In a now all-too-familiar routine of staying indoors, it’s easy to become demotivated towards exercising. Cold, wet winter days mean the thought of going for a run is far less appealing than in spring or summer. So how can we keep active?
IB Insider brings you some tips for maintaining an exercise routine from the comfort of your own home.
It’s worth mentioning that you should try to get some fresh air whenever possible, even if that’s only a quick ten-minute walk during lunch. Otherwise, walking around your house whilst on a break from your computer keeps you from being sedentary all day.
This is also one way to help your mental health whilst working from home, which you can read more about here.
Maintaining an exercise routine is easier when you’re doing activities you enjoy. If you’re a gym regular, try to adapt the exercises you would normally do at home.
A small set of weights, a yoga mat, or the at-home version of the equipment you would use at the gym can help you to keep in shape. It doesn’t have to be much, either – you can use one set of dumbbells for a full-body workout.
This is clearly an approach taken by many, as during primary lockdowns in 2020, eBay’s sales of dumbbells saw an increase of 1,980% when compared to sales in March and April in 2019.
If you would normally be out and about running or cycling, then a standing bike could be a great at-home alternative. The Peloton bike’s popularity has exploded over the last year, with sales increasing by over 172%.
The company went public in 2019, and since the beginning of the pandemic its stock prices has continued to reach new heights – 431.42% higher than this time last year.
As with all stationary bikes, you get the benefits of cardio without leaving the house. Lower blood pressure, better sleep, a stronger immune system, more energy and lower stress levels to name a few – perfect for those in high-pressure jobs like investment banking.
Why Peloton, then? Its popularity can largely be attributed to being able to connect to live and on-demand workouts, as well as being able to track your performance. With instructors to keep you motivated and class leader boards to bring out your competitive side, Peloton has managed to create a social gym class environment for at-home workouts. If you’re stuck inside and craving a countryside view, Peloton also offers you a variety of scenic rides to virtually cycle through at your own pace.
A recent addition to the fitness world, Liteboxer is a punching-bag-meets-video-game. You punch at targets as they light up, with the idea being the faster you punch the harder it gets.
Liteboxer has a strong musical focus, making it more like a video game, and your workout is set to the rhythm of the song you choose. With the success of Peloton, and new additions like Liteboxer, it’s clear that home workouts are no longer just doing sit ups in your bedroom.
Online workouts are an effective way to maintain exercise motivation. There are endless options, both free and through paid subscriptions. Joe Wicks, who has been dubbed ‘the nation’s PE teacher’ in the UK for his online classes for kids, posts free workouts for all abilities to his YouTube channel The Body Coach TV.
Alternatively, New York-based JetSweat offers an ‘authentic’ experience for those missing the gym. It has a variety of classes, including cardio, yoga and boxing, available around the world, both live or on demand.
JetSweat is one of the many fitness companies to have its own app. The pandemic and the subsequent closure of gyms has contributed in no small part to the huge expansion of the global fitness app market, which, according to PR Newswire, is expected to grow to over $13 billion by 2025, having been valued at just over $3 billion in 2019.
There’s a plethora of fitness apps available to download, with Fiit, Aaptiv, 30 Day Fitness App and 7 Minute Workout: Fitness App being some of the most popular. They offer a range of workout types for both beginners and more experienced gym-goers, with or without equipment.
A quick scroll through their descriptions will help you to decide which one is most appropriate for you.
Short workouts, such as those offered on the 7 Minute Workout app, could be just the thing you need to stay active whilst balancing a busy job and life in lockdown.
You probably don’t need to go quite as far as getting a desk-come-exercise-bike, but making sure that you keep active over the next few months will benefit both your physical and mental health.
