In recent years there has been much discussion and reporting in the news about the increase in sedentary lifestyles and the rise of obesity and other related medical conditions. Many people have been making a conscious effort to offset these risks by taking up regular exercise and activities. For many of us this has become part of our everyday life and something we rely upon not just for fitness, but for mental well being, stress management and socialising.
So what do we do when all of our gyms and classes have closed, we’re not allowed to see our friends and we are stuck indoors for most of the day? Well, the good news is that thanks to modern technology and with a splash of creativity, there are plenty of options to keep up your routines and ensure you come out of isolation ready to take on the world! Here are some great tips to get you started!
Keep moving!
This may seem obvious, but for many of us our working day now involves commuting down the stairs to sit at a kitchen table or desk and only moving to reach the fridge or bathroom. All of the daily activity of our usual working day has been replaced with even more sitting in a chair! So it’s important to take regular breaks throughout the day to spend a few minutes moving around and flexing your joints and muscles. Try to work your way around your body, gently taking each joint through a full range of motion. Keep the movements slow and gentle, taking time to breath and relax as you take this well earned break.
Take a class
The gyms might be shut, but there are lots of trainers who have moved their classes online and are providing their participants with live streamed unique classes every day of the week! For most classes you need less space than you might think, usually the floor space in your living room, bedroom or even a hallway will be enough. This is also a great opportunity to try something new - always thought about giving Zumba a go but didn’t want to look silly? Wondered about HIIT but didn’t know if it would be too hard? Well, the benefit of online classes is that you’re in your own home and nobody can see you, so go on, give it a go and try something new!
Ask for help
Motivation is a vital part of following any exercise plan and when your sofa is in the same space you need to use for exercise, it can be hard to pull on your gym kit and turn off the TV. This is where a personal trainer can help you. Apart from the obvious benefit of having an experienced and highly trained professional tailor a plan just for you, there are the added benefits of the live online training sessions providing motivation, distraction from the everyday and having someone different to talk to. Simply having the session booked in your diary will motivate you to get changed and sweat! Don’t forget that when isolation ends it could be midsummer, so get working on your beach body now!
Get creative
When you visit your gym you are somewhat limited by the machines and equipment that are available to you. Most people don’t have any gym equipment at home, so open your mind and get creative with everyday objects! We all know some basic exercises that we do at the gym, so think about ways to perform similar movements without the benefit of machines or weights. It’s very important that you do this safely and do not take any risks, so if you do need some weight then keep it light and use stable, strong objects such as tins of beans, plastic bottles of water or those sandbags left over from the winter floods!
Change your routine
We’re all guilty of falling into the same routines, whether it be always attending the same class, performing the same exercises in the gym or working the same muscle groups. It can be hard to break that routine and the fear of losing what we’ve worked hard to build can be a difficult barrier to overcome. However, our bodies don’t respond well to too much routine, they plateau and stop developing, so changing routine is key to making consistent improvements in your training. Take this opportunity to try something new, cross train or work on your weaknesses. For many gym goers, flexibility, mobility and core strength are an often overlooked aspect of their training. So use this time to try an online Pilates class or dedicate some time to stretching properly - that’s for more than 5 minutes at the end of a session!
For more information or to discuss how we could help you, please contact us at team@formulafitness.fit