Home exercises

Simple exercises you can do at home

To lose weight effectively and healthily you need to exercise. Fortunately you don’t need to join expensive gyms to start exercising. The followingis some great simple exercises that you can do at home to lose weight.

CARDIOVASCULAR EXERCISE AT HOME 

Start walking - Walking is an underrated act, but it will increase your fitness, increase your energy levels and also contribute to weight loss.  

• If you haven’t exercised in a while, start slowly by going for a 5 – 10 minute walk and gradually increase.
• You can also incorporate walking into your daily lifestyle by walking to the shops instead of driving.
•   If you are already active, consider power walking or consider swimming or cycling as another form of cardiovascular exercise.

RESISTANCE TRAINING AT HOME
Resistance training is performing a movement that brings fatigue to the muscles before you have performed 15 repetitions. Two good examples of resistance training that can be performed at home are;

Lunges - are a great workout for your butt and thighs. This is also a compound movement so when you do them you get more bang for your buck.

1. How to do lunges:
2. Stand in a split stance with one leg forward and one leg back, holding weights for extra resistance if desired
3. Slowly bend the knees, lowering into a lunge while keeping the front knee and back knee at 90 degree angles.
4. Keeping the weight in your heels, push back up to starting position.
5. Do this exercise 2-3 times per week for 1-3 sets of 10-15 reps.

Squats - can do amazing things for your thighs, hips and butt. Learn the right way to do it and maximize your workout!

How to do a squat:

1. Stand with feet hip distance apart with your toes, knees and hips in a straight line.
2. To contract your abdominal muscles, pull your belly button towards your spine.
3. Slowly lower your body, as though you are sitting in a chair.
4. If you can, go down until your bottom is in line with your knees (knees at 90 degree angles). If you can't go down that low, go as low as you can.
5. Take a moment and look down make sure your knees are behind your toes.
6. Slowly push your body back to starting position (keep your weight in your heels).
7. At the top of the movement, keep a slight bend in your knees.
8. Repeat the movement 10 to 15 times, performing 1 to 3 sets. To ensure your not going too fast, count to 3 on the way up and on the way down.
9. Rest 30 to 60 seconds in between sets.
10. Stretch your quadriceps and hamstrings after each set or after your final set, spending at least 10 to 15 seconds on each stretch.

CORE TRAINING AT HOME
Core strength training is the process of exercising the core muscles. The simplest thing you can do to strengthen your core muscles is to practice contracting the key core muscles that support the lower back; these are the deep stomach and pelvic floor muscles.

FLEXIBILITY TRAINING AT HOME

Flexibility is refers to a joint’s range of motion, effecting posture, mobility and injury prevention.  Unfortunately, it is commonly the most neglected component of a fitness program. To retain and increase flexibility  simple stretches should be routinely done every morning.

KEYS TO SUCCESS FOR AT HOME TRAINING
Intensity and variation is the main key to a successful at home training program.

• Intensity – to keep you challenged during your workouts gradually increase the weight used in your weight training and increase cardiovascular training appropriately. 
• Variation – so you don’t become board it is important you ensue that you vary your at home exercise program.