Adriene which provides yoga routines for all abilities and techniques.
Meditation exercises can also be used. Youtube and our smartphones are a great resource which can provide us with the ability to practice mindfulness along with reducing stress and anxiety.
The apps I recommend are, Buddhify, Calm, Smiling minds and Headspace. Most of the apps have a free trial with some in-app costs associated so my advice is to try each one and see what works best for you before committing financially.
I hope the information I have provided today can assist you physically and mentally during this challenging time we are all in.
To finish off on a high, here’s my joke of the week…
Who can drink 5 litres of petrol?
Jerry Can.
