Darrick Robles As the new year approaches, many make it their goal to become more physically active. With good reason: Sport helps us to cope with stress and has long-term positive effects on our health. Unfortunately, many sporting New Year’s resolutions fail because they are too ambitious and linked to high expectations. We reveal how you can get started with your home workout and stay on the ball beyond January.
1. Find the right motivation
Exercise is one of the best things you can do for your health. It can ensure a healthy metabolism, strengthen your muscles and thus help you to achieve and maintain a healthy body weight. Studies show that regular exercise can strengthen your immune system in the long term and reduce the risk of chronic diseases. In addition, exercise helps reduce stress , manage anxiety and sleep better.
2. Set achievable goals
As you can see, physical activity has many benefits for your physical and mental health. Whether it’s weight loss, stress reduction or general well-being: You will achieve the best effects if you train regularly and over the long term. That’s why you should find a form of exercise that fits into your everyday life and doesn’t cost you too much energy – too much exercise can be counterproductive.
Which training method suits you?
- Aerobic training: These are long, moderate-intensity exercise sessions (like running or swimming). Dancing and aerobics are suitable for home workouts .
- Strength training: If you want to build muscle mass, weight training is recommended. But you can also use your body weight to train your muscles, for example with push-ups or squats .
- High-intensity interval training: Short, strenuous exercises alternate with light exercises or rest periods. Here are examples of everyday HIIT exercises .
- Balance and stability training: These exercises can strengthen your muscles and improve your posture. Examples include Pilates and Tai Chi .
- Flexibility training: These mostly gentle exercises improve your mobility and can prevent muscle soreness . These include yoga and stretching exercises . They can be combined well with strength exercises and other intensive training methods.
3. Check fitness level and health
If you haven’t exercised in a long time, you should seek medical advice before starting your training. Your doctor can check your physical condition and derive which training methods are suitable for you – and which exercises could be more likely to pose a risk of injury. The doctor’s consultation can help you to create your individual training plan.
4. Start and keep going
The gym is closed and it’s too rainy to jog outside? From now on, these excuses no longer apply: Your training plan for at home makes you independent of lockdown and weather. You can start at any time!
The beginning is usually not that difficult – the real challenge is to keep the training going over the long term. You can do this by making it a fixed routine. Set yourself fixed training times that you can stick to: For example, 30 minutes in the morning after getting up or 30 minutes after work. Afterwards, reward yourself with a fresh smoothie, a healthy breakfast, or a delicious dinner that won’t be too heavy on your stomach.
5. Don’t overdo it
WHO recommends adults aged 18-64
- at least 150-300 minutes of light exercise per week,
- at least 75-150 minutes of vigorous exercise per week or
- a combination of both.
For example, 150 minutes come together if you train 30 minutes from Monday to Friday. Alternatively, you can train for about 40 minutes every other day.
Please note that too many and/or too intensive training sessions can damage your health. Excessive exercise can cause stress, weaken your immune system and lead to chronic fatigue . Pregnant women, the elderly or people with chronic illnesses in particular should seek medical advice before starting training.
