With gyms and community centers closed, it’s much harder these days to get a good workout in. For those in physical therapy, closed offices mean less time for rehabilitation as well. When staying at home, it can be hard to get that much-needed exercise, especially when you’re on a budget! Here are some tips and cheap equipment you can use right at home to help keep yourself active despite the quarantine.
Cardio: Go for a Run
This first one’s pretty simple. Running and cardiovascular exercise is good for blood flow and muscle growth, and it’s great for your heart too! With the weather looking up, now’s a perfect time to go for a walk, if you can. To make running and long walks easier, custom inserts provide extra support and comfort to help you get on your feet as well, even when simply walking your dog or going shopping.
If you can’t get outside to run, pedaling devices are compact and can be used in the home for cardiovascular exercise too. Since similar parts of the body are being worked out, pedaling is an easy alternative to going for a run. Their prices tend to be rather low, and many devices are for working out both the arms and legs.
Weightlifting
Lifting weights around the house can also be an excellent form of exercise at home. With no massive equipment necessary, weightlifting can be done with simple dumbbells. If you don’t have any lying around, household items like canned food, milk jugs, paint cans, and bags of flour make excellent alternatives.
If weightlifting is new and scary to you, smaller weights like ankle and wrist weights can be worn around the house and are small enough to fit in your closet without having to make room. These weights are great to wear while going for a walk, doing laundry, or pedaling to add an extra punch to your workout.
Further Strength Training
Alongside ankle weights, resistance bands are cheap and come in all different kinds of elasticity. For people who are new to strength training exercises, more elastic resistance bands allow the user to begin their workout without overcompensating their muscles, and as training continues, tighter bands can be purchased to increase difficulty. Resistance bands are about the size of a scarf and can be kept in a closet with ease. Since they are used for physical therapy, resistance bands are relatively inexpensive and can be used in various workouts just like ankle weights and even alongside stretches to help build muscle and burn calories.
Now get out there and get fit!
