Table of Contents
Body What?
Shelter in Place?
Body Weight Workouts
There’s never an excuse to not workout.
I can’t tell you how many times I have heard someone say they don’t have time to workout or belonging to a gym is too expensive. Well, I always tell my workout buddies that there is never an excuse to not workout. I mention to them that they can do body weight exercises. You only need a little space and can perform these workouts wherever you are. Another great benefit is you can exercise without equipment. In addition, it can also be used as a stress reliever no matter where you are.
Maybe you don’t know what body weight workouts are. Body weight workouts are workouts where you use only your body weight for resistance. It can be an effective type of strength training and a good addition to your fitness program. According to the Mayo Clinic ,”the resistance training effect you get from using your body weight can be as effective as training with free weights or weight machines”.Â
Mixing up your workout is easy.
Another complaint I hear from people about working out is that it is boring. I highly encourage people to mix it up. If you typically run, then throw in some push ups against a bike rack, or find some monkey bars and engage in some pull-ups. If you go to the gym and you feel your motivation to get up and go to the gym has got up and left, this gives you an alternative. There are some great body weight exercises (these are just a few that; I do there are many more):
1. Squats
- Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart and slightly turned out with your weight in your heels.
- Hinge your hips to sit your butt back and bend your knees until your thighs are parallel to the ground.
- Drive through your heels to stand back up straight. Squeeze your butt and keep your core tight as you stand.
2.   Reverse Lunges
- Start standing with your feet about shoulder-width apart.
- Step backwards with your left foot, landing on the ball of your foot and bending your knees to create two 90-degree angles.
- Push through your right heel to return to standing.
- Repeat on the other side.
 3.  Skater Hops
- Starting at the left of your space, squat slightly then jump to the right as far as you can.
- Land on your right foot and try not to touch your left foot down.
- Jump back across to land on your left foot.
 4. Standing Oblique Crunches
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart and hands behind your head and elbows wide.
- Lift your left knee toward your left elbow while you bend your torso up and over to the left.
- Repeat on the other side.
 5.  Planks
- Place your palms flat on the floor, hands shoulder-width apart, shoulders stacked directly above your wrists.
- Extend your legs behind you, feet hip-width apart.
- Tuck your tail-bone and engage your core, butt, and quads.
- Hold here for a set amount of time.
You can see results
Believe it or not, you can actually see results in your body’s tone when doing body weight exercises. Body weight exercises involve compound movements – meaning numerous joints and muscles are engaged in each move. Compound exercises such as push-ups and lunges have been shown to be extremely effective for strength gains and performance improvements. Not only that, there is some evidence that core strength is improved and that translates to improved strength gains throughout the entire body.
Last but not least … It’s FREE!
