Motivational tips for your at-home work outs

2 Apr 2020 16:01PM by User Not Found

In these strange times, it is more important than ever to stay active – for both your physical health and your mental health. We know it can often be hard to stay motivated so we have asked two of our coaches to give us the best tips for working out at home.

Paolo Gimenez, Head of Grid Training, Virgin Active says:

1) Have a game plan

The worst thing is not knowing what to do. Even if you are following someone else’s exercise program, make sure to look it over so you know how to attack the workout. Play to your strengths and work on weaknesses, the only way to do that is to know what’s ahead of you.

2) Bring a timer

Time your efforts as well as your rest breaks. Keep strict on them so there’ll be less faffing around and more work done. I love working on EMOMs (every minute, on the minute) and intervals so that it keeps everything well timed and makes you more accountable.

3) Count your reps

If you’re working towards a goal, you need to stay focused and count your reps. Whether it’s tempo based work or reps for time, counting will ensure you have something to work towards and something to beat when you try to replicate the same effort next time.

David McDermott, UK PT specialist, Virgin Active says:

1) Stay functional (or “Move Well”)

Use dynamic movements to warm up and prepare your body. Things like leg swings, shoulder circles, inchworm walkouts and yoga poses are great.

Move your body in different planes of motion; forward and back, side to side, with rotation (e.g. bear crawls, side shuffles and a lunge with a twist).

Start by stretching where you feel tight. Begin with a calf stretch and work your way up.

2) Keep strong

No weights, no problem! You can stay strong and keep your muscle. Make bodyweight exercises harder by doing them slower and with pauses.

You can also make your workout harder by doing more sets, reps or rounds.

Go with the flow. If you feel great, push harder. If you are not on your A-game, go lighter and do what you can

3) Work full body

Work your whole body in one session or across the week.

Choose mostly exercises that work more than one muscle group (e.g. squats, dumbbell rows, shoulder press, push up and plank variations).

Work on one exercise at a time for strength or do supersets and circuits to burn more calories.

4) Strike a balance

Do both bodweight (strength) training and cardio.

If you would just like to work up a sweat and burn calories then you can do any exercise you like (for example, mountain runners, jumping jacks and high knees will get you moving without having to push your muscles too hard).

Keep balance in your body and prevent injury. If you do push ups, balance them out with some renegade rows (push vs pull). Do not forget to stretch at the end!

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