The effect of Covid-19 has been devastating across the globe.
As a result, people are encouraged to stay at home and avoid prolonged periods in public spaces. The cabin fever effect of sustained time indoors has effected a nation of people suffering from mental health concerns including anxiety and depression.
Since the lack of control imposed on our lives is seen as a contributing factor to mental well-being, it’s worth taking responsibility towards the smaller things in life as a way of counteracting the negative effects self-isolation.
Personal trainer and columnist Dino Tomassetti Jr offers a very simple solution to those feeling frustrated and in relative fitness to follow the activity.
Consider the following steps for a way to encourage some fitness and endorphins into your lockdown after some gentle warm up stretches.
Skipping
Skipping is one of the best Cardiovascular exercises you can do with 30% more efficiency than running. The rope is affordable and the activity requires a little space for a full revolutionary swing. The impact on leg joints is minimal compared to running and you have no fear of running into someone in a park, inhaling potentially infectious droplets of breathe. Think of skipping as setting a force field around you that no one can penetrate.
Set a 30 min playlist or select a mixed set and regulate your patterns to the track change.
keep hands loose and set at the waist line and rotate around the wrists to ensure you don’t shorten the rope on the return swing. Maintain this for the duration of your first track.
Push Ups
Push ups are a great way of using your own body weight to maintain your strength to weight ratio. When combined with CV work, it’s a simple and effective way of keeping your upper body toned and strong.
Take a moment to breathe and set yourself into standard push up position. Keep your back straight and resting your body weight onto the palms of your hand at shoulder width and your feet close together.
The secret to a good push up is oxygen. Regulate your breathe by inhaling on one complete push up and breathe out on the second. This rhythm will support your exercise and maintain sufficient oxygen to your muscles.
Squats
Often forgotten in work outs are the leg muscles. Considering these are the literal supporting features of your mobility its worth taking some time to stretch and exert the lower body.
Beginning with own body weight, set feet shoulder width apart and maintain a straight spine so that the lower back moves directly to the ground in a straight line. Dip as low as you can so your buttocks touch your calf muscles and rise to your standing position in one fluid motion.
Add additional arm movements so that on the dip, your arms arch over your shoulders to touch your head.
Regulate your breathe again to maintain sufficient oxygen supply to your muscles and to maintain fluid motion.
Initially using one’s bodyweight, after 2 weeks, wear a backpack with the equivalence of 3 bags of sugar inside. This will gradually introduce a little more resistance to the movement but not so much you cannot maintain your routine.
This routine should be repeated in 3 cycles inside a 30-minute session and can be applied 3 times a week in a secluded spot. The time efficiency and sense of achievement alone is something to be proud about.
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