Easy At-Home Exercise

kettlebell

As I get older, and my time gets increasingly constrained by work commitments, child commitments, and the urge to spend time with my spouse, fitting in time for exercise has become harder and harder. I’ve never been terribly athletic, but working out on a semi-regular basis makes me feel healthier, stronger and happier. One of the easiest ways I’ve found to fit exercise into my schedule is to have exercises I can do at home. I like a bit of variety, so here are some that work for me:

Kettlebell

A kettlebell is basically a weight with a handle that you use for a variety of exercises. The most basic one being the kettlebell swing. There are also a variety of videos out there showing other exercises you can do with a kettlebell (I like this one).

What do I like about it?

  • Fast: it doesn’t take very many kettlebell swings before you can feel your heart rate rising and muscles working.
  • Versatile: It’s a good warm-up before moving on to other exercises, or you can use it as its own standalone exercise.
  • Fun: I’m not going to lie, swinging around a 15 lb weight feels kind of badass.

What you need to get started? Just a kettlebell. Check out this size chart to figure out what might be right for you, but go smaller if you’re unsure.

Yoga

So, recommending yoga as a workout isn’t exactly a new idea, but it really is a great way to fit an at-home workout in.

What do I like about it?

  • Options: There are no shortage of free online videos out there, on YouTube or dedicated yoga sites.
  • Variety: You can search or filter by yoga type and workout length to get something that works for you.
  • Flexibility: As someone who cannot reliably touch their own toes, any workout that can improve my flexibility (instead of just focusing on strength) is a bonus.

What you need to get started? Just a yoga mat. There are a lot of other yoga accessories out there, but I promise, just the mat will do the trick.

Pull-Up Bar

Pull-up bars can be a great way to get exercise, even if you can’t actually do a pull-up. I haven’t found one particular set of exercises I like to follow, but a lot of the ones outlined here are excellent ones to start with.

What do I like about it?

  • Effective: since you’re moving your whole body weight, you’re really going to feel these exercises.
  • Goal Oriented: there are a lot of things I can’t do on the pull-up bar, and having something to work towards can be very motivating.

What you need to get started? A pull up bar. I recommend the kind that require no extra installation and hooks onto the door fame. But if those don’t work on your doors, there are some other options out there.

 

No matter what exercise you do, finding something you enjoy can only make the experience more fun.

Laura

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

%d bloggers like this: