How many of you don’t have time to go the gym or can’t afford a gym membership? Working in the wellness field I hear those two things ALL the time. Since I do 95% of all my workouts at home or outside I thought I would write a post today on, “Working Out at Home”.
1.) Cardio- Pick your poison
Three years ago I invested in not only a very nice treadmill but also my health. Ohio weather can be straight crap sometimes but I knew that by having a treadmill in my house I absolutely had no excuse to not a least get in a walk on the days I didn’t feel like going balls-to-wall exercising. I taught myself how to run on my treadmill and typically use it 4-5 times a week. I honestly can say I have surprise myself how much I really do use it.
My most recent “larger” fitness purchase was my spin bike that I got last week! I’ve already clocked in nearly 6 hours of riding time so far! So, so far so good!
And my cheapest but most ass kicking cardio choice…
Some other great cardio options are: Walking outside, dancing, running stairs, kickboxing, burpies, step ups.
“To help manage busy weight and prevent gradual weight gain, aim for 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity most days of the week. To maintain weight loss, aim for at least 60-90 minutes of daily moderate physical activity”– U. S. department of Health and Human Services.
2.) Strength Training
Strength training is a love hate relationship for most people, especially me! Most of you know just how important strength training is but I found this phenomonal article on Women’s Health that pretty much summed it up for me:
“According to the National Center for Health Statistics, a mere 21 percent of women strength train two or more times a week. What you don’t know: When you skip the weight room, you lose out on the ultimate flab melter. Those two sessions a week can reduce overall body fat by about 3 percentage points in just 10 weeks, even if you don’t cut a single calorie. That translates to as much as three inches total off your waist and hips. Even better, all that new muscle pays off in a long-term boost to your metabolism, which helps keep your body lean and sculpted. Suddenly, dumbbells sound like a smart idea. Read more at Women’s Health: http://www.womenshealthmag.com/weight-loss/weight-training-tips#ixzz1lnijjGgU“
Ideally you want to perform 2 to 3 sets of movements to focus on your:
Upper Body- Pectorals, Lats, Deltoids, Triceps, Biceps
Lower Body- Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Calves, Hips
Waist- Abs, Back
My at home strength training equipment includes:
Exercise ball
Free Weights: 2lbs, 5 lbs, 8 lbs, 2 changeable weights that go from 10-25 lbs.
Exercise Mat
3.) Develop a plan
Now the key is developing a plan! There are a ton of great tool on the web that can help you do including BLOGS:)! My favorite is bodyrock.tv that I have talked about a zillion times! These are kick-ASS workouts so beware.
Example- Yesterday I completed this at home workout!
-Run 1 mile (outside or on the treadmill)
-Lower Body Strength
*Step-ups w/15 pounds- 15 each leg
*Squats w/15 pounds- 15 times
*Deadlifts w/15 pounds- 15 times
*Ball Curls holding 15 pounds on chest- 15 times
*Plank- 1 minute
I repeated the running piece 4 times (total of 4 miles) and the strength 3 times. I finished with a 10 minute cool-down walk on the treadmill and stretched.
See folks it’s that easy!
Do you prefer working out in a gym or at home?
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