No Gym? No Excuses!

They say that the hardest part about working out is getting to the gym, so what if you could exercise from the comfort of your own home? You might have an excuse: no space, no equipment, no time. But those excuses are preventing you from achieving your goal to become the healthiest version of yourself.

We all know that exercise is important for both physical and mental health, so why don’t most people exercise the recommended three times per week? Well, going to the gym can be intimidating.

Just because you don’t want to commit to joining a gym, or you don’t enjoy running around your neighborhood, doesn’t mean that you can’t get a workout in. We have created a list of some simple exercises that you can do at home, with no equipment. So, leave the excuses behind, grab a bottle of water, and get ready to feel the burn!

Bodyweight Training

The name says it all! Bodyweight training is a type of strength training that uses your own body weight to help you build muscle and burn calories. There are countless bodyweight training exercises, but we will focus on the basics for now.

Push-Ups:

Directions: Place your hands on the floor right under your shoulders. Lower your body until your chest nearly touches the ground. Pause, then push yourself back to the starting position. Ready for a challenge? Try these. There is a push-up for every skill level.

Benefits: Push-ups help build core strength by targeting multiple muscle groups including arms, shoulders, chest, back, abs, and even legs.

Squat Jumps

Directions: Stand with your feet hip-width apart and your toes forward. Lightly touch your fingers behind your ears and extend your elbows to the sides. Bend your knees, then jump as high as you can. Land softly on the balls of your feet and immediately lower into your next squat.

Benefits: They are great for calves, quadriceps, and hamstrings. They also help with strength, balance, and mobility.

Jumping Jacks

Directions: Stand with your feet a few inches apart and your arms at your sides, then simultaneously raise your arms out to the sides and over your head, and jump your feet out so they are slightly more than shoulder-width apart. Without pausing, quickly reverse the movement. Repeat.

Benefits: They are a full-body workout that improves endurance and burns fat.

If you have the basics down and you are ready for a challenge, try this high-intensity workout. After completing all five minutes, rest for a minute, or do jumping jacks if you are really daring. Repeat up to 5 times for a 30-minute workout.

Yoga

Jumping up and down not your idea of a fun workout? Try yoga! It has a variety of health benefits from building muscle strength to promoting stronger bones, and despite popular belief, you don’t have to be able to bend like a pretzel to practice yoga.

One of the benefits of doing yoga from home is that you can go at your own pace, without the pressure of comparing yourself to others in a class setting. There are plenty of yoga tutorials online that can help you learn everything from the basic child’s pose to the advanced one handed tree pose. Yoga does not require any equipment, although if you have hard floors, we recommend that you use a mat, towel, or rug.