With gyms remaining closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become more important than ever to maintain your fitness at home by doing at least two-and-a-half hours of exercise per week minimum.
‘For those who may be sitting much more, most notably because they have “lost” the activity around their daily commute, it is even more important to be physically active,’ Wendy Brown from the University of Queensland’s School of Human Movement Studies, said.
Sydney-based fitness instructor and former NRL player Ben Lucas agrees, saying the ‘main thing is to keep moving your body’ and to also try alternative workouts in order to prevent losing your fitness and impacting your overall health.
Sydney-based fitness instructor and former NRL player Ben Lucas (pictured) said the ‘main thing is to keep moving your body’, and now is the time to be trying alternate workouts you haven’t tried previously
Exercise at least 2 to 3 hours per week
According to Australia’s national exercise guidelines, people aged 18 to 64 should exercise for a minimum of two and a half hours per week in order to maintain health and wellbeing.
This physical exercise can be of a moderate intensity, or alternatively a minimum of one and a half hours of intense fitness can be completed.
In addition to this, the guidelines also suggest doing muscle strengthening activities at least two days each week to improve or maintain bodily strength.
‘At the moment a lot of people are trying so many different workouts – men are trying pilates and more women are using weights because this has given people the chance to explore different workouts they haven’t done before,’ Ben told FEMAIL
Do more than a run around the block
Ben supported the national exercise guidelines recommendation regarding muscle training and urged others not to forget about strength workouts in addition to cardio.
‘At the moment a lot of people are trying so many different workouts – men are trying pilates and more women are using weights because this has given people the chance to explore different workouts they haven’t done before,’ Ben told FEMAIL.
Similarly to cardio, muscle training can be completed as often as desired depending on your fitness level.
In addition to exercising, Melbourne coach and nurse, Sharelle Grant, said it’s essential eat more protein to improve immunity.
‘So many people at the moment are in the same situation – they’re wondering how they’re going to progress or simply maintain their fitness,’ Sharelle said.
‘But right now it’s not so much about the physical development, but more so about ensuring you continue your performance, move your body, eat well and keep track of your mental health too.’
In addition to exercising, Melbourne personal coach and nurse, Sharelle Grant (pictured), said it’s essential eat more protein to improve immunity
‘So many people at the moment are in the same situation – they’re wondering how they’re going to progress or simply maintain their fitness,’ Sharelle said
Set a new workout routine to commit to
Ben said ‘commitment is the secret’ when it comes to maintaining fitness and it’s essential to establish a routine early on to decipher what you’re doing to stick to each day.
‘There’s so many online fitness challenges going around at the moment to keep people motivated – such as committing to 50 squats a day for 20 days,’ he said.
‘You really want to create a time, place and workout routine to stick to in order to maintain a consistency of daily exercises. You and a friend can even workout together via Zoom.’
He explained how as a result of exercising less, more people are finding it difficult to sleep at night, which can lead to health difficulties.
Ben has also started conducting online personal training sessions with his clients to ensure they maintain their fitness.
As well as exercising regularly, Sharelle explained it’s important to discover what workouts or forms of training work best for you.
‘Don’t follow any online workout just because it looks cool, but instead discover the reason why you’re working out and what you want to achieve,’ she said.
‘Don’t follow any online workout just because it looks cool, but instead discover the reason why you’re working out and what you want to achieve,’ Sharelle said
Avoid buying expensive gym equipment
While creating a home gym may sound tempting, Ben strongly suggested avoiding spending money on expensive equipment and purchase cheaper alternatives instead.
‘There’s no point buying a treadmill because you’re not going to use it in a few months time when this is all over,’ he said.
‘Instead buy a skipping rope or other low-priced items that will increase your heart rate.’
Dumbbells, kettle bells and resistance bands are other inexpensive fitness items that can be used in range of excellent workouts.
Sharelle added: ‘I think no one should ever underestimate how good a basic home workout can be with a few resistance bands and dumbbells.’
By putting music on, training in the morning instead of the afternoon and taking time each day to workout – just as you would by going to the gym – is a great way to establish an alternative fitness regime.