Around the country, gyms have been forced to either close or drastically make changes due to the pandemic. This may have you entertaining the idea of working out from the comfort of your very own home gym. If setting up a home gym seems like a daunting task, let us be your guide.
The Space
Find a space in your home that you can dedicate to workouts. It doesn’t have to be a lot of space. You can actually exercise in an area as small as 6’ by 6’. Utilize a spare bedroom, office, garage, or even a back porch or patio. If space is limited, the key is to pick workouts that don’t take up much room. Pushups, sit-ups, squats, lunges, jump roping, and yoga don’t require a ton of room, yet still, produce results. As much as possible, clear your exercise space of clutter and distractions. Adding a mirror is a helpful tool for feedback on your form during exercises and it will help your exercise area feel larger than it actually is! Stock the area with towels, water bottles, a Bluetooth speaker, and anything else you might use during your workouts.
The Equipment
You don’t have to buy everything all at once. Start with a few key pieces and then gradually build up from there. Here is a list of simple, multi-purpose equipment to get you started:
- Exercise mat – An exercise or yoga mat makes floor exercises way more comfortable, especially if you are exercising on a hard floor. A mat can save your knees while doing stretches or push-ups and save your back during core work.
- Jump Rope – A simple jump rope can provide you with a fun way to warm up and increase your stamina, endurance, and coordination.
- Resistance Bands – This is an item that is often overlooked in the gym, but resistance bands are easy to store and very versatile. You can use resistance bands to increase flexibility, promote better form, build up your strength, and they are a great way to add an extra challenge to everyday exercises.
- Kettlebells – A kettlebell’s weight is not distributed evenly like it is with dumbbells. This means kettlebell exercises are going to require a strict and controlled form and body mechanics which will improve your overall performance. Use these power horses to improve overall strength, core power, balance, flexibility, and coordination while also sculpting healthy and lean muscles.
- Stability Ball – Using a stability ball in your workouts forces you to focus on staying stabilized on the ball. This triggers core muscles, as well as stabilizer muscles, helping to improve muscle strength and posture.
The Routine
Due to stay-at-home orders, you can find a TON of live-streamed exercise routines right now. Many utilize just your own body weight to get fit. Check out this list of easy at-home exercises you can do today!
When setting up your home gym, you may find the need to remove and store furnishings or other home items. Zippy Shell is still here and working to cover all your moving and storage needs. We can easily store the stuff you don’t need right now to help you stay fit at home.