You want to get in shape and stay fit. But the problem is, you can’t afford a gym membership because it's too expensive for you, maybe you're the independent type who wants to do things alone, or going to the gym is just impossible because your schedule is too manic for you to get away and squeeze in a much-needed cardio workout.
Effective Workouts You Can Do at Home
Whichever may be the case, all of these things leave you with one last resort: working out at home. But does working out at home really work?
The straightforward answer is yes, absolutely.
The Trend of Working Out at Home
Nowadays, the ever-demanding work and fast-moving lifestyles make it hard for people to go to a fitness center every day even though the majority still want to get in tip-top shape. Fortunately, designing an effective workout program at home is now possible.
Thanks to the available home gym equipment that is now readily available at sports depots and fitness stores.
With the help of Marcy MWM 990 Home Gym review and other related references, looking for the best home gym system was made easier.
Also, things like dumbbells and push-up bars, fit balls, and tubing or exercise bands are inexpensive ways to devise a workout routine that works all of your major muscle groups.
With the availability of such equipment, you can now sweat out and tone your body without leaving your home. Here are the best workout routines you can try.
Home Workout for Beginners
This workout routine for beginners effectively targets large muscles that provide core strength and stability. Much better, they don’t require special equipment. You can perform these exercises either by splitting them up throughout the day or doing them all in one workout session.
It’s ideal to do at least 2-3 sets with 10-12 repetitions for each exercise. If you can only manage 4-6 to start, it will do just fine.
The goal here is to perform the exercise and make you slightly shaky until you reach the final repetition. You can increase the repetitions every week until you can finally do 3 sets of 12 repetitions.
To get you started, here are the four exercises you can perform to start burning some calories.
Squats
Squats are one of the holy grails for working out the major muscles in your lower extremities. It’s proven effective in shaping and firming thighs and buttocks.
The best way to perform a squat is to keep your feet apart at a hip distance. You need to sink your hips as if you are sitting in a chair to target the glute and thigh muscles.
Lunges
To build your thighs and buttocks, perform a set of simple back lunges. Use a chair or wall for balance if necessary. You can do a front lunge or another variation if you can already make 10-12 lunges for each leg without support.
Push-ups
For a push-up to be effective, a perfect form must be observed. You can start with a variation with a good technique that you can complete. You can level up your push-up routines if you can already do 10-12 repetitions without stopping short, dropping you back, or shaking unsteadily.
Planks
Planking is a good workout to strengthen your abdominal muscles, including those that give support to your back. The best way to do it is by holding into the plank position for at least 15 seconds. Once you’re accustomed to it, you can progress from 30 seconds up to 90 seconds.
Home Workout for Intermediate
When you’ve mastered the routine workouts for beginners, you can now include supplementary exercises to further strengthen your abdominal muscles, arms, and legs.
For an intermediate workout routine, you will need a set of dumbbells to perform different exercises.
You can begin by adding at least two of these exercises to your workout plan. As you get stronger, you can use variations to create at least six or seven variations, depending on your preference and the body parts you want to improve.
Take your cue from the following exercises.
Lateral Raises
Stand straight and firmly hold a dumbbell in each hand. Your palms must face inward to your body’s midline. Then raise your arms at shoulder’s length then slowly bring them down.
Remember to keep your arms straight and lower the weights. Otherwise, your elbows will bend down, which means that you’re lifting too much weight. Perform at least 2-3 sets for 10-12 repetitions.
Biceps Curls
Hold one dumbbell in each hand and stand apart at a hip distance. Keep your good posture while bending at the elbow and raising and lowering the weights.
Perform at least 2-3 sets for 10-12 repetitions. When you can finally complete the sets with relative ease, you can increase the weight of the dumbbells.
Bent Rows
This exercise requires a correct position for tilting forward from your hips so your arms will hang beneath you, and your chest will face the floor. Then pull your arms going to your chest as if you’re rowing a boat.
Overhead Press
To effectively perform this exercise, you will need to sit in a straight-back chair. Your back must be firmly pressed against the seatback.
The next thing to do is press the dumbbells over your head while positioning your arms in a straight line from elbow to elbow. Extend your arms fully, but don’t lock your elbow. Take a quick pause before going back to the starting position. Do at least 2-3 sets for 10 -12 repetitions.
Wall Squats
Stand straight with your back against a wall then lower yourself down into a seated position. Make sure your thighs are parallel to the floor and use the wall to support your back.
Stay in this position for 20-30 seconds. If you’ve built up enough strength, you can hold the squat for as long as 60 seconds or more.
Takeaway
Work out two to three times a week if you want to create a balanced exercise program. Know also that you might experience a weight drop at first, but will eventually increase as your muscle mass increases. At this stage, your success must be measured not just in inches and pounds, but also in how you feel and look.
In case you reach a plateau, just increase the duration or intensity of your workout. Your body will surely respond and put you back on the fast track to losing weight.
