You don't need a gym membership to get fit. You can duplicate almost any activity you do at the gym in your living room or yard. If you need some guidance to get started, many personal trainers make home visits. A trainer can design an exercise program that will fit your lifestyle, interests and even the tools you have on hand to exercise.
Benefits of Exercising at Home
One advantage of working out at home is that you won't have to adapt to the gym's schedule. While you probably won't have access to professional-quality exercise equipment, you have the advantage of being able to choose any activity you like. If you get tired of a specific type of workout, you can switch to a different one any time. The key to getting in shape at home is discipline. Without the help of a trainer or an aerobics instructor, it's up to you to stay motivated.
Exercise Choices
The next best thing to a personal trainer is exercise videos. The main benefit of DVDs is that you can do step aerobics or kickboxing one day for your cardio, followed by resistance training the next and yoga and stretching on your third workout of the week. Not only will you burn calories, but also gain muscle tone and flexibility. If you have a larger budget, you can get machines like you would find in any gym, including steppers, stair machines, treadmills or stationary bikes. Dumbbells, exercise bars and fitness balls also are good options to get in shape at home.
Housework
It might surprise you to know that even housework can help you get in shape if you choose intense activities. For someone 168 lbs., vacuuming your house or mopping your floors for an hour can burn about 194 calories, while dusting will burn about 174 calories, according to Weight Loss Resources, a British weight-loss website. On days when you don't have time to exercise, ironing can burn 113 calories per hour, cleaning windows can burn 180 calories or washing your car can burn 234 calories.
Stepping Outside
If you have space in your home for a treadmill or another machine, you have the aerobic side of your workout covered. If space is limited, however, your choices are more limited. If you can take over the living room and the TV, an aerobics DVD can help you burn tons of calories. If that's not an option, you should consider stepping outside. Skip rope in your backyard to burn up to 110 calories in just 10 minutes, according to Britain's National Health Service, or do your own gardening and weeding to burn close to 290 calories in an hour, according to Weight Loss Resources.
Member Comments