Why You Should Try Equipment-Free Workouts at Home
For the past few months, most people have had to forgo visits to the gym as facilities locked down during the worst of the Covid outbreak. While home gyms have become more popular than ever with expensive equipment like treadmills and stationary bikes flying off the shelves, there are also plenty of ways to stay active without all the fuss. As long as you have a small space a little bigger than your body and a pair of supportive sneakers, you can get fit without spending money on dumbbells and other fitness gear. All you need is yourself to get a great workout in the comfort of your own home.
Why Choose Body Weight Workouts?
First of all, body weight workouts are super convenient and fast. You can do them anywhere, they don’t involve gathering props or being in a class, and they generally don’t involve hard sequences that you have to remember. You’ll also greatly benefit from the way in which body weight workouts tone your entire body. With weight training, you only focus on select groups of muscles at a time, whereas with a full bodyweight workout, you will end up using many muscles to stabilize your core.
Photo courtesy PEXEL.com
Body-weight Workouts are Safer
In addition, bodyweight exercises are generally much safer than ones with equipment as the chance of straining a muscle is far less. When all the muscles work together, the body is much more stable than if one muscle is strained on its own in an action like lifting a weight. There is also less stress on the joints when you are doing a bodyweight exercise, so it’s great for practicing proper form.
Types of Bodyweight Exercises to Try
Bodyweight exercises can be anything from an impromptu yoga class to doing HIIT exercises like burpees and lunges. As long as the exercise uses your weight and nothing else, it fits into the category of bodyweight exercises. Some other popular examples are push-ups, planks, and even walking. The best part is that most of these are quick — just a few reps will make you feel the burn!
When to Use Weights
There is a time and a place for the use of weights. They are very helpful when it comes to targeting specific areas of the body, whereas bodyweight workouts are intended for overall fitness. For this reason, if you are really trying to gain muscle, you will likely need to lift weights to get the desired result.
Needless to say, you can forget fancy equipment and group classes, all you really need to stay in shape is yourself! While gyms are starting to re-open, that doesn’t mean you have to go back right away. Just be sure with any at-home exercises to research the proper form and have the right footwear, like supportive women’s and men’s sneakers to make sure you don’t risk injury. Stay safe and put your physical and mental health first!
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