The best home workout plans let you meet your specific health and fitness goals, based on your starting condition. A weight loss workout for a complete beginner will differ from one for someone who's in better shape. A muscle building workout will differ from a muscle training workout. Marrying your goals with your fitness level will help you create the most effective workout in your home.
Types of Workouts
Even without all of the equipment at a fitness center or gym, you can create home workouts for bodybuilding, muscle training, weight loss or sports performance. Bodybuilding workouts require heavy weights; muscular endurance workouts require some resistance, but more repetitions; aerobic exercise is best for beginners and intermediates looking to lose weight; sprint training will improve your sports performance.
Bodybuilding
The best home workout for bodybuilding will require a set of free weights, such as a bench and weights, dumbbells or a kettlebell. Start with a five-minute warmup to get blood flowing to your muscles before you start lifting. Lift the heaviest amount of weight you can lift, or close to it, and perform three to five lifts before taking a break of several minutes. Repeat the set two to four more times, depending on how often you'll work out each week. Move to a new exercise after you complete three to five sets on one exercise. If you don't have weights, build muscle with pushups, pullups, situps, crunches and chair dips. Cool down for five minutes and stretch before hitting the shower.
Circuit Training
Improve your muscular endurance with circuit training. If you have weights, use less weight -- about 50 percent of your max -- and perform more reps each set. Change the exercise after each set, and take a one- or two-minute break between sets. To burn more calories, decrease resistance and raise the intensity. Do 30 seconds of four exercises, then take a three- to four-minute break. Try a set consisting of situps, pullups, dips and pushups, or try 30 seconds each of skipping rope, crunches, burpees and a weighted lift.
Beginner Weight Loss
If you're just starting out, work longer, not harder. Exercise as hard as you can without having to stop during a 15-minute workout. If you have an exercise machine, work at a moderately intense, steady speed for the first two or three weeks as you build cardio and muscle strength. If you don't have an exercise machine, try circuit training at a slower pace and without resistance. You can walk stairs, jog in place, do jumping jacks, skip rope or do butt kicks.
Aerobic Workouts
Take advantage of your TV or computer and follow along with an aerobics program or DVD. Many networks offer workout programs. If you want to work out with music, dance or raise the intensity of a circuit training workout until you're sweating. Make sure you can talk to ensure you stay in your aerobic heart rate -- if you can't talk, you're going too fast.
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