#but i will flex my sub 2 minutes easy forever

[apeshit]

flashes this like a business card

[curryhealthcenter]

TIPS AND TRICKS FOR YOUR AT HOME WOKOUT

Health Nut Writer: Jane Gannon

Health Nut Photo: Kylie Hoedel

  With spring break right around the corner, I have noticed the Rec-Center overflowing with students working their butts off (literally) to improve their health and fitness. Going to the gym is a great way to stay active, and I applaud those who can make it there. However, many students (including myself) have been struggling to get exercise due to the sub-zero freezing temperatures we have been having in Missoula. When simply walking out to your car seems like an act of misery, getting to the gym can be quite the daunting task.

  Rather than subjecting myself to a freezing cold car ride and soggy light-weight sneakers, I have been doing some of my workouts at home. In the past, I was the type of person who thought you couldn’t get a good workout in at home, but boy was I wrong!

 After a week of trying to workout at home, I’ve come up with some tips and tricks for all of you at home exercisers out there!

 1.) Use resistance bands

  Resistance bands have been around forever, but recently they have taken over the Insta-fitness world. It seems like I can’t scroll through social media without seeing somebody exercising with some sort of resistance band. After giving it a try myself, I can understand the hype.

  Here is what you need to know about resistance bands:

  They help tone and strengthen

As resistance bands stretch, they increase tension in your muscles and cause them to flex. The more you stretch the band, the more intense the resistance gets, and the harder the exercise becomes. Resistance bands work your muscles like weights do. However, unlike weights, resistance bands don’t rely on gravity to provide the resistance. This means that the body can move and expand the range of motion in certain exercises (ex. lift the arms higher in a side arm lift).

  They are light weight and portable

You can throw these bands in your bag and take them with you anywhere. They aren’t just great for at home workouts, but traveling as well!

  Suitable for almost everyone

 People of any age and fitness levels can use resistance bands, because they don’t have any weight to them. All of the dangers of weight lifting simply disappear when using a resistance band rather than a big bulky weight. My favorite thing about resistance bands is that you can use them from basically any position. I’ll be the first to admit that I have indeed used a resistance band while lying in bed.

   *resistance bands are super inexpensive, I got a three pack at TJ Maxx for 4 dollars*

  2.) Make your environment work for you

 We don’t all have fancy gyms in our apartment buildings, but we do all have household items we can us to help us stay active.

 Here are a few examples of how you can incorporate various things around your house into your workout.

  Use stairs for cardio

Do step-up and dips on a chair

Use a gallon of milk or a heavy pot for weighted squats

Put a heavy book on your chest while you do sit-ups

 Do wall sits on any wall, I’m sure your home has at least four!

 Use your body!

 Your body is a household item, right? Not every exercise you do has to be complicated. Simple body weight exercises can be super hard to complete and keep you in great shape. Some of my favorite body weight exercises are burpees, inch worms, lunges, jump squats, planks, and many, many more!!

  If you put a few of the listed above exercises into a circuit and work at it for 15-25 minutes you will have completed a very difficult t home workout!

   Follow along with a YouTube video or an Instagram tutorial

 I deffinitely don’t come up with all of my workouts on my own. I often look to apps like YouTube and Instagram for tips, and inspiration for new workout moves. There are SO many fitness “influencers” on social media these days, you can find free online workouts at the click of a button.

  With that being said, it is so easy for anybody to post online workouts, so you should be sure you are following somebody who is certified and credible. Some of my favorite fitness gurus are:

  Katie Crewe

 msjeanettejenkins

 menshealthmag

 kirastokesfit

 moritsummers

 Kayla Itsines

   Hopefully these tips can help you get some movement in throughout your day, even if you don’t plan on bearing the cold to get to the gym. We are each responsible for our own bodies, so we shouldn’t let our fitness slip to the wayside just because its cold outside.

 Happy exercising, & #BewellUM