Table of Contents
To keep the body in good health is a duty, otherwise, we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear. Buddha
Motivation
A friend of mine, who is also a weightlifting coach, has a habit of saying that the most important thing during a workout is to be present. This means a person needs to truly understand the importance of exercising not only for the body but for the mind. One should be happy while working out, feeling excited about going to a gym or while mapping running routes. How many people who feel this way do you know?
Not everyone enjoys working out; most people see it as a habit (or lack of it), as a modern trend, or as a thing that’s simply good to do. Why do you enjoy working out? It’s important to be physically active – this is not a wrong answer. Even if your main reason for working out is to have a bikini body, or lose weight, as long as you are working out, it’s good for your optimum health.
However, some people begin to exercise when they start a diet program and stop after a few weeks or months. Others don’t exercise at all, spending more and more time in front of computers, in their offices, in cars, inactive. Unfortunately, we spend half of our lives sitting down, and one of the largest studies to date, which involved around 800,000 people, found that those who sat the longest had:
- 112% increase in the risk of diabetes
- 147% increase in cardiovascular events
- 49% increase in death from any cause
Sitting for longer periods impact on your body’s metabolism, one study found that an adult who watches an average of six hours of television a day could expect to live 4.8 years less than someone who doesn’t watch television.
Where and how to start?
The problem is that many people don’t know where and how to start, or cannot find a suitable type of exercise. There is also a lack of motivation or financial support. We can find many excuses not to work out. But, can you get in shape without leaving your home? You want to be physically active, to get fit and to improve your health, but can you do it working out at home? You cannot find a gym that fits your needs, or maybe you are already a member but cannot manage your schedule, can you get the same results at your home gym?
Today, the reality is that people don’t have time to go to gyms every day, but to get results, consistency is the key.
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Ask yourself these questions: do you want to be better at work? Do you want to be less tired? Do you want to eat guilt-free? Do you wish to test yourself? Do you want to manage stress? If the answer is “yes” to these questions, then you need to start exercising.
If you don’t know how to start, working out at home is a great option for you.
Health benefits of exercising
Being physically active offers many benefits, not only for your body but for your mind. Exercising increases energy levels and serotonin in the brain, improving mental clarity and productivity.
Once you start exercising, it’s evident you will experience less stress in your everyday life. Exercising serves as a positive distraction, helping to elevate your mood and keeping depression at bay. When endorphins are released into your bloodstream during a workout, you will have more energy for the rest of the day. Once your body adjusts to exercise and makes it a habit, you’ll have more energy and stamina.
Exercise can help prevent heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure and cholesterol, arthritis, osteoporosis, and loss of muscle mass, slow down the aging process. A good workout creates a healthy heart.
In a word, exercising has to become a part of a person’s life.
But, why is working out at home practical?
#Home can be your own personal sanctuary
While working out in a gym leads to being more socially active, it can often undermine the effectiveness of a workout and the hard work you put in working out might be in vain. Very often, the opposite is true, especially for people who are shy or need a special environment to concentrate or to motivate themselves. Moreover, many people go to the gym for other reasons, and they are not there to work out. If you are having a hard time to focus or start exercising, you need a place that fits your program and there is nothing like having your gym that is open 24/7.
#Home offers an environment for the workout you planned
When in a gym, your resting time might be determined by other gym members. Moreover, your exercising plan is also limited because it depends on available equipment. If you have a good coach, this won’t be a problem. However, if your budget is limited, as well as your time, such equipment might not fit the program you have or meet your objectives. Circuit training is, for instance, impossible in a gym. When you work out at home, you have more freedom to organize your exercising plan. Moreover, no one will disturb you with small talks or silly questions, and you can have a more productive workout.
#When you work out at home, you can use effective equipment or no equipment at all
The fact is that in many gyms, the equipment is based on cost rather than effectiveness. With a great coach, you can use it properly, he or she can help you improvise and include various exercises in your workout to create a powerful exercising plan that will activate your whole body. Unfortunately, very few good gyms offer good professional support and quality equipment. Many gyms invest in cardio classes, but lack equipment for good weight training. When you workout at home, you have an option to use high-quality equipment that is not dangerous for joints or muscles. Moreover, you can create a powerful workout without equipment.
#When at home, you have the freedom to exercise when you want to
When the gym is open, you can exercise. When at home, you have the freedom to exercise when you want or have time. Whether in the morning or the evening, you can make the best of your time.
Some people spend many on expensive workout clothes or personal fitness coaches only to realize they cannot manage their daily activities and training. Exercising at home gives you the freedom to work out whenever you want or have time.
#Your home is a membership-free gym
Going to the gym can be expensive, you need to have workout clothes, pay for the membership which can be very expensive, even drive to the gym. If you are doing weight lifting two to four hours a week, why should you pay for the activities you might not get a chance to try, or in fact, do not need to? Moreover, you can create a good home workout plan that can be done with little to no equipment.
#When at home, you won’t have excuses not to workout
The truth is that people will easily find excuses not to work out. When you are working out at home, you can avoid the most common excuse. You will not forget your clothes because they are always there, for instance. Moreover, you can wear whatever you want, you don’t have to match your clothes or spend time preparing to look good. At home, you can also make your post-workout healthy snacks and drinks.
#When you are working out at home, you can engage your family
You can be a great role model for your children and your family in general, especially if they do not have a habit of exercising. It’s even more fun to do a workout with your children. It’s good to teach your kids why exercising is important and they will grow up valuing it. If you don’t have children, you can be a great example to the rest of your family and motivate them to exercise as well.
Working out at home isn’t for everyone, but maybe it’s for you, and it’s a good way to start exercising, mainly because it does not take much effort or money to create an effective workout program at home. Fit balls, exercise bands, push-up bars, dumbbells are all inexpensive equipment for a good workout that works for all the major muscle groups.
Some Explanations for Start
First, you need to understand what some of the fitness terms mean.
Maximum Heart Rate – an estimate of a person’s maximum age-related heart rate by subtracting the person’s age from 220.
Warm up – the act of preparing your body for exercise. By either warming up your body with light intensity movements, usually walking slowly. Warming up exercises include the movements that increase blood flow and heats muscles and joints. A light stretching is a great idea after you warm-up.
Flexibility training (stretching) – the type of workout that enhances the joints, not the same as warming up, given cold stretching can make muscles and joints prone to injury.
Set – the term refers to repeating the same exercise a certain number of times, usually in strength training.
Repetition (rep) – the number of times you perform an exercise during a set.
Cardiovascular activity – exercises that are temporarily speeding up your breathing and heart rate, such as walking, running, cycling, dancing, swimming.
Weight (resistance) training – the type of specific exercises that are improving the strength and function of muscles, such as weight lifting.
Cooldown – the less-strenuous exercise that cools your body down, for instance, walking at a reduced speed until your breathing and heart rate slows down, after a walk on a treadmill.
But how to start?
First, it’s important to warm up and then do some light stretching, and once you warm up, there are three types of exercises recommended by the experts:
- Cardiovascular activity
- Strength conditioning
- Flexibility training
If you work out regularly, each of these set of exercises will bring great results.
How to do it?
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Cardiovascular activities usually start with aerobic exercise. You can walk or run for a sustained 20-30 minutes, and such activities, you should repeat four to five times a week.
Strength training starts with one set of exercises that target each of the major muscle groups. You can start using a weight to be able to comfortably perform the exercises eight to 12 times in a set, for instance. You increase the weight gradually when you think you can handle more weight, as well as increase the number of repetitions and sets. For the best results, it’s good to do strength training at least twice a week.
Flexibility training means you should do slow, sustained static stretches that should last 10-30 seconds, at least three to seven days per week.
Yoga is a good option if you want to stay in good form and practice meditation. While you might think one hardly burns any calories while practicing yoga, the opposite is true. The set of exercises, the specific body position and the technique in yoga are great to activate your whole body. With basic yoga poses, you will become more flexible and stronger, and daily yoga practice at home will help you stay healthy, calm, and happy and be more productive all day. Yoga is also a great way to spend quality time with your family, as it can be a fun family get-together. Browse the internet to find examples of basic yoga positions.
What home exercise equipment should you use?
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First, you do not even need expensive equipment because with squats, push-ups, sit-ups and lunges, and other combinations of exercises, you can work out your whole body. You can always use what you have in your house to create an effective workout. However, if you want to invest in exercising equipment to boost your strength or aerobic activities, you can start with many popular items listed below.
The treadmill is excellent for cardiovascular exercises, especially for warming up. You can adjust the intensity and time accordingly to stay on track with your training. However, you can also take a 30-minute walk outdoors and enjoy nature or fresh air. It’s up to you to decide which suits you best.
Free weights, such as barbells and dumbbells, are great for strength training. Dumbbells are especially good and recommended for beginners. Other equipment for strength training include weight stacks, flexible bands, and flexible rods, good for beginners, especially flexible bands as they come with instructions.
Exercise videos and DVDs can be helpful, or but one needs to be certain the exercises are performed accordingly. If you choose to exercise with videos or DVDs it’s good to work out in front of mirrors or to have someone else help you decide whether you are doing the exercise properly. The most important thing is to be sure whether a training program fits your current health condition.
Remember
To learn how to perform certain exercises is crucial given you do not have any professional advice and you rely only on your intuition, knowledge and skills. You can consider hiring a personal trainer for a session or two if you think you need advice or guidance. You should also consult your doctor in case of any medical problems or conditions before you start any exercising.
What do you think? Do you prefer working out in the gym or at home? Will you start working out at home?
Last article update: 7/30/2019
