Stuck at Home? 6 Tips and 6 Bodyweight Exercises to Try – All You Need is You!
It is no surprise that being stuck indoors (with a potential Netflix addiction) may have reduced your drive to exercise. With the weather becoming cooler and ongoing Victorian COVID-19 restrictions, exercise to maintain your health and well-being is absolutely essential.
The goal for Australian adults is to limit sedentary screen time to 2 hours per day for recreational activities, and to obtain a total of 150-300 minutes of moderate physical activity each week. You can read more about the guidelines for different Australian populations here.
However, the tricky part is related to maintaining the motivation to exercise. Fortunately, research has demonstrated that identification of facilitators (“green light”) and barriers (“red light”) to exercise is a great strategy to plan and incorporate exercise into your daily life.
So, how can you get started? Outlined below are 6 tips to help you identify the “green light” facilitators to motivate you to exercise, and 6 exercises (with modifications) that can be completed anywhere with just your bodyweight.
6 Tips: “Green Light” Facilitators!
1. Time: set aside 30 – 45 minutes in your schedule at least 4 - 5 days per week.
2. Space: pick a space in your home (garage, yard, living room, spare room) with enough space to move around.
3. Exercise Buddy: ask a family member or roommate to join you!
4. Program: use the program listed in this blog as a circuit or for further inspiration.
5. Equipment: do you have your bodyweight ready to go?
6. Music: pick a pump-up playlist or favourite artist to get you motivated!
6 Bodyweight Exercises:
1. Lunges
· 3 sets of 10 repetitions
· Focuses on lower leg strength with a hint of balance
· Modification: walking lunges
2. Squat, reach and jump
· 3 sets of 10 repetitions
· Focuses on lower leg strength with an element of power
· Modification: increase squat depth and/or increase jump height
3. High plank
· 3 sets of 30-60 second holds
· Tests stability and strength of the core, shoulder blade complex and upper body
· Modification: allow knees to touch ground if too hard or add shoulder taps if too easy
4. Shoulder Stabilisation Exercises (I-Y-T-W-O)
· 3 sets of 10 repetitions
· Complete lying face down and create the letters indicated with arms. Ensure you thumbs are always pointing up to target the muscle groups!
· Focuses on shoulder stabilisers, upper body and upper back.
· Modification: add a slight pause to hold each letter
5. Bicycle crunches
· 3 sets x 30 seconds
· Focuses on obliques
· Modification: straighten both legs throughout exercise to make it harder
6. Glute Bridges
· 3 sets of 10 repetitions
· Focuses on core control and gluteal muscles
· The movement should originate from the abdominals, followed by a squeeze of the gluteal muscles at the top of the bride. No lower back pain should be felt!
· Modification: place one foot slightly forward or complete a single-leg bridge
Be sure to take at least 30-60 second breaks in between exercise sets to allow the muscles to recover.
Try these tips and exercises for yourself today! Feel free to contact the Back in Motion Braybrook team if you have any questions and someone from the team will be able to assist you.
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