Needless to say, but I’ll say it anyway, these are strange days. We are in the midst of a pandemic. Some of us are forced to stay home from work because our businesses are closed, our children/grandchildren are not in school, we may have been exposed to someone who has the novel coronavirus, or we may be experiencing symptoms of the viral infection. We are staying away from the gym and group exercise classes because of the new “social distancing” recommendations, and in many cases our gyms have closed for now. How do we stay fit in light of all this?
Before I talk about ways to stay fit, it’s important to say that if you are feeling sick, especially if you have been diagnosed with any illness, please follow your healthcare provider’s instructions regarding exercise. This blog is intended for healthy individuals who have no contraindications for exercising.
If you have been used to working out in a gym, now is a great time to put a little variety in your workout! I’ve always been a fan of mixing up heavy weight workouts with lighter weights and body weight exercises. You probably don’t have a leg press, chest press or seated row machine at home, but you can substitute squats, pushups and resistance band rows. If you don’t have equipment at home, go online and look for resistance bands with handles. You can get a set with 3-5 different levels of resistance, which can be used for rows, chest presses, chest flys, biceps curls, triceps presses, shoulder presses, lateral shoulder raises and so much more. You can also purchase bands that can be placed above the knees or around the ankles to work the glutes and inner thighs. And, as I mentioned, body weight moves can be very effective. Squats, lunges, sumo squats, pushups and planks are great examples.
For your cardio workouts, as long as you are able to do so, go outside! Running, brisk walking, cycling and hiking are all good options, especially during the spring.
On a personal note, I recently fell during a trail race and broke my wrist. Because I just had surgery, I have not been able to run, but I have started taking walks around my neighborhood. On my walk today, because of the school closures and recommendations to keep a safe distance, I saw something remarkable. On a Tuesday morning, I saw a grandmother doing yard work with her grandsons (first time in 24 years that I saw and spoke to the owner of this particular house). I saw moms and dads in the park playing with their children, big brothers and sisters playing with younger siblings in their yards, a mom and two kids riding bikes, several people walking dogs, three young women doing a workout in the park and young men shooting hoops. I was blown away by the togetherness that “social distancing” had created.
Hopefully, we will be back to our normal way of life soon, but in some ways, this new “normal” may be a good thing. Stay fit and stay well!