12 exercises to do at home and keep moving –

you have invested in physical exercises to do at home? During the pandemic, many people stopped exercising in public places such as squares or gyms due to operating restrictions and social isolation.

Problems and obligations that came with the pandemic, however, made the idea of physical exercise at home become distant at times. To help you not stand still and impair the quality of your days, we have separated 12 exercises to do at home and keep moving.

Physical Exercises for Beginners

If you are not used to to exercise and plan to start doing this at home, calm down! Professionals separate some tips for you to exercise at home without getting hurt!

Find an activity that gives you pleasure to train: Dance, hiit, functional, fight… Try it!

Start slowly: You don’t have to want to be ′′ fitness ′′ in a workout. This is a process that can start with just one set of few repetitions for each exercise, or 10 minutes of walking.

If programmed: The principle of continuity is what will promote benefits in your quality of life, health and aesthetics. You don’t need to train every day, two to three times a week will be enough to promote great results. Put your best days and times on your agenda, those that cannot be postponed.

Seek professional guidance: There are countless variables that only a professional can handle and make your workouts more efficient and safe.

12 physical exercises to do at home

“In all exercises, there is the optimal way to perform and the way adapted to the individuality of the practitioner. I see as the wrong form that movement that jeopardizes the physical integrity and safety of the practice” warns Flávio Dias, personal trainer. “Adapting the exercise to specific situations is very common. Never force muscle or joint pain, that’s not smart, pain is a ‘friend’ we should listen to. The most important thing is to adjust the exercise so that the practice is comfortable and efficient”. Keep this in mind when doing any physical activity at home! Ricardo Lapa It is Flávio Dias explain 12 physical exercises to do at home that can help you stay active.

– (Ketut Subiyanto/Pexels)

1. Rope

If it’s for someone who doesn’t have a knee problem, who isn’t overweight, who doesn’t have a history of injury and who likes to jump rope, it’s an excellent exercise. Now if you are a person with injuries, knee problems, chondromalacia, chondropathy, who is overweight and who could get injured, or who simply does not like to jump rope, this will be the worst exercise. Depending on the case, it’s better to switch to jumping jacks or a high-knee jog.

2. Complete jumping jack

Starting in an upright position with feet together and arms outstretched with hands resting on hips. First phase, great lateral separation of the legs simultaneously with the elevation of the extended arms and approaching above the head.

Second phase, return to the vertical position with the limbs together. Thinking about adapting the movement, people with pain in the lower limbs can do sideways with one leg at a time (no heels). If you have dhands in your arms, perform the movement with a comfortable extension.

3. Push-ups with chest on the floor

Supporting hands and feet on the ground, arms outstretched, hands shoulder-width apart, knees extended and feet together. First phase, inhale and flex the elbows bringing the torso close to the ground, avoiding lumbar curvature (lordosis).

Second phase, perform the complete extension of the elbows exhaling at the end of the movement (this helps to keep the central region of the body more stable). It is an excellent exercise to work the pectoral muscles, shoulders and triceps.

One variation for beginners is to support the knees on the ground and make the same movement with the arms. Advanced people can elevate the lower limbs by supporting their feet on a bench and make the exercise more intense.

4. Jump Skater

You should stand with your feet hip-width apart. On one jump to the left and lean only on the leg on the same side. Simultaneously, bring your arms to the left side. Now, jump to the right side, supporting yourself only on the same side leg and moving your arms.

5. burpee

First phase, squat down with your hands on the ground, perform a small jump backwards by extending your legs (leave the vertical to horizontal position) and bring your torso to the ground. Second phase, do the small jump to flex the legs (leaving the horizontal position and returning to the vertical) in the squat position and jump vertically.

6. Squats with lateral displacement

With your feet approximately hip-width apart, keep your torso extended and arms extended at shoulder height. First phase, inhale strongly (this will maintain an intrathoracic pressure which is important to maintain the posture of the back), flexing the knees always keeping the feet completely on the ground (avoid lifting the heels).

Second phase, after bending your knees to approximately 90 degrees (it can be more or less, depending on your comfort), extend your knees to the starting position, take two steps to one of the sides and return to the first phase until you finish the steps. repetitions of the series.

The squat is considered one of the most important exercises for strengthening the lower limbs, it works the glutes, quadriceps, erector spinae muscles, abdominals and hamstrings very well. Its variation with lateral displacement becomes interesting to train at home.

Thinking about adaptations, people with little strength and balance can perform the movement sitting on a couch or chair. Well trained people can increase the intensity by using hand weights or barbells on the back or front.

7. Plank with leg touch

Hands and feet flat on the floor with the body turned on its stomach. Move one hand at a time, the right one until it touches the left leg, and then the left hand until it touches the right leg. This exercise strengthens your core and arm muscles.

8. Jump with Lunge

In the lunge position, that is, one foot in front and the other behind, in order to have balance and keep the spine in a straight posture, always contracting the abdomen. Keeping this position, bend your knees, build momentum and jump. This exercise strengthens all lower muscles, from glute to calf.

9. Grouped abs

It’s the most traditional type of exercise to work abs. Lying on the floor, feet slightly apart and close to the buttocks, and hands towards the head or crossed on the chest. In this position, concentrate strength on the abdomen to raise the torso as if to reach the knees. The exercise is totally focused on the abdominal musculature, but it can also contribute to the buttocks due to the contraction of the musculature.

10. Front Raise

This exercise develops the musculature of the shoulders and is ideally done with the help of a dumbbell or elastic band. Standing, the movement is to raise the straight arms simultaneously to shoulder height.

11. Saw

This exercise is also ideal to do with a dumbbell. With the help of a support such as a long bench, support one knee and one hand, keeping the spine straight and horizontal. The other hand, which is loose, will hold a weight and make the lifting movement, as if you were using a saw, but slowly and feeling the muscles of the arm and back work.

12. Right thread

This is one of the most traditional isolated exercises for the biceps, the famous muque muscle. Standing, holding two dumbbells or a barbell and with your forearm facing upwards, the movement is to lift the weight by bending your elbows and keeping them aligned with your torso, without letting them move from that place. The strength is concentrated in the biceps.

Exercises to do in quarantine – the importance of physical activity

There is already a consensus on how to to exercise improve our quality of life in several aspects, but in times of a pandemic, when several diseases classified as a “risk group” can be caused by a sedentary lifestyle, keeping on the move is a way to avoid even more risks. “We are going through a pandemic in which most of the people who died had diseases related to a sedentary lifestyle, diabetes, obesity, hypertension… and lack of constant physical activity. Physical activity is no longer seen as simply a resource for aesthetics. It is essential for our survival.” Ricardo Lapastaff and creator of Rocket Online Academy.

“Stopping the exercises is a crime against life. There is even an estimate that a 50% increase in inactivity due to the lockdown will cause 3 million more deaths”, he explains. Flávio Diaspersonal trainer.

Flavio also points out that a sedentary lifestyle is often not alone, it is also accompanied by a worsening of eating habits. “IThis is silently affecting many people, people who until then did not have the problem of high blood glucose. High blood glucose can be an important risk factor for death when the virus is acquired. Physical exercise is extremely important because muscles are the body’s biggest glucose sink.”

“In addition, exercising also works the psychological part, maintaining the balance of physical and mental health, something of extreme importance in this period of anguish, fear, anxiety and excessive concern that is being experienced” he raises Ricardo Lapa, showing that not only the physique benefits from exercising at home.

Physical exercises for beginners – how to be safe?

Being at home, we don’t have the support of a professional to tell us if that exercise is wrong or if the pain that remains after it indicates good results or that something is wrong. If you have the conditions, hiring a professional to set up a specific workout and follow up remotely is the best option. In any case, know and respect your limits, knowing when to pause.

Other important tips are:

Separate a safe space with few objects in order to avoid accidents; Only use adapted materials that are safe; The floor is a great support, avoid improvised unstable bases; If you are starting or returning to training, take it easy;

Physical activity at home – what about equipment?

“To train at home, the main equipment to have results is your own body weight. I guarantee results if the training is done under the guidance of a qualified physical education teacher”, says Ricardo. But if you want to increase the load, or the difficulty, products like bags of rice, beans or pet bottles can be a great option. “Backpacks are on the rise for home training sessions, making it easy to add or reduce loads,” Flávio also points out.

Other options are elastics and suspension straps, pair of dumbbells, mat, bars or washers.