Tips for successfully working out at home
Just because you are working from home, it doesn’t mean that your fitness should go out the window. Quite the opposite. If you’re working from home, working out should be a normal part of your workday or week. Here are six tips for successfully workout out at home
1. Have your designated “fitness spot”:
Have a certain place or places in your home where you can work out. It doesn’t have to be extravagant or a large space. I always say at minimum, have enough space to lay a yoga mat down. Even for clients that I train at home, this proves to be enough space for them to work out and for myself to share the space with them to coach them through our workouts.
2. Have basic equipment:
What you will decide to have as a part of your at home gym will vary. I have put together a list of some of some equipment that is a part of my own home gym here. For someone who is only looking to do yoga or body weight training maybe at max, all you would need is a mat. If you are looking to train and challenge your bodies with various modalities while not having to purchase a lot of costly or big items that will take up a lot of space at home, something as basic as resistance bands, a couple of kettlebells and adjustable dumbbells can go a long ways. You can find the links to these in my article on how to build your own home gym. It’s kind of crazy how much you can get done with such little equipment!
3. Have a routine:
If you don’t already have a routine, you need to build one. Building a routine means a few things to us.
Designated specific times you are going to workout
Knowing what you are going to work on during your workout and more specifically
Knowing how or what exercises you are going to do
If the last point is out of your realm of personal capabilities then there are ways around this including:
Working out with an app
Instagram + YouTube: There is plenty of free information out there from several wellness professionals. I recommend finding a couple that you like and following them for free content. I’ve linked out to mine as I have free content and will continue to post on Instagram, YouTube and occasionally on Facebook.
Online/virtual training: There are plenty of professionals who work with clients or groups online. Again, do your research and see if you can find someone who is qualified who you would like to work with. New York New You does offer online fitness and wellness sessions. If you are interested in talking to someone about online sessions, contact us here.
Downloadable workouts
4. Plan/schedule your workouts:
If you do not already have it, put your workouts on your calendar to help you hold yourself accountable. If you are putting it on a calendar that is on your phone, set a reminder/alarm to alert you so you can wrap up whatever task you are on. Just like a meeting at work or with someone else, you should keep to your commitment with yourself or reschedule if needed. Do not cancel on yourself and hold yourself accountable to your commitments.
5. Have a workout buddy?:
This isn’t for everyone, but some people do prefer to work in groups. Even though it is online/virtual, you can still continue to workout with a group of people through group chats on tools like Google Chats or WhatsApp. If you are doing online training with a professional trainer, doing it with a group is a really fun, great and cost savvy option as well. It’s a personalized approach to your fitness with more manageable costs.
6. Keep track of your workouts:
This doesn’t have to be fancy either. A basic free app like Runtastic will do the trick. Runtastic (and likewise apps) allow you to track the specific activity, date and duration. It will also estimate the calories burned. The idea behind tracking your progress is that seeing your work over time will encourage you. The app will also encourage you to keep up with your progress or schedule a workout if it has been a while.
