When the weather is nice, it’s easy to get out and go for a walk, bike ride, or swim. However, once the temperature drops, outdoor activities lose their appeal. To ensure that your fitness level does not drop during the winter, you must create a fitness regimen that you can implement without leaving your home or apartment.
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BestReviews fitness expert Judd Nesmith joins Gary Gelfand to discuss an exercise program that can keep you in shape throughout the colder months, even if you have limited space in your home or apartment. NeSmith Gelfand walks through a circuit of five exercises that can be done three times in a row with a goal of 12 to 15 repetitions of each exercise. “When you’re done, it’s about 15 to 20 minutes,” Naismith said. “You’ve got a full-body workout, you’re sweating, you’re burning fat, you’re building lean muscle and it’s cold outside—inside you’re really getting fit.”
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Build a mini home gym
While high-end exercise equipment is great, not everyone has room in their budget (or home) for a rowing machine, exercise bike, or treadmill. But that’s not necessarily a deal-breaker when it comes to staying fit all winter long. If you have some open space in your house or apartment, you can buy a few affordable pieces of exercise equipment and build your own home gym.
The importance of ring training
Circuit training is a combination of several exercises that target different parts of your body. When a professional like NeSmith creates a circuit for you, it can help you increase strength and endurance while supporting better heart health and promoting weight loss. Circuit training can also improve your mood, and it’s time efficient.
Balance hamstring curls
Hamstring curls engage your hamstrings and glutes. It strengthens them, which can increase flexibility, improve lower body stability, and strengthen the hip and knee joints. To perform this exercise, lie on your back with your heels resting on a balance ball. Lift your hips and tuck your heels toward your buttocks. Then, push them apart, making sure not to let your hips drop.
body saw
The body saw is an evolution of the plank. Start with your forearms flat on the floor and your toes on the exercise slides. Moving only the upper arms, pull your entire body back and forth in a saw motion, being careful to keep your hips lifted so they don’t drop below your shoulder level. When done correctly, this exercise can strengthen and tone your core, giving you a powerful workout that also engages your glutes and upper back.
Squat resistance band
Use a resistance band with handles to perform the resistance band squat exercise. Place the center of the bar under your feet, and stand upright with your feet hip-width apart. While holding the belt handles with your hands touching your shoulders, bend your knees to perform a squatting motion. Do 12 to 15 squats in a row and you’ll feel the burn.
Alternatively, you can try the band walker, which requires a resistance band. To get started, wrap the band around your ankles and spread your feet to at least shoulder-width apart—the farther apart your feet are, the harder the exercise. Squat slightly on the knees, maintaining an upright position as you walk 10 steps forward and 10 steps back. This exercise strengthens the glutes and hips and can improve posture while reducing hip and back pain.
Perfect gym workout grips
Pushups are an excellent way to build upper body strength (triceps, shoulders, and pectoral muscles). When performed with proper form, they can also engage the core to strengthen the muscles of the lower back and abdomen. Perfect Fitness Pushup Grips allow your arms to be in a more natural position and reduce wrist strain during this exercise. “These grips put your shoulder, wrist, and elbow joints in great shape as you target your chest, triceps, and a lot of your core muscles,” said NeSmith.
Curved rowing with kettlebell
The curved rower engages the bell on the upper body, core, and lower body. It is important to work with an experienced instructor on this exercise to ensure that your form is correct, that you have support and that you are using the proper mechanisms to prevent injury. To get a basic idea of how this exercise works, bend forward at the hips, keeping your back straight with your knees slightly bent. In a controlled manner, pull the kettlebell up toward your chest and lower it.
If you want an alternative exercise that incorporates kettlebells, try squats. The squat is an exercise that focuses primarily on the lower body (quads and gluteals). Performing a deep squat while holding the kettlebell across your chest means that the squat will also engage your core and upper back to keep the kettlebell in place. It is important to work with an experienced trainer like NeSmith when performing this exercise to correct form and mechanics.
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Gaiam Complete Body Balance Ball Set
The anti-burst balance ball can be used with an exercise mat to perform hamstring curls. It is a medium sized ball with a textured surface that can hold up to 300 lbs.
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Rotating exercise handles are ideal for fitness
These pushup handles are specially designed to reduce joint stress and engage more muscles to help sculpt your arms, chest, back, shoulders and abs. Ball bearing system ensures smooth rotation during exercise.
It has been sold before Amazon And Dick’s Sporting Goods
Bowflex SelectTech 840 Kettlebell
Instead of getting six different bells, save space with these. The weight of this kettlebell can be adjusted between 8 and 40 pounds via a dial to accommodate various strength and exercise levels.
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Elite Sports Core Sliders
The two-sided design means you can work out on carpet or hard floors. Each slider measures 7 inches in diameter, making them large enough to fit on your hands or feet but small enough to be portable.
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Whatafit resistance bands set
Five resistance bands, two handles, two ankle straps, a door stop and a storage bag are included in this affordable set. Use one or more bands to achieve a resistance weight range of 10 to 150 pounds.
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Sweet Sweat Mini Resistance Bands – Set of 5
With this set of five bands, you get five different resistance levels that correspond to your approximate weight range: 0 to 5 pounds, 10 to 15 pounds, 15 to 20 pounds, 25 to 30 pounds, and 30 to 40 pounds. A mesh bag is included with purchase, and the set is available in two color versions.
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Gaiam Essentials Thick Fitness and Exercise Mat
The fitness mat keeps you comfortable during exercise and protects the floor from sweat. This rug comes with a carrying strap to make it easy to roll up and transport.
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