Fitness Training at Home
Fitness training at home is a great alternative when you don't have access to a gym or have a busy and full schedule. Setting up a home gym is easier than you think and does not have to be very expensive at all.
There is so much online fitness training information, workouts and plans you can use and with a few pieces of basic equipment, you can get a full workout and amazing results in your body right in your living room!
I understand not wanting to go to a gym, especially the one in my town! No parking, crowded, waiting lines, having to drive around the block 4-5 times to find a parking...so not so inviting.
So it's easier to just do your fitness training at at home sometimes.
Setting up a home gym is pretty easy. You can purchase home gym equipment such as a weight station, some type of machine to do cardio on like a stationary cycle, a treadmill or rowing machine.
Fitness training at home can even be as simple as a rebounder/trampoline (awesome exercise tool!) and a pair of dumbbells.
I myself use the following:
- a pull up bar (that is installed in the frame of my bedroom door)
- a dance pole
- a set of cement filled plastic weights
- a set of dumbbells that I can change the weight on
- a Swiss exercise ball
- a yoga mat
- lots of exercise videos to keep me motivated!!!
All of this I accumulated over time but you will find out what home gym equipment that works for you. You don't necessarily have to spend thousands of dollars on a treadmill and weight station - you can, if you have the money and space for the equipment!
Some tips when fitness training at home:
- Try and set aside a space (if possible) for your workouts
- Turn off your phone during your fitness training
- Turn up your favorite tunes!
- Make it a routine then you are more likely to stick with it
- Invite a friend over to workout with you-as long as you are going to exercise and not chat over coffee!
A garage or spare room are great places to set up your home gym and do your fitness training at home. Install some mirrors on the wall and keep your music player and equipment nearby so you can just walk in and get with it!
Some good exercises like calisthenics or equipment-free pilates are a good place to start with in case you do not have access to a gym or home gym equipment:
1. Push-ups. Push ups quickly build strength in the upper arms, chest, forearms and wrists. Because us women generally lack in upper body strength, this is an excellent exercise to start with.
If you can't perform a full push-up, do one on your knees and gradually work to pushing yourself only up off of the ground in a full push-up fashion.
From here you will build strength to be able to lower yourself and then back up in a full push-up.
2. Pull-up. You need a pull-up bar for this one (or something strong enough to hang your body weight on!) But you purchase a pull-up bar that installs easily in a door way.
Pull-ups help to build your back muscles as well as your arm strength. If you find you cannot do a full chin up or pull-up, use a chair underneath your feet to help push yourself up with your legs.
After doing this for awhile, try using only one leg. You can also use a pull-up band that will help pull your body weight up.
3. Lunges. I like these...I lunge back and forth across the room until my legs are shaking and then do it all over. This works also as a cardio exercise since it gets your heart rate up.
Remember not to let your knee go past your toes and go down as deep as you can and then push back up. Remember to switch starting legs as well - for example start out stepping out with your right leg and go down as far as you can, hands on your hips. Push back up through our heel and step out with the left next.
Do as many reps as you are able and then try another set, this time starting with the left leg. Lunges are great for your quads and glutes (upper thigh muscles and butt!)
4. Squats. If there is a king of exercises, then I would say it is the squat. This movement uses and works the butt, hips and thighs and is even more effective in helping shape your body and build muscle if you use weights.
Squats also strengthen your core muscles and helps create a stronger and more stable center for when you start using weights in your strength training. Doing squats will also increase your flexibility in your lower body.
Fitness training at home is not hard and setting up your home gym can be as easy as putting a pair of running shoes next to your bed at night for that early morning run!
Don't forget to keep track of your training with a free fitness training log that you can download here. When I work out, I always track what I do, even if it's just a 30 minute jaunt down the street. This helps me when I am planning more intense training or when I am trying to lose weight.
