Home Workout During Quarantine 

Times right now are strange and unprecedented, no one was ready for the major and rapid changes we had to adapt to in our dealings with others, our daily routine, or in our personal life. Since almost everyone is now quarantined at home and every public place like swimming pools, shopping centers and gyms have been shut down for the foreseeable future, we’ve become quite lazy at home, and this is a problem faced by many right now. 
         The lethargy started setting in only a few days into lockdown, and many of us decided to treat the initial time as a mini-vacation; relaxing a bit too much and lying around all day. However, our bodies were designed for motion and it craves movement; after some time of doing nothing, there’s always an itch to get up and move around. So how can you give your body the exercise and care it needs when everything’s closed? Workout at home of course! 
          There are several simple but effective workout routines you could do from home without needing a treadmill, exercise bicycle, or any other fancy gym equipment, and we’re here to tell you all about it. From basic warm-up stretches to proper workout, everything you need to know about at-home workout is right here.

Warm-up before any real exercise 

Some people tend to go straight to some intense workout without any warm-up exercise. While this may seem like you’re saving time, it’s actually bad for you in the long run and can even hinder your exercise routine by causing pain or soreness in the muscles and can even increase the chances of incurring some injury when working out. Warm-up routines are especially essential now since we’ve been at home for so long, our muscles just aren’t used to any vigorous movement.
        A good warm-up is one that increases blood flow to the muscles, aids in muscle flexibility, stretches out the cold muscles, slowly increases the body temperature, improves range of muscle motion, and dilates the blood vessels. You can achieve all this by doing a few simple stretching exercises, for approximately 10 minutes before each workout session. It’ll help with the stiffened muscles and prepare your body mentally and physically for the more severe exercise later.
       Before you jump to stretching though, try to gain a little motion by walking around the house when you’re on a call, go up and down a flight of stairs, do some simple squats or arm, and shoulder rotation whenever you’re just sitting and free. Some common and easy stretching positions are as follows.

Static stretching

In this type of stretching, the body’s position is held while one muscle is stretched to its farthest point, so it focuses on one muscle group at one time.

Seated forward stretch (for hamstrings)

Sit on the floor upright with your legs stretched straight in front of you. You can bend your knees a little if you have an uncomfortable feeling in your hamstrings or feel slight pain below your knees. Bend forward with your waist with your arms outstretched and straight and try to reach beyond your toes.  

 

Spinal twist (for back, glutes, and abs)

Lie on the floor with your legs in a tabletop position. Now slightly raise (almost an inch) your hips above the floor and pull your right knee to your chest while completely stretching out your left leg. After this twist your right leg to the side and lower it to the floor while making sure that it stays bent. Finally, twist your torso to the opposite side. Hold and repeat with the other leg.

Dynamic stretching

In this type of stretching, your whole body goes through several motions so all your muscles are affected. 

Side lunges (glutes, hamstrings, quads, and inner thighs)

Stand with your feet wide apart, wider than hip-width, or as wide as possible. Lower your body to one side, flexing that knee and extending your other leg to the opposite side. Switch to the other side, alternate, and repeat.

High knees and side twist (back, quads and abs)

Stand straight with your legs a little apart. Now raise one knee up to your chest keeping it bent while your other leg is stretched straight. Twist your torso a little to the side (same side as the one in which the knee is raised), lower, and repeat with the other side.

Simple Home Workouts

Once you’re done with your warm-ups, it’s time to move on to the actual exercise. Depending on your level i.e. beginner, intermediate, or expert, there are several different exercises you can do, and the amount of time you should do these for also varies, depending on how long you’ve been working out and how much experience you have.
        Below we’ve listed some famous and beneficial workout routines which anyone can do, but for clarification, we’ve also specified for whom they would be most effective.

Cobra (beginners)

Primary targets: back and arms 

Lie on your stomach, with legs stretched straight and the front of your feet touching the floor. Bend your arms so that they’re touching your rib-cage and the palms flat on the floor. Now push your hands on the ground and lift your chest (neck and spine move together too) off the ground as much as you comfortably can. Lower yourself to the ground gently and repeat.

Cat-Cow (beginners)

Primary targets: spine and abs

Get on your hands and knees on the floor in such a way that your knees are in line with your hips and your hands are in line with your shoulders (this is important, otherwise a relaxed position won’t yield the required result). First curve back into a ‘C’ and hold for a few seconds, then drop the pelvis to push your chest to the ground. Again hold and repeat.

 

Wall Sits (beginners)

Primary targets: quads (thigh muscles) and glutes 

Stand with your back and head firmly pressed against a wall. Now slowly start walking away from the wall while lowering yourself (your back and head must be touching the wall at all times). Do this until your upper legs are parallel to the ground below. Hold for a while and then start walking backward till you’re straight up. Repeat a few times.

Plank (intermediate)

Primary targets: core, back, and upper body

Plant your hands on the ground so that they’re in line with your shoulders and a bit wider than your shoulders, at the same time ground your toes in the ground so that your legs are stretched. Now raise your upper body above the ground in such a way that your arms are no longer bending. For the proper form of the neck, look at a spot about a foot above where you’ve placed your hands. Hold this form for at least 20 seconds and slowly increase your time without compromising your form. 

Push-ups (intermediate)

Primary targets: Chest workout 

Push-ups are probably one of the most popular workout exercises out there since they are very simple and are great for general fitness. Get down on all fours with your hands spread a bit wider than your shoulders. Straighten out your arms and legs and push yourself up. Push back down in a second and repeat this for a while.

Tricep dips (intermediate)

Primary targets: triceps 

With your hands and feet on the ground, form a reverse table-top position. In this form, your hips should be raised and fingers should be pointing at the heels of your feet. Now lower your butt to the ground as much as possible by bending your arms. Extend your arms to lift back up and continue to do this for a while.

Tuck jumps (expert)

Primary targets: glutes, quads, and core

Tuck jumps are difficult, explosive, and quite exhausting. If you have weak knees or have just started working out, it’s best to avoid them. 
        Start with your feet apart while standing upright. Dropdown your hips like you’re performing a half squat. Now throw your arms back and then quickly up, and use your feet to push off the floor and do a high jump while bringing your knees close to your chest (at this time lower your arms again too). Brace your knees and relax your core as you land to absorb the impact.

Burpees (expert)

Primary targets: quads, core, back, and arms

Burpees are challenging and work on almost all the major parts of the body since the exercise itself is of two parts: a push-up followed by a jump in the air.
         Start in a squat position with your knees bent and your feet wide apart. Quickly lower your hands to the floor so they’re inside your feet, push your feet back so you’re in a push-up position. Do one push-up, do a frog jump to bring your feet back to the front then stand, raise your hands above your head, and jump. As soon as you land back in your starting position, form a squat, and start over again.

Wrapping it up 

None of the exercises described above require any special equipment or for you to go anywhere. From warm-ups to workouts for different levels and different areas of your body, you have everything you need. No more excuses to stay lazy and put off the well-being of your body in this quarantine anymore! So better get started and utilize this time for the well-being of your body.