Quarantine Edition: Best At Home Workout Videos
By: Sophia Pei ‘22
Gyms, hiking trails, and beaches might be closed but that’s not an excuse to not exercise. Chances are, the nation-wide shelter-in-place initiative has made your lifestyle more sedentary. Nevertheless, healthcare experts recommend getting approximately 20 minutes of moderate exercise daily to maintain health and immunity. It’s advised you do try to get outside for sunshine, be it a power walk to the convenience store or a bike ride around your neighborhood. But whether it is out of concern for your own health or your loved ones, you may not be able to go out for that breath of fresh air. Try some of my favorite equipment-free at-home exercise videos to help you stay healthy!
In Bed Ab Workout
Who says you need to get out of bed to stay fit? Try this 10-minute lower ab workout. (If you don’t feel like sweating in bed, totally doable on the floor too!) Lower abs are often the hardest muscles to target when doing abdominal exercises, so don’t be surprised when you find that you need to take a breather.
No Jumping Leg Workout
Want to build some muscle in your legs but live in an apartment complex? Try this 15-minute jump-free leg workout routine. Another lovely sequence that can be done in bed (or on a yoga mat on the floor).
No-Equipment Arm Workout
Not going to lie: this 10-minute workout is the hardest for me. For someone who really has no upper body strength, I find myself pausing and needing breaks way more often than I’d like to admit. Nevertheless, this is a great arm and back workout and the best part is, you don’t need any fancy gym equipment!
Flexibility Training
Great 12-minute video to help you stretch your hamstrings, open up your hip flexors, and help you achieve your 6-year-old gymnast goals for being able to do the splits. It can be a bit daunting (and very painful) to ease into some of these stretches but if you keep up and do this every other day (or every day if you really want to go for it!) you can really see an improvement. I really like how there is both the full stretch and a modified beginner’s version shown side by side. Choose whichever one is closer to your level but don’t forget to challenge yourself!
Some Tips
It can be challenging getting through some of these exercise routines but don’t be discouraged. Take a break and press pause when you need a breather. That’s the best part of at-home exercise, you go at your own pace!
Speaking of breathing, don’t forget to breathe. One important tip from yoga, try inhaling when you are “spreading out” during an exercise, and exhaling when you “close-in”. For example, if you’re doing sit-ups, inhale when lying down (maximizing the distance between your torso and legs) and exhaling when you sit up (minimizing the distance).
Play some good workout music. While some of these videos do have music in the background, once you’ve gone through them a few times, you should know what to expect. Play what makes *you* feel good and motivated! It’ll make the time pass more quickly!
Set Goals for Yourself!
Whether this is as simple as stating that you want to exercise for 30 minutes every day or if this means you want to target a muscle group, write down your goals and log your process! This will hold you accountable and make the process a little more fun.
Stay healthy and fight on!
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