With the COVID-19 pandemic lasting longer than many of us would like, keeping up with your fitness goals has been an uphill battle. For most of the world, gyms have now been closed, or under heavy restrictions, for almost two years now.

That’s why, as 2022 rolls around, it’s important that we all begin our fitness journey again. Even if you only have access to your home, maybe some small weights, and a loungeroom with enough space to get yourself into shape.

Today we’ll be going over an at-home workout that anybody can do, even if you don’t have any equipment, that will help you to see steady gains, and prepare you to come out of the other side of the pandemic looking incredible.

We’ll also explore some healthy fitness tips and tricks that will work to improve your stay-at-home lifestyle, as well as prevent any stubborn fat from being added to your waistline.

 

Where to Get Started: The Time Required to Stay Fit

For many of us that go to the gym a few times a week, it’s no secret that it takes time to get into shape. Yet, for millions all over the world, the pandemic brought a new set of challenges to the table when it comes to time management.

With all of us locked inside, under heavy restrictions, it’s not an issue of finding the time to work out. Instead, it’s an issue with how much time we commit to staying in shape.

There is often an incorrect piece of fitness advice circulated online: that you need to be investing at least an hour, each day, to your fitness routine.

Whilst this isn’t incorrect, it’s absolutely out of the realm of what is required. Many extremely fit individuals only spend half an hour to forty-five minutes on their fitness daily.

If you’re looking to get into better shape during the pandemic, mentally prepare yourself for a maximum of thirty minutes. Even fifteen minutes a day of the exercises we’ll explore below is enough to help keep off that body fat, and get you into shape.

If you want to commit more time, there is no harm in it. But never over-invest yourself, especially if you’re just getting back into fitness. A little bit every day is how everybody, even the fittest of us, began their journey.

 

The Best At-Home Exercises for Men and Women

Let’s break down the core exercises that both men and women can do, each day, to help shape their body during the pandemic. This section will be split into two groups, body weight, and weights.

If you have no equipment, and only want to do body weight exercises, stick to the body weight section. If you have a few weights laying about, then make sure to check the weight section as well.

 

Body Weight Exercises

Jumping Jacks

Jumping Jacks are a simple, and effective exercise to get your blood pumping. It’s a good idea to start every workout session with a series of jumping jacks to get your body ready for the exercise that is about to come.

Simply do between twenty to fifty jumping jacks, whatever you’re comfortable with, and give yourself time to calm down and control your breathing after you’re done.

This is a great way to avoid injury, as well, as this will pump blood to your muscles, and protect you against any cramps that may develop as the result of suddenly working out after a prolonged break.

 

Push Ups

Pushups are the bread and butter of building your upper body. There are many ways you can do pushups, and if you struggle to do a full body weight pushup, don’t worry! There are options to help you work up to a full body weight push up, that we’ll cover in a moment.

Pushups are a compound exercise, meaning that they use a variety of different muscle groups to execute. This means you’ll be using your core, biceps, triceps, shoulders, back, and much more as you do your daily pushups.

When doing a pushup, remember to keep your hands roughly inline with your chest. You don’t want your hands too far forward, or behind, as this will isolate certain muscles and make the exercise less impactful.

If you struggle to do full body weight pushups, try to bend your knees instead of extending your legs all the way out. This will take away a lot of your weight, and help you to build the muscles required for a full body weight pushup.

You can also begin pushups against the wall, while standing. This is a great way to flex those muscles, and build a foundation in your upper body that will make full pushups a breeze!

Try to do three sets of ten, or reach a thirty pushup total each workout. Once you’re comfortable, start pushing those numbers up slowly. When you’re fit, work at hitting one hundred.

 

Planks

When it comes to working out the core, many people think of sit ups. As these are the most common exercise associated with getting rock hard abs. They are, however, extremely ineffective, and often damaging, to your spine.

It’s for that reason that you should do planks. A plank is when you put yourself in a pushup position, but hold yourself there. Don’t do the pushup, just hold. Whilst you’re holding, make sure to activate your core muscles, to keep yourself steady.

If you Google planks, it will look like a simple and easy exercise. Yet, don’t let that fool you. Planks are incredibly difficult, and to hold a plank for even ten seconds is impressive.

Try to do planks three times per workout. Hold it for as long as you can each time. Don’t be concerned if you can only hold the plank for a few seconds to begin with, this is extremely common. Work yourself up to ten second, then twenty second, then eventually one-minute planks.

 

Body Weight Squats

Body weight squats are a superstar in the body weight exercise world. They work to tone your legs, butt, and hips, as well as work to get rid of that stiffness many of us experience when sitting down for work all day.

When doing a body weight squat, make sure to have your feet at shoulder length apart. Lower yourself down until your butt is level with your knees, and then push up. When pushing up, don’t lean forward. Make sure to keep that same straight downward and upward motion.

Try to do at least thirty overall body weight squats to begin with, and then work yourself up to higher numbers every workout session.

 

Weight Exercises

Curls

Curls are a great way to build bicep muscle, and work to strengthen your upper body overall. Yet, many people do curls incorrectly, and can cause undue stress on your lower back, shoulders, and spine.

To do a curl properly, make sure to stand (or sit) straight. Keep your shoulders pushed back, and when you curl, try not to move your upper body, especially your hips.

Your body will naturally try to move itself in a way that makes the exercise easier, however, to get the most out of curls, you need to isolate the exercise as much as possible.

Try to do three sets of curls, ranging between eight to twelve reps in total. Yet, importantly, don’t do this every workout session! Only do a maximum of three days of curls each week.

 

Over Head Press

Over head presses are a great way to build your shoulder muscles, as well as give you that toned collar bone you’ve been looking for.

Stand firm, and lift the dumb bells up over your head. Extend upwards, and down, in a slow motion. If you haven’t done this exercise before, it will be difficult to begin with, however you’ll quickly build yourself up.

Aim for, like curls, three sets of eight to twelve. With a maximum of three instances of over head press workouts per week.

 

Fly

Fly, also known as a Flye, is a great way to work your chest, and shoulder muscles. Yet, they are a little more advanced than simple curls and over head presses. So, if this is your first time attempting the exercise, make sure to Google correct form.

To do a fly correct, you can either stand upright, or lean slightly forward. Then simply extend your arms out, with dumb bells, as if you are flapping a set of wings.

This exercise will require a lower weight, and is extremely hard for even moderately fit people. So don’t be worried if you’re struggling. Slowly work yourself up with flys, and make sure to always execute good form.

 

How Often Should I Work Out?

Don’t overdo it in the beginning. If you’re looking to lose weight, and build muscle, it’s good to stick to three times per week. That’s a standard, and healthy, fitness regiment that will see you getting great results.

If you want to push it, and workout five times a week, make sure to tailor your routine so you’re not repeating the same exercises, or overworking your muscles. This won’t help you, and simply open you up to injury, or burnout.

Remember: The most fit people in the world, even athletes, know the value of taking a day off. So, make sure to give yourself the time to heal, and rebuild your body, as well as eating a steady supply of protein and healthy meals.

 

The Key is Persistence – Your Pandemic Fitness Journey Begins!

Now you have everything you need to execute a rounded, and successful, pandemic workout routine. All that’s left now is to make sure you take the time every day, or every second day, to workout for roughly thirty minutes.

With these fitness tips under your belt, you’ll come out of the pandemic looking, and feeling, great. Just put in a little effort, don’t be hard on yourself if you skip a day, and work towards the body you want to have.

Remember, the key to success is not how you navigate to the destination. It’s how you handle the journey, each and every day.