2020 has dealt a harsh hand and we’ve got a way to go yet, fellow humans. Life is not what it was and our freedoms to travel, connect and exercise have all hit the skids in 2020. So when everything turned upside down, what did you do? Likely, if you’re an exerciser, you turned to home workouts. And more specifically, this involved bodyweight exercises!
The home truth
Location and regulation dictated much of what was possible with regards to exercise during lockdown. And when we were allowed to roam, we saw more people and pets on the move outside than ever before! Great stuff! The pace varied from fast to slow to everything in between.
Many of us stepped out of our comfort zones and opened ourselves up to trying new ways of exercising, be it by foot or on wheels. For those already ‘geared up’ at home or who were fortunate enough to ‘Rona-rent’ some gym equipment, it was just business as usual. For others, group fitness classes such as yoga, Barre and Pilates were usurped by walking, jogging or online offerings. Many of us became a lot fitter for it! Then there were some who didn’t move much at all, preferring to snuggle on the couch under doonas, devouring Netflix on-tap and propping up the local economy with local food delivery on speed dial. Nothing wrong with that either! We’re all trying to navigate this unpredictable storm as best we can.
Keep on moving
Whichever lockdown version best describes you, there remains one common physicality factor that unites us all. And disregarding it would be at our own peril. We need to keep on moving, and our muscle health needs to be a part of that conversation. Pushing a bike pedal, placing one foot in front of the other or hauling ass off the couch to put the kettle on all require motivation, a thought process, some coordination and a lot more muscle action than you’d probably realise. Keeping muscles conditioned to support movement will allow us to perform basic activities of daily living (ADL’s) with ease. It will also lessen the chance of us being a burden on others later in life and can improve our daily enjoyment factor. Yet, lifting weights is not for everyone.Â
That’s where bodyweight exercises can plank on in and save the day! 🙂Â
Why we loved bodyweight workouts
A little space and a smidgen of time mixed together with the simple ingredients of movement are all that are necessary.Â
There are countless benefits for every single one of us in making bodyweight exercises a regular part of our training and health and wellness regime. Here are my top six:
- Convenience – no need to wait for the gym to open or queue for a weights machine. A little space and time is all you need to drop and squat!
- Cost – as mentioned above, there is none! No membership contract is required to use your own kg’s and the force of gravity (yet).
- Safety – there is less risk of injury as you won’t be throwing heavy bits of metal and rubber around.
- Versatility – with bodyweight exercises you can move in all directions across all planes of movement in a kaleidoscope of postures. FUN.
- Accessibility – anyone can do it with any level of capability and still get results!Â
- It’s Even Stevens – a bodyweight workout for resistance training can be on par with a free weights or machine weight workout …BOOM!
Seeking out bodyweight exercises to challenge all body parts is not difficult. We have our own 12WBT Exercise Index and Express Workouts that are jam-packed with them! And with so much fitness content now pushed online, including many of our own 12WBT faces, you’re already spoilt for choice…so go GET IT!
Chooky and another of our trainers, Todd, during one of their Facebook Live workouts
Alternatively, here are a few blogs to get you started:
This 7-Move Bodyweight HIIT Is All About The Booty
