We’re still in lockdown, the gyms are shut, the swimming pools are closed, and non-professional sports have been postponed! This narrows the scope of what you can do fitness-wise a little bit, right? We may be in lockdown here in the UK but that doesn’t mean you still can’t get a good workout in! There is a wealth of exercises that you can do for free, it all depends on what you want from your fitness, is it weight-loss, endurance, or strength? Perhaps a mixture!
We’re still in lockdown, the gyms are shut, the swimming pools are closed, and non-professional sports have been postponed! This narrows the scope of what you can do fitness-wise a little bit, right? We may be in lockdown here in the UK but that doesn’t mean you still can’t get a good workout in! There is a wealth of exercises that you can do for free, it all depends on what you want from your fitness, is it weight-loss, endurance, or strength? Perhaps a mixture!
Let’s focus on two types of exercise - aerobic and anaerobic. Aerobic exercises refer to endurance training over longer distances, as it uses oxygen to produce energy, whereas anaerobic exercises are short but intense bursts. Simplified, aerobic builds endurance and stamina, anaerobic builds power and strength, both are important!
Yes, walking - in the outside! This is a moderate-aerobic exercise that absolute benefits the body! Daily walking, particularly a focused brisk walk up and down hilly terrain will increase cardiovascular fitness, help prevent hypertension and high cholesterol as well as your mental health too. Mix things up by taking different routes, increasing your pace, and encouraging yourself to go a bit further. When life returns to normal, it might be worth considering a walking holiday, a great fitness experience that isn’t as fatigue inducing as other forms of exercise.
Running is also a great aerobic exercise for building endurance as well as losing weight. It can be daunting to start, but set yourself achievable goals, you won’t be running 5k from day one, but you will notice improvements in stamina if you persist with it and eat well! Use the same route and time yourself on each run, seeing if you can’t achieve a new personal best or you can mix it up by taking different routes, different terrains. Whether you’re new to running or can’t live without your daily jog, there’s a wealth of apps and fitness tech out there to help you progress. If you’re lucky enough to have a treadmill at home, why not fire up your favourite podcast or playlist and see how many miles you can rack up before it finishes?
Cycling is a fantastic aerobic exercise, that is indeed free for those who already own a bike. Cycling will get the heart rate going whilst also building muscle mass in your legs too – it’s great for all-round fitness! If you are lucky enough to live in or near a rural environment, cycling can offer some beautiful vistas whilst getting your daily burn and offer a much-needed sense of freedom in these trying times. If you’re craving a more scenic and challenging cycling adventure for the future post-COVID, we recommend browsing our range of cycling holidays for the ultimate inspiration!
HIIT stands for ‘High Intensity Interval Training’, this promotes powerful short bursts of exercise between short rests. It is a large umbrella term, here are some popular HIIT exercises and their benefits:
Fartlek - Yes, you read that right, stop sniggering, it’s Swedish. Translating into ‘Speed-Play’ this is a seriously effective and free form of HIIT that requires no equipment, just yourself and some determination! You alternate your speeds on a run, many change their pacing at their leisure, but a great tactic is to use streetlamps. Between one set of lamp posts you may all-out sprint, then walk the next, jog the one after that and repeat. This gives your body breaks in-between such intense cardio which improves speed, grit, and power.
Tabata – This Japanese technique is tough, but extremely effective. It covers anaerobic and aerobic exercise types. Pick an exercise, like push-ups, go all out full force for 20 seconds, with 10 seconds' rest...repeat 8 times. This is perfect if you do not have a lot of time in a day, you can get in a solid workout in a short space of time. A Tabata can be done numerous times in a single session using different exercises that work different parts of the body.
There are many more exercise techniques that fall under the rhetoric of HIIT and even more benefits, check them out here. If you’re missing face-to-face classes as much as we are, why not plan a bootcamp holiday to look forward to in the future?
Whether you’ve always had a squat rack in your garage, or you managed to buy some dumbbells way back in lockdown one, weightlifting is a great free anaerobic exercise you can do at home to promote muscle growth, strength and even weight loss!
Maximise your results by optimising your diet – lots of healthy protein will complement your efforts and keep you energised throughout the day.
You can use a range of equipment at home like dumbbells, kettlebells or TRX bands but if you don’t have any in there are lots of bodyweight exercises you can try. For example, rather than doing a chest press with weights with 3 sets of 10 reps, do push-ups but for a much longer duration – 3 sets of 35 reps as an example. When restrictions lift and you want to surround yourself with best equipment in the most beautiful destinations, it is worth checking out this extensive list of the best luxury gyms in the world.
Whether you want to lose weight, increase your mass or lengthen your endurance we hope these fitness exercises you can do for free at home will benefit you as we eagerly await the reopening of gyms, pools and fitness retreats. Don’t forget that there is a wealth of fitness content out there online, both for free and at reasonable rates. If you’re able to, we’d encourage you to support your local gyms and personal trainers – many of whom will be running online classes and available for tailored fitness advice.
If you’ve got a specific fitness goal in mind and (like us) can’t wait for international travel to resume, we’ve got a fitness programme to suit everyone!
Talk to one of our Travel Specialists on 0203 397 8891 or contact us here to discuss tailor-making your perfect fitness holiday.
Join our mailing list to receive the latest news, offers & £50 off your first holiday.
