Exercise is the best thing you can do for your physical and mental health. Exercise will prevent the appearance of chronic diseases and will give you a better quality of life. No matter what fitness level you are at right now, it’s never too late to start and reap the benefits. Just check with your doctor before starting any exercise program in case you have any conditions that need clearance.
If you’re new to exercise, remember to use lighter weights and take it easy for the first few workouts. Try to do 10-15 repetitions of each exercise. Here’s a beginner’s workout you can do in the comfort of your own home:
- Warm-up: March in place to your favorite music for 5 minutes.
- Squats: This functional movement replicates sitting up and down a chair. Bend your knees until you are in a sitting position. Make sure your knees don’t go past your toes. Focus on pressing through your heels as you rise. Feel how the abdominal and thigh muscles work during the exercise.
- Lunges – Place one foot in front of the other in a split stance. Raise your back heel keeping both knees slightly bent. Then lower the back knee towards the floor. Make sure your front knee doesn’t go past your toes. Focus on keeping your spine straight, shoulders over hips. If necessary, keep one hand on a stable surface for balance. Exercise on both legs.
- Easy push-ups: Place your hands on a wall slightly wider than your shoulders. Walk your feet back so that you are leaning against the wall with your heels up. Lower the chest towards the wall and then push it back. Focus on the abs stabilizing your weight trying not to swing your back.
- Biceps curl: You can do it sitting or standing. With light weights, start with your arm down by your side, palms facing forward. Curl the weight up by bending your elbow but keeping your elbow close to your body. Release the weight down with control. Do one arm at a time or both together.
- Triceps Press: With one knee and same side hand on a chair or bench, hold a light weight in the opposite hand and allow the hand to hang down from the shoulder. Your upper body should be articulated forward. Now bend this elbow up until it is at a 90 degree angle to your hand. This is your starting position. Raise your forearm back away from your body, then lower back down to the starting position. Feel the triceps muscle activate as you do this exercise. Do both arms.
- One-Arm Row: With one knee and same-side hand on a bench, hold a heavy weight in the opposite hand and allow it to hang down from your shoulder. Raise your elbow up as if you are lifting it toward your armpit. Focus on activating latissimus muscles (muscles on the side of the back)
- Crunches: Lie on your back with your fingertips placed behind your head and your elbows open and relaxed. Raise your head and chest off the ground with your gaze up. Focus on letting your abs do the work, relaxing your head and neck.
- Stretching: It’s important to stretch after strength training. While still on your back, you can stretch the back of your legs or hamstrings. Lift one leg up and stretch it towards you with your hands or with a tie around the foot. To stretch your shoulders, sit down and stretch one arm across your body, holding it in the opposite hand. Place one palm on your back, elbow up, and with your opposite arm gently press your elbow back to stretch your triceps. Standing close to a wall for balance, hold onto your back foot by pressing your heel toward the back of your leg to stretch your quadriceps. If you cannot reach your foot with your hand, place your foot against a wall and gently lean back against the wall.
If you are a beginner you can do this training 3 to 5 times a week. Start slowly with one set of each exercise and gradually build up to 2-3 sets of repetitions. You should see results very quickly!