No Gym Needed
Choosing whether to exercise at home or a the gym has to do with a few decisions. Do you live close enough to the nearest workout facility or do you have the time for an hour-long workout including commute? Are you motivated enough to exercise at home and be consistent with your daily routine?
Going to the gym worked better for me during a time when I was not so motivated and seeing other people doing the thing pushed me to do it myself. What type of person are you?
For most of my adult life, working out has been a mixture of exercising at home or the gym. At some point, I used both.
Sometimes you want a quick pump ( that’s what the kids nowadays call it) and you only have 30 minutes to spare, what do you do? That’s where bodyweight circuit training comes into play, especially in the confines of your living room.
Bodyweight circuit training offers a fantastic way to get the most out of your living room space. This is called Calisthenics and it uses your own body weight for resistance, eliminating the need for bulky equipment, and the best thing of all you can do it at home.
The freedom of this type of exercise allows you to get active anytime, anywhere, and speaking from the point of view of a parent, flexibility is a necessity in parenting. You can elevate your heart rate and target a few muscle groups before the kids get up for school.
The equipment needed is a mat and your body weight.
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The Benefits of Bodyweight Circuit Training
Bodyweight circuit training offers a a lot of advantages, for dads looking to stay fit without elaborate gym setups. Let’s talk about this form of exercise and why I recommend it so much.
Why it is so Time Efficient and Convenient
As a stay-at-home dad, we have to find time to do everything, almost having to schedule our days or set timers to not forget. This circuit training is time-efficient and convenient all in one.
For example, my day starts off with a quick prayer with my boys, breakfast and gathering the lunches for school and off we go. Returning home, it’s exercise time for about 45 minutes to an hour, shower then to work. You cannot get more streamlined than that surely.
All it takes are those forty-five minutes for stretching or a slow jog to get the body warmed up including a full session. That is enough time to elevate your heart rate and build some strength while building muscle.
Picture this, 10-minute HIIT sessions or a series of bodyweight squats, push-ups, and planks during your lunch. I would only recommend it if you have a loose work environment or work from home like I do.
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What Does it Cost
Calisthenics not only saves you time but also money. No need to shell out money for gym memberships or expensive gym equipment that takes up a whole lot of space in your home. Utilizing your body weight only requires minimum space and a yoga mat for added comfort during floor exercises.
It is also good to invest in some resistant bands with different tensions, for a variety of training without breaking the bank.
Designing Your Living Room Workout Space
First things first, wherever you decide your makeshift gym will be, it needs to be conducive to movement and motivation.
No Clutter, No Furniture
When I say no furniture, I mean relocation not getting rid of your furniture, that would be silly. Now, to kickstart your home workout transformation, decluttering and rearranging furniture is the only way. There is no worse feeling than subconsciously feeling you will hit something especially when you’re fatigued and in the middle of a set.
In other words, by removing distractions and creating a dedicated workout zone, you set the stage for focused and effective training sessions.
Does Choosing the Right Flooring and Lighting Matter?
The importance of the floor and lighting cannot be stated enough, Let’s begin with the floor:
1. Injury Prevention
It’s easy to overlook injuries due to its rarity but we appreciate not getting it during a workout. The right shock absorption is essential, especially for high-impact activities like running, jumping, or weight training. A supportive floor will absorb most of the shock on the joints, and help to prevent shin splints, knee and back problems.
2. Better Performance
Certain flooring like sprung flooring or rubberized flooring provides more traction and a softer bounce allowing for a harder more confident workout. This confidence will allow your form to be more natural, which we know is important to target certain muscles, without compromising stability.
3. Noise Reduction
A noise-dampening floor helps for more peaceful workout sessions. No one has to hear you working out or having to inconvenience yourself because of the noise you make. If you’ve ever worked out in a noisy environment, you know how distracting and demotivating it can be.
4. Durability and Low Maintenance
If you plan to exercise very often, having a floor that is easy to clean and maintain would be a good choice.
5. Aesthetic Appeal
While functionality is paramount, the aesthetic appeal of your workout space shouldn’t be overlooked. The right flooring can create a more welcoming feeling. You might prefer a sleek, modern look or a more natural, earthy vibe, there are various flooring styles available for your needs.
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Are you looking to join a community of like-minded dads who share your passion for everything about fatherhood? Look no further! Join our free Facebook group Stay-at-home Dads Club
…and Lighting
1. Enhanced Safety
Unlike most, I do enjoy a low-lit area during my 5 am exercise sessions, but a well-lit area is recommended. Without being too obvious it helps with proper visual acuity during exercise. It allows you to see what you are doing, the weights you might need, the movements you make and overall prevention of accidents.
2. Improved Motivation and Energy Levels
The right lighting is proven to heighten energy levels, that’s right. Bright, warm lighting has been shown to increase how alert you are and stimulate the production of serotonin, a chemical reaction that helps with mood regulation and feelings of well-being.
This natural dose of ” the feel good” can help you stay motivated and energized leading to better performance and better routine.
3. Circadian Rhythm Regulation
Good lighting helps our body on an even deeper level. Our body has a sleep-wake cycle and the effects of the light causes the body to feel more awake during exercise. On the opposite side, dimming the lights at night produces melatonin which helps with better sleep and overall body recovery.
4. Aesthetic Appeal and Enjoyment
To make a long story short, it looks better and is more appealing.
When designing your workout space, think more functionality over looks, less furniture more space. Lighting is good for energy boost and safety.
Creating a Bodyweight Circuit Routine
When creating a workout routine, keep in mind our body needs time to heal, especially after a grueling session. Schedule your exercises accordingly and try to activate every set of muscles at least twice a week for maximum efficiency.
Best Exercises for a Full-Body Workout
This is only a recommendation, but when undertaking a full-body exercise regime, targeting big and small muscle groups for a comprehensive full-body workout. Here are some bodyweight exercises you can do. There are also variations of each of these exercises but we will start with the basics.
- Push-Ups: A classic exercise for strengthening the chest, shoulders, and arms. For the novice, start with knee push-ups and gradually progress to standard push-ups.
- Bodyweight Squats: Ideal for working out the lower body, including the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. Beginners can reduce their range of motion or hold onto a wall or stable surface for support.
- Plank: Great for activating the core muscles. Too difficult, start off plank exercises on their knees instead of the toes to build core strength gradually.
- Mountain Climbers: Rasies your heart rate and engage the core, shoulders, and legs. Beginners can perform mountain climbers at a slower pace to focus on form.
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How to Structure Circuit Training Sessions
Circuit training or supersets can be very with or without weights, pace yourself accordingly:
- Exercise Circuit: Choose 5-8 exercises and perform each one after the other with minimal rest in between.
- Timing Intervals: Aim for 30-60 seconds per exercise, followed by a 15-second rest period before moving to the next exercise.
- Rest Periods: After completing one full circuit, rest for 1-2 minutes before starting the next round to allow for recovery.
Pace yourself to your fitness level, you don’t want to overdo it. Doing too much too fast can cause injuries due to fatigue. Customize your workout with a mixture of difficult and easy exercises to get an idea of how it feels. Along with your daily exercise regime practice healthy eating with plenty of protein and vegetables.
Drink lots of water.
Maximizing Results and Staying Motivated
The question I get the most is, how do I stay motivated with everything that has to be done? Well if you know the importance and why you do it, it’ll be a bit more easy. Some individuals do enjoy the workout session while others do it to maintain or lose weight they have.
Discipline is continually doing something long after it is no longer fun or exciting. Remember, in all these little aspects of life, the eyes of our little ones are on us
Setting Goals and Tracking Progress
When starting your journey it’s imperative to set goals you can achieve or that would push you to your best. By aiming to increase the number of push-ups or improve your plank duration.
Track your progress by taking advantage of all the technology we have at your fingertips. Consider using fitness tracking apps like MyFitnessPal or Fitbit to monitor your improvements.
Compete with yourself with elements of friendly competition and gamification by turning your fitness journey into a challenge.
Push yourself to surpass your previous records, pushing your limits to achieve quicker completion times in your circuit routine for home workouts. Embrace the thrill of self-improvement and let the thrill of outdoing your previous performances fuel your motivation during each sweat-inducing session.
Incorporating Variety and Challenging Yourself
To keep your workouts engaging and avoid boredom, introduce new exercises or increase the difficulty level to keep the fun element. Including challenging variations like mountain climbers, burpees, or squat jumps will prevent that feeling of not having a good workout during your training sessions.
A list of variations for big and small muscle groups to keep the intensity high:
- Squats
- Lunges (forward or reverse)
- Push-ups
- Pull-ups or Chin-ups
- Deadlifts
- Burpees
- Plank
- Russian Twists
- Dumbbell Rows
- Bench Press
- Shoulder Press
- Leg Press
- Bicycle Crunches
- Mountain Climbers
- Dips
- Jumping Jacks
- Romanian Deadlifts
- Bicep Curls
- Tricep Dips
- Calf Raises
Remember, staying motivated is a journey.
Do You Want Long-Term Results
If you want long-term results, you need to do what it takes to get those results. It would be best if you got up every day with a mindset of getting better today consistently. Some days we all have that blasé feel, there is nothing wrong with decreasing the intensity and going easy.
Call it a partial rest day but remember, small steps taken consistently over time can lead to changes you can see and feel.
