How To Get Fit At Home

Home workouts are a great place for people to begin their fitness journey when they are time poor or for those with low self-esteem or that they worry about how they would be perceived going to an actual gym.

There’s no need to worry about what you’re going to wear or how you look when all sweaty and hot, the downside to a home workout though could be the distraction of family members or pets interfering as you try and complete your workout or that there may not be enough space compared to your gym.

So how do you avoid these potential pitfalls, plan as though you were heading off down to your local gym, set aside a specific timeframe so as not to detract from what you want to achieve.

How to get started with your home workout

The first step to any workout routine is to evaluate how fit you are for your chosen physical activity.

If you have any health doubts always consult with your doctor before beginning a new workout or diet routine.

And no matter what your medical condition, you can always find some way to work out.

So you’ve assessed your fitness, now to set some workout goals. For example, do you want to prepare to run a 5K? Cycle a circuit? Or just to get rid of those Bingo wings. Whatever your goals, fitness levels and medical condition, approach any new exercise regime with caution.

Start low and go slow because if you go all in to start with it can lead to very quick injuries that could lay you up for a long period.

Home exercising equipment worth investing in

Treadmill. One of the best-selling pieces of equipment out there, this machine is perfect for cardiovascular exercise, depending on how you do, adjust the intensity, incline, and/or time accordingly.

For something lesser impacting on your joints though we highly recommend looking at an Elliptical machine.

Free weights. Barbells and dumbbells are great for strength training. Dumbbells are recommended for beginners.

Look at investing in an adjustable dumbbell set so as to determine which weight is comfortable for your strength, not only can the weight be adjusted in increments, but adjustable ones will also save on space within your home.

Exercise ball – You will probably need an exercise DVD to assist you with its use and please be careful when beginning with this particular piece as we’ve been made fully aware of people falling off or also not being able to keep the ball still.

But once you master this piece of equipment working out with an exercise ball can provide a great core workout.

Exercise videos, DVDs and Youtube, all of these will help you improve your form and give further ideas of which home exercises you should look into doing.

Now you’re ready to begin exercising

Before beginning any fitness routine, it’s important to warm up, jog on the spot or 5 – 10 minutes on the exercise bike if you have one available, then do some very light stretching. Save the bulk of the stretching for after the workout.

Once you’re fully warmed up, there are three recommended activities you can choose from, cardio, strength conditioning, and flexibility training. Doing each of these on a regular basis will result in your balanced fitness.

And don’t worry if you haven’t had the time or money to purchase any equipment for your at-home workouts, some of our and others’ favourite workouts can be perfectly achieved without the need of any equipment.

Take for instance Yoga or Pilates, both great for the core, strength, conditioning and flexibility. If you’ve always liked the look at Crossfit try your hand at Calisthenics.

For a Cardio burn look at HIIT training, the list is endless but do your research beforehand to ensure you do the right workout for what you wish to achieve.