As a personal trainer, my home gym is filled with a host of exercise equipment that makes it easier for me to train myself, as well as train my clients. However, my clients are not professional trainers, and most don’t have the capability or even space to do what I do from the comfort of my garage-turned-gym. And that’s OK, really, really, really, OK. Most people, when they are getting into a fitness routine freak out over the right kind of equipment, the perfect gym, or exercising EVERY SINGLE DAY. That can be daunting, I’m already tired just from having to write that. I recognize that these considerations can lead you to give up on working out, and that just breaks my heart, because it doesn’t have to be this way. The three main reasons why people don’t exercise are motivation, affordability, and time. This post is dedicated to addressing these reasons so you can continue your fitness journey, whether you are on a budget, only have 20 minutes, or just don’t want to/can’t go to the gym (introverts unite!). Home workouts are the bread and butter of how many people around the country, and many parts of the world, are finding creative ways to embrace self-care and wellness, now more than ever. Taking care of your body doesn’t have to be a luxury in your life.

“I recognize that these considerations can lead you to giving up on working out, and that just breaks my heart, because it doesn’t have to be this way. The three main reasons why people don’t exercise are motivation, affordability, and time.”

Let’s start with affordability

You don’t need to afford a fancy gym membership or even be signed up for an online workout program to enjoy the benefits of exercise. You also don’t need a lot of room or access to hiking and biking trails (although these are helpful) to engage with an exercise routine. If you have a door frame, a 5-6ft radius of space around you (or more), and some basic exercise equipment, you are set to go. Here is a breakdown of key exercise equipment for your home workout – together, this suggested bundle should start you at $200 or less (which is still cheaper than an annual membership to a gym, and dare I say more effective).

1. Bands come in all different sizes and tension options. The Draper’s Strength Heavy Duty Pull Up Assist and Powerlifting Stretch Bands are my favorite, they come in single-band options, ranging from $7.79 to $35.99 depending on the resistance. You don’t need all of them right away, I would suggest the yellow, red, and black ones if you are just starting out, and they come with a free e-workout guide for some fun ideas. Also, the Fit Simplify Resistance Loop Exercise Bands are a great addition to the longer infinity bands, as they will add even more versatility to your home workouts. These little guys come in a set of 5 for $9.95 and I L-O-V-E them. Bands and I have a history together ( don’t tell my husband), and the reason they are one of my go-to pieces of equipment (even with a garage full of gym equipment) is that they can do it all – stretching, physical therapy, strength training and pull-ups assistance, all while being super easy and small enough to store even in that New York 500 square foot apartment. Speaking of pull-ups….
2. When you don’t have a lot of room, but have a doorframe, the ProsourceFit Multi-Grip Chin-Up/Pull-Up Bar can be one sexy piece of….equipment. There isn’t much to say here except, upper body strength is important, and if you want to get a fuller body workout that addresses multiple muscle groups, the multi-grip feature is key in a pull-up bar. What makes the doorframe bar I’m recommending additionally “extra” is that it offers the capacity for a full-body workout when flipped and put on the floor by assisting in leg raises and oblique curls. Talk about sexy! Pull-up bars range drastically between $25 and $100+ so it all depends on your budget, and buying used is an option here.
3. If you don’t want to invest in the pull-up bar, consider an Ab Roller. The Fitnessery brand ab roller costs $16.95 and can be one of the most important tools in your core workout arsenal, because let’s face it, sometimes doing 20+ crunches doesn’t quite feel ideal, and your dog keeps jumping on your back every time you attempt to hold a plank. I highly recommend a knee mat for this type of equipment because the point of any additional equipment for your home workouts is to make workouts more enjoyable (motivating).
4. Core, core, core. Yep, the core continues to be an important component of your balance, form, and injury prevention. Hence the stability ball. There are so many different options out there, I won’t even recommend one but two things to keep in mind 1) you want a stability ball that is durable, easy to set up and is anti-slip, and 2) get the size that works best for you, too small or too large of sizes defeat the point of a solid core workout. A high-quality stability ball will range between $15 to $50 depending on size and brand.
5. TRX – so many different options….oooooh, options. If you’re willing to spend the money, I highly recommend a suspension trainer system. If you need to modify your workouts as a result of injury or rehab work, then these can be a great option to get you back up and running. They also increase (AND decrease) gravitational pull, as well as offer a full body range of workouts from your chin to your toes. Versatility is always a plus, ya know? However, a good bundle can set you back $100 or more, but again, well worth it if you are working through an injury or require modification… or are looking for some badass ways to consistently change up your workouts.

Time is relative

You can get overwhelmed by the need to work out for hours each day, OR you can consider that 20 minutes a day is an effective way to boost brain power, reduce stress, see results, and receive a host of health benefits.  The American College of Sports Medicine has done a lot of research on how much time you need to spend working out, and they have discovered that the key to benefiting from shorter workouts is an increase in intensity. This means that you should be putting in the maximum amount of effort for at least 30 seconds before taking the same amount of rest time (tempo changes anyone? more to come on that in future posts). Also, to accomplish a complete and total body workout at home you should have movements that include a push, pull, crunch, squat, and hinge (at your hip, not the doorframe), a solid warm-up, and cool down… remembering to keep your long-held static stretches for your cool down.

There are some caveats here, expectation control is a must. If you exercise 20 minutes a day and then complain to me that your abs just don’t look like Zac Efron’s during his Baywatch days, or that the half-marathon you tried to run last weekend was a bust… to this I say that building endurance, losing weight, or getting 6-pack abs require a few longer workout sessions per week. But also, you don’t need a 6-pack nor do your need to run a half-marathon to be fit, well, and happy. There are many reasons to exercise, and I don’t like to only focus on how good it can make you look – because your fitness journey requires more than just equipment and time, it requires a healthy mindset and lifestyle too. The time you spend on working out is all relative to what you want to get out of it.

Are you still here? And other questions about Motivation…

As my first blog post so adequately conveyed, motivation is an important catalyst- Yes, I said catalyst. By catalyst, I mean that it fosters self-discipline, which is what really gets shit done in the gym AND the kitchen. One thing I have found in my own personal workouts, as well as clients, is variety is crucial for workout sanity and enjoyment. If you follow me on Instagram you know I definitely have fun when I work out. I also make a point to have fun with clients while training them because fun makes motivating yourself that much easier. We tend to have fun when we are not doing repetitive exercises that we learned back in high school.

Start making it a practice of changing things up. For instance, you can do the same 10 exercises, but change them up in various ways; do an AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) of 5 sets/5 reps for 25 mins; 10X10s- 10 sets x 10 reps; or do a fairly basic rep scheme- 3 sets of 15-20 reps. One of my favorite ways to change up a stale workout is by adjusting tempo. Tempo is the rhythm that you move your body and/or weight through ROM (range of motion), and includes all three contractions taking place within the muscle- eccentric (lengthening phase), isometric (no change in length, or the mid-point of your rep) and concentric (the shortening phase). It can also include explosive lifts, but power exercises must be earned so don’t go throwing yourself into plyometrics because you think that’s the fastest or the best way to get your ass in shape.  Slower tempo creates muscle tension in an isolated muscle group that helps you build muscle and strength, i.e. “time under tension”. See, variety gives you options, and who doesn’t love options.

Also, lean in closer, closer….ok, here is a secret that I only share with my clients…..you don’t need anything other than your body to start a fitness routine. Yep, it sounds simple, but a lot of people forget that their own body is one of the best exercise equipment options they have. Bodyweight training is still effective at losing weight, building muscle, gaining endurance, and getting a rock-solid core, but it is also easy on your wallet; it doesn’t take up a lot of space and offers you a range of freedom in exploring what is possible. Your home workout routine is going to be as unique as you are, and it should be something that you can do, in whatever environment you are in. Keep your body guessing, and challenging it enough, that’s really all it takes to develop a successful home workout routine. If you need additional ideas, shoot a comment below, tell me a little about your current workout environment, and I’ll send you an idea or two to get you started.