Most of the country is finding themselves at home more than ever right now. However, that’s not a reason to let your fitness to fall off a cliff. If you’re not going to the gym for any number of reasons, here’s my top 3 bodyweight exercises that you can keep with at home.
- Push up– One of the oldest exercise movements in the book. It’s still around because they work. Push ups work the chest, arms and shoulders, while also keeping the hips and core working too; making it one of the best full body movements around!
Your chest should touch the floor at the bottom and arms fully extended for full range of motion.Can’t do one? No problem! You can make them easier by elevating your upper body, or mimicking the movement against a wall. - Plank– There are many variations of planks. The best of which is the RKC plank. It looks like a normal plank on your elbows, but a few tweaks will up the intensity and really get your heart pumping too.Just like a normal plank, you’ll start on your elbows and toes, with your just under your face. Next, you’ll pull your shoulders down towards your feet, and squeeze your quads and glutes are hard as possible. The final piece is to pull your elbows down towards your feet. Your elbows won’t move in that direction, but that will really contract your abs tight.Done properly, most people will start shaking within 10 seconds! Start with 5 reps, working towards 10 seconds each. Focus more on the intensity of the contraction of your body, than the length of the plank hold.
- Squat– Similar to the plank, the squat is a versatile exercise. To start, your feet should be a little wider than shoulder width and your toes pointing out some (the degree will vary between individuals based on a variety of factors). Then send your butt back like you’re going to see on the toilet, and then stand.Despite to what you may have heard, squatting below parallel, where your butt will be below the crease in your knee is not “bad for your knees”. To the contrary, not squatting would be bad for your knees.Squats can help increase strength of your hips, decrease knee pain and improve circulation of the lower extremities.
If you struggle with ranges of motion or pain, you can start by squatting to something higher like a chair, and as you improve, start squatting to something lower and lower.
If you’re new to exercise, start with 10-20 reps each day. Adding 5 each week until you get to 100 for the day.
A famous Chinese proverb says, “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” The same can be said for starting to exercise. Get started now!
If you have concerns about injuries and doing these movements properly, we can certainly teach you the proper mechanics with personal training.
If you have any questions about these exercises, email us and we’ll be happy to help you.