Complement Your Gym Workouts At Home
About the Author: Kevin Rail is an internationally known and sought after fitness coach featured in the documentary films, Fasting and The Motivation Factor. He specializes in functional training, core training, three-dimensional movement, motivation and restorative arts. He has a B.S. in sport management/fitness and wellness and is certified through ACSM, NASM and ACE.
It’s easy to stay in shape when you have a buffet-style selection of tools to choose from—like you do at your gym or health club. The dream situation is a balance between working out at the gym and doing things in your own home. Here are a few ways to make that happen.
Plan it out.
Supplementing a workout plan doesn’t mean you’re doing all of your exercise at home, it means you want to add to what you are already doing. Take a few minutes to figure out what might be lacking at the gym or what you feel more comfortable doing at home. Once you have this dialed in, make yourself a list of things you might need. By taking this step, you will not only arm yourself with accessories to use at home, but they can also double as travel accessories when you go on vacation or leave for a business trip.
Find the perfect workout accessories for you and your home.
If you have some extra space in your home, you may consider investing in a piece of cardio equipment to fill the space, which you can then factor it into your weekly workout schedule. Make sure it is a cardio machine that you like and will benefit you. So, don’t choose a treadmill if running isn’t your favorite cardio activity.
Maybe you don’t have space at home for cardio equipment, but the gym has a ton of options to choose from. Consider strength-training tools that give you the ability to do this type of work at home and cardio at the gym. Depending on your goals, you can get as basic or elaborate as you’d like. A bench with a barbell and weight plates, dumbbells, kettlebells and resistance tubes will give you what you need for an effective home strength training workout. If you are looking for more core-based workouts at home, an exercise ball, sandbells and medicine balls can fit the bill.
Take a stand.
Do you work from home? In this case, you may like the idea of going to the gym for the social aspect and to get out of the house. But while you're working you can help your overall health by making sure you're not relegated to a desk and an office chair all day. Stand at your desk for most of the day. And try pacing around you home office while on conference calls. It helps to keep you alert and burns off more calories than nodding off while sitting down.
Don’t forget about flexibility.
You may have a goal to incorporate stretching or yoga from the comfort of your home two or three times a week. In this case, you need a mat that you can use when you need it and conveniently roll up and slide back under your bed when you’re done. Much like core training, you can do stretching and yoga while you binge your favorite shows. And you can blend your core and flexibility exercises together.