Coronavirus: Here’s how to exercise at home in quarantine
Gosh, we’re going to get so fat with all this social distancing and staying quarantined at home. COVID-19, you’ve gone and closed all our gyms and fitness centers. We can’t even take a walk in the park or on the beach since government leaders ordered them closed to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.
The irony is that exercising is recommended to keep healthy, especially at this time of high stress.
Exercise won’t prevent you from catching the coronavirus if you touch your face after being exposed to an infected person’s droplets. But exercise’s ability to boost your immune systems — combined with a smart eating plan — is well documented.
The good news is there is no reason to forego exercising — even alone inside your own walls. “Dumbbells seemed to become the new toilet paper, and retail stores and Amazon have started selling out of the equipment,” the Atlantic reported.
Here are some video workouts that can keep you toned and help you put your new dumbbells to good use:
MAKE YOUTUBE YOUR NEW GYM
There are thousands of exercise videos available online on YouTube. Since so many of us have smart TVs, you can save a number of workouts into playlists to make it easy.
Make sure to gather workout clips that cover the whole body: upper body workouts, lower body, abs, butt, cardio, strength, yoga, balance, flexibility and stretching.
Jane Fonda launched the home video revolution in 1982 with her old “Workout” tapes. Most of these are on YouTube or have been reissued digitally for sale on Amazon.
But we have learned a lot about exercise physiology in 35 years. The high-impact pounding we did to our joints back in the 1980s from challenging aerobics tapes led to a lot of hip and/or knee replacements in the 2000s — including Fonda’s.
So the workout queen filmed a new series of contemporary workout videos about 10 years ago.
For example, there are less strenuous, but still challenging, cardio classes. One of our favorites, “Walking Cardio,” gives you the equivalent of a mile walk that you can do in a small space that works the entire body. Fonda’s 26-minute “Walking Cardio Level 1” and the slightly more advanced “Level 2,” have nearly 4 million combined views on YouTube.
Fonda, who proves 82 is the new 42, also has morning and evening yoga flexibility and mobility workouts, as well as upper and lower body stretches for those who sit at desks all day. She also has dance workouts set to Latin, funk and doo-wop music.
SILVER SNEAKERS
SilverSneakers, the national community fitness program designed for seniors, has added digital resources to help people quarantined, the company said Thursday.
Silver Sneakers’ virtual workout series on Facebook Live offers an OnDemand video library of about
200 workouts of varying intensity levels for beginners and experienced fitness buffs. These include digital classes on circuit training, fall prevention, stress management, nutrition, beginner and intermediate strength and mind and body programs. Also, Tai chi and Latin dance.
There is also a mobile Silver Sneakers GO app where national trainers and FLEX instructors host virtual exercise classes for members.
For more information, go to silversneakers.com.
CHECK YOUR GYM’S APP
Chances are you already downloaded your gym’s app but seldom use most of its features, aside from booking a class.
Now, you have a reason.
24 Hour Fitness’ 24 Go, for instance, is available for Apple and Google Play users and has countless workouts designed by the trainers you may already work out with locally.
Other gyms in South Florida, like Club Pilates, RZone Fitness and Equinox, similarly have “on demand” apps or Facebook posts you can use to mimic the gym atmosphere.
WEBMD WORKOUT
Here is a good workout fitness trainer Ray Khan suggests on WebMD:
A Warm up. “Put on some music that makes you feel like moving, and dance around the living room.”
Walk up and down the steps. (Or around your room if you don’t have stairs.)
A Do dumbbell curls and presses. If you don’t have weights, use water bottles or cans of food.
A Do assisted squats, keeping your back on a fitness ball against the wall, or using the back of the couch for support. (You can also build killer thigh muscles by standing against a wall and squatting down — as if sitting — keeping your knees above your toes.)
Shadow box.
And finally, get up and stand for at least one minute every hour that you’re awake to counter the ills of sitting too much.