Twenty exercises to do at home or alone
No more excuses for not exercising: exercising at home is very simple, it improves metabolism and immunity
Image of Bruno Nascimento in Unsplash
We always have some reason to procrastinate and not exercise. When you feel a huge urge to leave your sedentary lifestyle and join the gym, laziness beats just thinking about getting up from the couch. Exercising at home is a good way to start changing this mental pattern! You don't spend anything and still enjoy the benefits of regular physical activity.
We selected twenty physical exercises that anyone can do alone, at home or on the street. They need not take more than ten minutes and can easily be included in your routine.
By doing three sessions a day (for example, once before taking a shower in the morning, another during your lunch break, and one more while watching television at night), you will already have that feeling of well-being, in addition to preventing development future health problems such as high cholesterol, diabetes and high blood pressure.
As a bonus, if you need it, these exercises will also help you lose weight. It's also a good way to keep your training routine up to date when you can't go out, on busy, rainy days or periods that require social isolation.
Remember that before starting physical exercises, the ideal is to consult a specialized doctor to assess your health status.
Exercises to do at home
1. Go up stairs
Climbing stairs is a great cardiovascular and knee-strengthening exercise. Be careful going down the stairs to start a new set, as going down can strain your knee. If you live in a building, use the emergency stairs to go up and test the limits of your breath, but prefer to take the elevator down, preserving your joints.
2. Walk while talking on the phone
Talking on the phone can be a great exercise to do at home. During the conversation, just start walking around! Sometimes we feel that need to get around while talking on our cell phone, for example, and we can use that to our advantage, up and down the stairs of the house, wandering around the biggest room or walking through the rooms.
3. Do push ups
The famous push-ups are great for strengthening triceps and chest, being great replacements for gym machines. There are several types of flexion, with arms more or less open and working different regions of the upper body.
4. Walk while reading
It may sound crazy, but this can be a great exercise option to do at home. The focus here is to get moving in some way and many teachers do this when they need to read student work and long articles. Of course, you'll need space and a quiet place – not to run into everyone on the street. Choose paths that are calm, not slippery and not full of holes. Walking while reading in your own home is also an alternative.
5. Make your party private
Choose three songs of three to four minutes each and that always make your bones move. It will be a great exercise to do at home! Put them on to play and dance, or just move to their rhythm. You can do the exercise in your bedroom, in the kitchen, or you can put on your headphones and dance in your backyard - unless you're afraid or embarrassed about being seen by a neighbor, in which case don't forget to close the curtains.
6. Do sit-ups
In case you don't know enough types of sit-ups to fill the ten minutes, the internet is full of tips for that. The sit-up is a great exercise to do at home as it doesn't require a lot of guidance. They are also good workout options to lose belly fat. The video shows several exercises to be done in just ten minutes!
7. Explore the boards
In addition to classic sit-ups, planks are another very efficient way to work your abdominal muscles. They require greater body control, which makes your body work not only on your belly, but also on your arms and back. Be careful not to lift your butt too high, which puts strain on your back, especially your lower back. Three sets of 30 seconds each are enough to guarantee an abdominal workout - if you're excited, gradually increase the time to a minute or a minute and a half.
8. Do housework
Referring to item five, have you ever noticed how much more fun washing up is when having upbeat music as a soundtrack? Well, besides being impossible not to move. Sweeping the house, trimming some plants in your garden, making the beds and vacuuming are all great exercises to do at home. And the best part is, you already take items off your to-do list.
9. Experience the sink and advance
These are two exercises that are hated in gym workouts, but they are extremely effective in toning and strengthening legs and knees. As a bonus, they still work the balance. Look for videos that help you with correct execution, as it is important to align legs, feet and knees to avoid injuries.
10. Work the glutes
The situation is the same as doing sit-ups and you are going to work another part of the body. There are several videos on the internet that can give you tips on which glutes exercise to do. One of them helps several other parts of the body and looks like child's play: jumping rope! It's a great exercise to do at home, strengthens your legs and glutes, and even works as a cardiovascular workout.
11. Make jumping jacks
Still not sweating enough with the rope? Reinforce your workout with jumping jacks, this is a type of exercise that uses all muscle groups and improves cardiovascular health.
12. Burpies and Squats
Loved or hated, these exercises are easy to do at home and are entirely up to you, but their executions are not that simple. The good news is that there are different levels at which you can perform burpies, depending on your fitness, and also different types of squats. Look for a video tutorial so you don't risk the health of your back!
13. Improvise weights
You can fill bottles with water or use heavy equipment from your home to improvise weightlifting weights, similar to those used in gyms. If you're excited about exercising at home, it might be worth buying your own weights, depending on your desired workout intensity.
14. Follow fitness videos
YouTube has a plethora of channels with exercise videos you can do at home. You can search for the part of your body you want to exercise and even choose your teachers: there are a wide range of classes, from leg training to relaxation classes. Be creative and choose which coach you like best.
15. Do yoga
There are also videos on the internet with yoga practices that you can follow step by step. In addition to being relaxing, practicing yoga for 10 minutes will be a great exercise to do at home. It's simple and you only need a mat or yoke.
- Yoga: Ancient Technique Has Proven Benefits
16. Practice meditation
Although it is not exactly a physical exercise, the practice of meditation has similar advantages, such as reducing stress, increasing concentration, improving mood and self-discipline, among others. You can do more intense exercise in the morning to energize your body before work, and meditate at night, relaxing before bed.
outdoor exercises
17. Walk - with your dog, alone...
Mabel Amber image, still incognito... by Pixabay
Sitting for too long, whether at work, at school or watching television, can cause muscle and joint problems. Just going out for a walk with your dog is a great help. Surely your little friend will be very happy with this attitude too. Walking alone is also worth it - and you can enjoy discovering new parks or exploring your neighborhood. The important thing is to get moving!
18. Go for a run
Gervyn Louis image in Unsplash
When you have a break during your workday, jogging for ten minutes in comfortable shoes won't make you sweat a lot or mess up your hair (unless you're at the advanced level of sedentary lifestyle). You can do this on your lunch break, for example. But if you don't want to risk coming back breathless or sweaty, run before you go to work and/or after you come back - the refreshing bath afterwards will make up for the exercise.
19. "Disposer" your bicycle
Image of Xavi Cabrera in Unsplash
Using bicycles to get around or for fun brings countless benefits, not only to health, but also to the environment. Ten minutes out of your day spent riding a bike will make a big difference to your fitness, as well as helping your mental health.
20. Use your city's sports equipment
Currently, several squares and parks have equipment that help with weight training and are free to use. Explore your city and use the sports equipment provided to ensure muscle strength and fitness. As a hygiene measure and to avoid the spread of any diseases, clean the equipment with alcohol gel before and after use, leaving them clean for the next user.
rethink your habits
Remember that controlling your diet is very important when changing your habits (see tips on how to maintain a healthier and more sustainable diet and how to have a healthier daily life), and the use of some vegetable oils can be very effective too (and special attention to chia seed oil, which helps in slimming and fighting cellulite!).
Check out the video for a list of foods to avoid if you're on a diet (or want to start one):
Remembering that the most important thing, in addition to aesthetics, is your health.
