Best Home Workout For Your Corona Quarantine

With this pandemic all over the place, people are mandated to stay at home to prevent the virus from spreading. It is contagious after all. And with the quarantine in place, people are searching for things to do in their homes since you can’t go out and all. Schools are closed and work is advised to be done at home. Everything scheduled for the next few days is either canceled or postponed. Essentially, people are unexpectedly given more time than they can handle. So, why not get that dream body of yours while at home? Gyms and fitness centers may be closed off for now, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t get in shape at the comforts of your home. So here are some quarantine workout you can try at home that’ll help you not lose track of your fitness goals during this season:

Push-ups

These exercises build upper-body and core strength. If you do it properly, it will use muscles in the chest, shoulders, triceps, back, abs, and legs. What’s great about push-ups is that you can do it anywhere, and it has many variations that can cater to anyone from beginner to advanced. Here are some you can start doing this workout in your home during the quarantine:

• Knee push-up – get on your knees, then plant your hands shoulder-width apart on the floor in front of you. Making sure that your body is in a straight line from shoulders to knees, lower yourself until chest is an inch above the ground, then press back up.

• Wall push-up – place your hands on a wall and walk feet back as far as comfortable. Ensuring that your elbows are in and your core engaged, keep hands under your shoulders and lower toward the wall. Push off from wall into the starting position and repeat.

• Negative push-up – get into a full plank position, feet hip-width apart and hands in line with chest. Making sure that your core is braced and your body in a straight line, slowly lower to the floor. Push back onto your knees, then repeat.

• Standard push-up – get into plank position, feet hip-width apart and hands in line with your chest. Lower until chest barely brushes the floor, then push back up, keeping your elbows, core braced, and body in a straight line from head to toe.

• Elevated push-up – put hands on an elevated surface and get into push-up position with your body in a straight line. Lower self until chest touches the surface, then press back up.

• Decline push-up – get into push-up position with feet on an elevated surface. Lower chest to the ground, maintaining proper push-up form, then return to starting position and repeat.

• Diamond push-up – get into a push-up position, then place your hands together in a diamond shape under your chest, thumbs touching. Lower slowly, keeping elbows in. Return to starting position and repeat.  

Read more: Vademecum: How to stay safe and prevent COVID-19

Planks

Ah, the plank. You either love it or loathe it, but due to its effects, almost all fitness programs have this in their routine, so let’s include them in ours quarantine workout. This exercise involves the core muscles, thus improving strength, balance, and endurance. Like push-ups, you can do planks almost anywhere, and they have variations as well. Here’ how you do them:

• Knee Plank – lie face down on the ground with your legs together and your arms at your sides. Position your hands beneath your shoulders. Tighten your core and elevate your upper body off the ground, stabilizing yourself with your forearms. Your feet, shins, and knees will remain on the ground. Do not allow your hips to drop down.

• Straight-arm Plank – get on all fours with wrists directly under shoulders, toes on the floor. Step one foot back and then the other as you brace your core and straighten legs. Press the floor away from you with hands, making sure that you form a straight line from your shoulders to heels. Hold for 20 seconds. As you get more comfortable with the move, hold your plank for as long as possible without compromising your form.

• Plank – assume a push-up position. Place forearms on the floor with elbows aligned below shoulders and arms parallel to your body at about shoulder width. If flat palms bother your wrists, clasp your hands together. Hold the position for 20 seconds. As you get more comfortable with the move, hold your plank for as long as possible without compromising your form.

• Side Plank – Lie on your side with one leg stacked on top of the other, then prop your body up on your hand or elbow while keeping feet stacked.

• Single-leg Plank – get into the standard plank position, then lift one leg up as far as you can without compromising your back. Keep hips parallel to the floor, then alternate legs.  Hold the position for 20 seconds. As you get more comfortable with the move, hold your plank for as long as possible without compromising your form.

Bodyweight Squats

Sometimes referred to as the king of all exercises, squats involve your quads, glutes, hamstrings, and even the core. Most fitness programs have squatted in their routine, and while some require barbells and other equipment, bodyweight squats and their variants require only your body, so like the first two mentioned exercises, squats can also be done almost anywhere. Here’s how some type of squat for the quarantine workout:

• Standard Bodyweight Squat – set your feet shoulder-width apart, toes slightly turned out. Pull in your lower abs, and keep eyes forward. Slowly bend at knees and drop your hips to lower your body. Keep your heels flat on the floor. At the bottom of the exercise pause for a moment and strongly push back up to starting position, mirroring the descent. Repeat.     

• Squat and Walk – start with feet hip-width apart, toes pointing forward. Get down into a squat position. Keep your chest up and core braced. Walk four steps forward and four steps back for one rep. maintain a low squat position as you make the steps.

• Plie Squat + Heel Raises – Start with feet shoulder-width apart, toes pointing outward. Squat down, lift your right heel up and down, then your left heel. Then push through the heels to come back up to starting position.

• Squat Kickback – start with feet hip-width apart, toes pointing forward. Do a regular squat, and as you come back up, kick right leg back, as if pushing open a door behind you. Ensure that your core is braced for balance and control. Bring right leg down as you lower back into a squat position. Then do a kickback on the left side.

• Frog Squat – start with feet shoulder-width apart, toes pointing outward. Squat down until your fingertips touch the ground while maintaining a flat back. Then reach arms up overhead and jump up toward the sky. Land with soft knees in a loaded squat position, fingers touching the ground. If your fingertips cannot reach the floor without excessive leaning, don’t go all the way down. Just work within your limits.

• Burpee Squat Hold – start in standing position. Place hands on the ground and jump feet back into a high plank position on your hands. Ensure that your back doesn’t arch when jumping back into a plank position. Then jump feet forward outside hands with toes pointing outward. Stay low in plie squat position and only lift up your upper body. Place hands back down on the ground in between your feet and repeat.

And those are the quarantine workout you can do right at the safety of your own home. Along with discipline, consistency and proper nourishments, you are sure to get results from these exercises. So, if you find yourself without anything to do due to the quarantine, might as well keep yourself not just safe, but fit as well.

For the most up-to-date news and information about the coronavirus pandemic, visit the WHO website.