At Home Workouts
They look so easy right? That's because they are and as a Personal Trainer I wanted to share some really simple tips on how to plan and actually do your own workouts at home.
Due to my two jobs and fairly crazy schedule I have learnt to be pretty creative with my workouts simply just to fit them into the day. So whether you have 20 minutes or an hour, there are loads of ways you can exercise outside of the gym.
Get Outdoors
Sometimes exercising at home just doesn't work, you don't feel like you have enough space, you get too hot jumping around in your front room and frankly you feel like you're making a LOT of noise.
My advice is to take your workout outside, use your garden or a local park... anywhere really. If you don't fancy squatting and lunging in front of your neighbours or dog walkers then try an interval run. Same principals apply to any other interval workout, vary the intensity you're working at, change directions, stop and start to get your heart rate fluctuating.
Skipping is also another really good way of exercising outdoors, you can pick up cheap skipping ropes pretty much anywhere now and pretend like you're 13 again! Just don't get overconfident like I did and wack yourself repeatedly realising you have, in fact, completely lost your ability to skip!
I also did a whole blog post on exercising outdoors - so for more tips go check it out here.
Download an Interval Timer
There are tonnes out there you can download on the App store for free, these are great for workouts at home and saves you having to watch a timer or a clock. You can set these for varying periods of work and rest with different sounds to let you know when to change between your exercises. Some will also allow you to connect with playlists that you can control from the timer screen - perfect!
Interval timers are especially helpful for when you're doing HIIT training sessions.
Write it Down
Preparation is key - I stole that line from somewhere didn't I?
But in all seriousness, it is. If you don't decide when you're doing those workouts or even what you're doing before the week starts then life will just get in the way. There will always be other things you could be doing.
As a starting point - and to help you out... try something simple like this
EXAMPLE WORKOUT: 20 minutes Total Workout Time
5 minute Warm Up - could include star jumps, high knees, mountain climbers, sprints on the spot, squat jumps, lunges, butt kicks etc.
The key here is to raise your heart rate and make sure your muscles are nice and warm.
10 minute Workout - 30 seconds work / 30 seconds rest
Burpees 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Squats 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Plank Shoulder Touches 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
In & Out Abs 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Frog Jumps 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Shuttle Runs 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Hollow Hold 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Tricep Dips 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Press Ups 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Lunge Jumps 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
5 minute Cool Down & Stretches
The key here is to bring the heart rate back down again and make sure you stretch out the major muscle groups.
YouTube
Lacking in inspiration? Sometimes YouTube is a great resource for quick 20-30 minute workouts. The videos are easy to follow and this means you're not having to spend any time actually prepping for the sessions - bonus! I listed a few of my favourite YouTube channels on my last post here.
It is also great for offering you a wide range of workouts which should mean you can find something to suit whatever mood you're in. Unless that mood is Pizza.
Set Your Alarm
Because with all the willpower in the world sometimes that snooze button is so frickin appealing it is important you have that reminder. I have lost count of the amount of times I have said I'll start a workout at one time and before you know it after too long on Twitter and Insta I have quite literally run out of time to get it done.
BUT - be realistic, if you're not a morning person then don't assume that 5am alarm is A. going to get listened to B. Isn't going to be thrown across the room and C. is going to mean you get up and actually enjoy exercising.
The worst thing you can do is start seeing exercise as a chore or some sort of punishment that means you don't get that extra 20 minutes snuggled up in bed. Nap anyone?
Don't Include Exercise You Don't Like
Because trust me - you won't do it.
Save that for doing other people's workouts and personal training sessions, where you have zero say in the matter.
I will always be guilty of including exercises and then attempting to deviate in any way from getting it done. It's ok to plan workouts that you can actually enjoy. Those will be the ones you find the time to do.
I hope this post was useful...
There really are no hard and fast rules about this but I thought it might be helpful to anybody who really wants to exercise but maybe doesn't like the gym or can't afford a gym membership to get themselves started at home.
Any questions, just shout.