Exercising your whole body doesn’t require you to exhaust yourself in a crowded, sweltering gym, or spend hefty amounts on workout gear. It’s entirely possible to engage in a comprehensive full-body workout within the comfortable confines of your own home, devoid of any expensive equipment.
If the thought of following along with an exercise DVD fills you with dread and you can’t stand the thought of going out jogging, but still want an exercise that is relatively cheap and easy to do at home then you need to have a go at the moves listed here.
As long as you are doing the right types of exercise and repeating them often enough, there is no reason why you can’t get yourself into good shape at home.
Try out different combinations that suit you the best and do the number of reps that feel right for your fitness level. You can build them up as you get fitter, to increase the intensity of your workout. You will need some space, a mat, and some dumbbells for these. If you’re up for a bit of a challenge, you may choose to use an adjustable dumbbell.
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The Bridge
Lie on your mat and bend your knees. Keep your feet on the ground and hip-width apart. Gradually lift your hips up towards the ceiling to form a bridge shape, to stretch your abs and your glute muscles. Hold the position before lowering your body back down again.
The Leg Lift
Lie on your back, with your arms pointing upwards and your legs bent and curled up as if you were kneeling. Stretch one leg out straight as you lower the opposite arm. Keep them both off the ground and hold them before bringing them back. Repeat this again using the other arm and leg.
The Dog Stretch
Get onto your hands and knees on the mat and make sure your hands align with your shoulders and your knees align with your hips. Stretch one arm forward and the opposite leg backward, before returning them. Repeat with the other arm and leg.
The Squat
Stand straight with feet apart and then bend your knees to lower yourself down into the squat position, keeping your back straight the whole time. Return to a standing position and then repeat the movement.
The Dumbbell Squat
Stand in the squat position, holding a dumbbell in each hand, resting on your shoulders. Lower down into the squat position. As you stand up again, lift the dumbbells overhead so your arms are straight up, and then lower them back to your shoulders.
The Dumbbell Bend
Stand with your feet apart and a dumbbell in each of your hands. Rest your arms down. Bend forward from the hips. As you bend pull the dumbbells upwards, so your elbows are bent and you are bringing the dumbbells up to your chest. Then lower them down again.
The Dumbbell Chop
Stand straight with your feet apart and a dumbbell in each hand. Hold both hands down towards the left leg. Lift both arms across to the right, as high as you can reach, then chop the dumbbells back down towards your left ankle. Then swap sides.
The Hop
Stand up straight, then bend your knees and jump to the right-hand side, swinging your arms as you do. Land on your right foot and balance on it, before jumping to the left-hand side and landing on your left foot, and balancing. Repeat as fast as you can.
The Plank
Start in a plank position with your hands on the floor, legs out behind you, and your core muscles engaged. First take your left arm down so your forearm is resting on the ground, then do the same with your right arm. Then raise your left arm back up and the same with your right arm.
The Star
On the mat, lie on your back with your arms resting on the floor above your head, then lift your legs and your upper body off the floor at the same time, bringing your hands up to touch your feet. Then slowly lower down.
Conclusion
Undertaking a full-body workout at home doesn’t have to involve expensive equipment or a full home gym setup. With a basic yoga mat, some space to work out in, and a set of dumbbells, you can easily perform all of the above exercises regularly.
By exercising on a regular basis and increasing the intensity as you get fitter, by doing more reps and using heavier dumbbells, you will soon start to see a very positive change in your overall body shape and fitness.
If you don’t like running or jogging and you can’t follow fitness DVDs, then doing these types of simple but effective floor exercises can make a home workout easy, fun, and simple to follow to achieve all of your fitness goals.
