5 Things You Need for Home Fitness

In truth, you don’t need a single piece of equipment for a home workout. Your own body weight can provide you with resistance training and cardio that will give you a tight and shapely body. If you need more intensity or motivation, try these 5 things to help you workout at home and skip the gym:

1. Dumbbells – If you live in a small house or apartment you probably don’t have room for a huge piece of workout equipment. You really don’t need it anyway. Did you know that free weights are better for resistance training and weight lifting than weight machines? It’s because they require you to stabilize your own body instead of the machine doing it for you. Therefore, you work your core muscles in addition to the rest of the muscles. Dumbbells also give you a wider range of motion making it beneficial for more muscles in the body. Use them for push ups for extra intensity, ab roll outs, renegade and upright rows, deadlifts, lat pulls and more. They are highly versatile and easy to store when you’re finished.
2. Stability Ball – This piece of equipment is great because it’s easy to deflate and inflate with ease, and stores in the coat closet unlike an unforgiving weight bench. You can use it for chest presses, flyes, lat pulls, rows and just about any exercise. It acts as an unstable weight bench requiring core stabilization so you are getting a better abdominal workout in addition to working arms, back, chest, etc.
3. Workout DVD’s – DVD’s can motivate you to work harder and longer. They can also provide you with the best and right ways to lift weights, perform squats, etc. without injury. If you are performing exercises incorrectly, chances are you aren’t getting the maximum benefit from your workout. At the very least you should watch videos on youtube or some other Internet channel for ideas and performance knowledge.
4. Resistance Bands – Pully machines at the gym are helpful in building muscles and burning calories. Resistance bands work in the same way. They are cheap and easy to put away when you’re done. Use them for Pilates workouts to tone all the muscles of the body.
5. The Right Shoes – Okay, so shoes really are a necessity. They are the one and only necessity for working out at home or anywhere for that matter. Invest in them. Don’t pick them for price, alone. You’ll end up back in the store in a month when your arches are on fire or your calves ache. Find the right fit for you based on width of your foot, and the angle of your arches.

Train at home as easily as at the gym. You need nothing to start an exercise program. Squats and jump squats, jumping rope, running stairs, running in place, and lunges are perfect options for lower body without any equipment at all. Push ups work all the muscles in the upper body, even the abs. Money is never a good excuse for not exercising. Get started today!