How To Get Fit With Little To No Equipment
Introduction
In today’s world staying fit is harder than ever. With the current pandemic going on, many gyms, and studios have closed down. Fitness enthusiasts have resulted in building home gyms to keep their training regime intact.
Great for those who have the space, knowledge, and spare cash to do that, but what about the rest of us?
Well, we’ve got you covered with our guide on how you can GET and STAY FIT right from your own home, with little to no equipment needed.
Why Bodyweight Training To Get Fit?
Bodyweight training is a great form of resistance training and highly beneficial to incorporate into your fitness routine.
Bodyweight training has so many benefits with a lower risk of injury than many other forms of training, and you can do it from the comfort of your own home. No need to pay a gym membership fee, fight for equipment, or deal with unnecessary crowds.
Benefits of Body Weight Training
Some Benefits of bodyweight training include; increasing muscular strength, increasing muscular endurance, reducing the risk of injury, providing a full-body workout, and increasing range of motion.
Body Weight Training for Older Women
Bodyweight training has a lot of benefits for women aged 40-60. It can reduce injury frequency, enhance muscle mass, regulate symptoms of chronic illness, and defend against osteoporosis.
What Exercises To Do
There are four essential exercises that I would highly recommend when getting introduced to bodyweight training. Those exercises are push-ups, squats, pull-up, and dips.
Great! But what if I cant do a push-up or a pull-up for that matter. No worries, I have provided modifications for all the exercises for my novices, as well as progressions for my more advanced enthusiast.
Push-Ups
Benefits of Push-ups
Push-up Progressions
Start on your hands and knees in a knee plank position. Make sure your arms are straight and your shoulders above your wrists. Rest knees on the ground with your legs together and feet suspended in the air.
Slowly bend elbows and lower your chest to the floor, while keeping your head in line with your knees.
Then, press upwards, making sure to engage your core.
Begin by placing your hands shoulder-width apart on an elevated surface. Form a straight line from head to toe, keep legs together, and be sure to engage your core. Arms should be straight and in a locked position.
Slowly bend your elbows and lower your chest towards the surface. Then, press upwards being sure to engage your core and chest.
Begin on your hands and knees in a tabletop position. Arms should be straight, your shoulders should be over your wrists, and your hips should be over your knees.
Slowly bend your elbows and lower your upper body towards the ground.
When you reach the floor, press up with your arms and return to the starting position.
Push-Up Variations
Begin by placing your hands on the floor below your shoulders. Hands should be a little less than shoulder-width apart. Make sure hands come together to form a diamond-like shape.
Start bending your elbows and lower your chest towards the ground.
Be sure to keep your core tight and squeeze glute muscles. The back should be flat. When your nose touches the ground, push up.
Begin in a plank position with hands approximately shoulder-width apart. The body should form a straight line from your ankles to your head.
Bend your elbows and lower your chest towards the grounds. As you lower your chest lift your leg.
When your nose touches the ground push back up.
Squats
Benefits of Squats
Squat Progressions
Begin with your back against a wall, and your feet shoulder-width apart.
Slide your back down the wall into a squat position.
Begin with a stability ball placed between your back and the wall.
Start sliding your back down the wall until you get into a squat position.
Squat Variations
Begin in a wide stance with feet a little more than shoulder-width apart, toes should be turned outwards at a 45-degree angle.
Bend knees, and lower torso.
Be sure to keep back straight and core engaged.
Squeeze glutes and raise back up to starting position.
Begin with feet shoulder-width apart.
Grasp kettlebell with both hands, held in an upright position, near the chest.
Bend knees and lower torso. The back should be straight.
Make sure your core is engaged and you are squeezing your glutes when raising your torso back to starting position.
Pull-ups
Benefits of Pull-ups
Pull-Up Progressions
To begin grab the bar with a wide grip.
Then retract your shoulders and pull down the bar towards your upper chest.
Be sure to squeeze your lats at the end.
Have a bar set around waist-high?
Position yourself underneath the bar, with arms a little more than shoulder-width apart.
Be sure to use an overhand grip.
Be sure your core is engaged, squeeze glutes, and keep your back straight.
To begin grab the overhead bar with an overhand grip.
Move feet so you are hanging off the bar. Keep arms straight, and core engaged.
Hold for 10 seconds, then release.
Pull-up Variations
To begin place a hands-on overhead/pull-up bar. Hands should be a little more than shoulder-width apart.
Keep feet together, and lift your legs towards your hips.
Once lifted rotate your torso. Keep core engaged.
First, you’ll want to attach a weighted vest.
To begin place a hands-on overhead/pull-up bar.
Hands should be a little more than shoulder-width.
Then pull up until your chin is at top of the bar.
Dips
Benefits of Dips
Dip Progressions
To begin place your hand on edge of a sturdy surface.
The surface needs to be strong enough to support your body weight.
The feet should be together with knees bent.
Lower your body until your elbows are at a 45 – 90 degree angle.
Place the bands on the handles of the dip machine.
Place your knee on the band and then grab the handles.
Lower yourself towards the floor until your arms are at a 90-degree angle and then push back up.
Dip Variations
To begin to grab the gymnastic rings, arms should be about shoulder-width apart.
Ensure your core is engaged.
Descend so that your upper arms move away from your body to the sides while maintaining a vertical forearm position.
Descend until your upper arms are nearly parallel to the floor,
