With the outbreak of COVID-19, a lot of things changed. For over three months a majority of the world went into lockdown. For our own safety, we were forced to stay indoors. This situation was especially painful for active people because the gyms were temporarily closed, and jogging or hiking was also off-limits.
However, we don’t really need gyms to stay healthy. We don’t need to pay 20 to 40 bucks just to work out. With the right mindset, and gameplan you can work out from home, and still reach all your fitness goals. Here are 7 Tips for staying healthy without necessarily going to the gym.
1. Use Bodyweight Exercises
Serial gym goers have the misconception that in order to build muscle, you will have to use a variety of weights. However, there are alternatives to gym training. One great example is bodyweight exercises. These types of exercises are designed to use the body’s weight to provide resistance against gravity.
One of the best things about bodyweight exercises is that they are perfect for conditioning and strengthening the muscles without straining them.
The one setback with bodyweight exercises is that the weight you carry is never heavier than your body weight, so there is a chance that your muscles won’t grow effectively. However, you can remedy this limitation by strapping on leg and arm weights, during your workouts.
2. Shadowbox
Aside from bodyweight exercises, yet another great exercise that you can do at home is shadowboxing. You don’t really need to be a master boxer, you just need to know the fundamentals. In boxing, the 4 basic punches are the jab, right straight, left hook, and the uppercut. You should learn these 4 punches first then expand your repertoire to other types of punches and footwork.
Shadowboxing is a great form of resistance training and cardio, because punching, especially for newbies can be difficult, and can work most of your muscles within just a few minutes. Overall, shadowboxing is a great way to enhance your endurance and improve your muscle tone.
3. Follow a Healthy Diet
When it comes to staying healthy, it’s not all about the workouts. It is also about your diet, and how you manage it. When you choose a diet plan, you should not really use fad diets. Instead, it is better to stick to a more balanced diet of protein, vegetables, fruits, and unprocessed carbs.
Stay away from processed sugars and empty carbs because they have high glycemic content and can be converted to fat very easily. If you are going to eat snacks, try to substitute sugary snacks and chips with carrot sticks and apple slices instead.
4. Practice HIIT Exercise
Some people believe that you need to run for hours on a treadmill or do aerobics endlessly to attain healthy weight. This is yet another misconception because the length of time you put into an exercise is not as important as the amount of effort you put into it.
If you want your exercises to be as fat burning as possible, you should try out HIIT or High-Intensity Interval Training. These types of exercises are perfect for people who don’t have a lot of time to work out.
The main intent when you do HIIT exercises is to reach a very high heart rate. When you do these exercises, you should give your exercises your all. If you just do your workouts in a halfhearted manner, you will just be wasting your time.
5. Have a Set Schedule for Your Workouts
When it comes to working out, you will need to be as consistent as possible. You should therefore set a schedule for your workouts: schedule them at a time when you are least busy. It could be early in the morning when most of the people in the house are still asleep. You could also work out during your lunch break or late in the evening.
It is also important that your watch is in good working order because it will enable you to keep track of your schedule consistently. You could use your phone clock, but having a wristwatch is the most efficient tool to tell the time. So make sure that your watch is well-calibrated, and change your own watch battery every 1-3 years. That way, you can be assured that your watch will function perfectly to help you keep tabs of your workouts.
6. Chores Can Double as Exercise
Your workouts don’t have to be extremely intense, you can also consider your day to day chores as a workout. Remember the main intent during workouts is to use as much energy as possible.
Chores are a great way to exercise because they give you a full-body workout, and allows you to clean your home at the same time. So make it a habit to mow the lawn or mop the floor every once in a while.
7. Yoga
Working out does not have to be a breakneck run or an intense spar. Soft exercises are also a great way to loosen your muscles and enhance your flexibility. Yoga is a perfect example of this type of exercise.
This type of exercise entails you to perform a myriad of poses, that are specially designed to improve your overall body movement and your breathing. Although the poses may seem tame and unimpressive, they are in fact very difficult to do. Overall, yoga is a great way to improve your fitness in the confines of your own home.
Conclusion
The gym is an efficient place to attain a certain level of fitness. However, it is not an end-all, be-all. You don’t need to spend money just to exercise. You can do it within your home or outside. With these great tips, you’ll be able to reach your full physical potential.
