Every military spouse knows that they can’t depend on their significant other to get home from work everyday at the same time.
Most bases offer great group fitness classes during the day, but if you have children and you don’t want to pay for childcare then you can’t attend.
For this reason I ventured into the home workout.
Working out at home allows you to get your own exercise routine so that you don’t have to depend on anyone. This works well if you have kids and your husband deploys or is in the field.
Tips on Working out at Home
- Read the label to see what you need– Some videos (like Insanity) require nothing but your body and a good pair of shoes. Others like p90x require a weight set, pull up bar, chairs, or resistance bands. There is nothing worse than trying to start your home workout, and then realizing you don’t have a specific piece of exercise equipment.
- Pick something you like– Go to the library and browse the workout videos. This is great because it is free and you can determine if you are a yoga or Pilates person. You might find that you love kickboxing or you hate dance cardio. If you go on to order the large official stuff, get something that moves you. You can also look on yard sale sites for used workout videos. Unless it has a scratch, this is something you never have to purchase new! Youtube is also great for looking at workout previews. Watch a preview and see if you can keep up with it, or if you like it!
- Find a time and stick to it– A problem with at home workouts is staying motivated and keeping to a schedule. If you usually workout in the morning and you don’t, saying “I’ll do the video after lunch or when gf gets home or after the kids go to sleep” you probably won’t do it!
Get a partner– Working out is always easier with an accountability partner. If you have your partner over everyday at 9 am no matter what, you will be 10x as likely to always do your workout! They also will keep you in line if you decide to slack off. (Which is easy when you don’t have anyone watching you.)- Read reviews– Look on Amazon or major purchase sites with review sections and see what people say. People will tell tips and tricks, things that can annoy you (like really bad music, or instructors giving bad cues) to give you a general heads up. Make sure you don’t always read the reviews straight from the companies website. They want your money after all! Also look out for personal sellers who will give and amazing review, and at the bottom they say that you can purchase an item from them. They may be legit but they want your money too!
- Know what level you are getting into- I can’t stress the importance of this enough. For intense programs like Insanity, P90x or Fire Yoga level 3, the level of intensity really isn’t for a beginner. Don’t feel bad if you have to work your way up. We all have to start somewhere! Read the labels, and if you aren’t sure start with level one! You are at home so no one will see you! It is better to complete an easier workout then not be able to complete a hard workout and injure yourself in the process.
- Set goals- What are you working out for? Do you want to lose 10 lbs? Do you want to tone your waist? Do you just want to get healthy? Write down your goals and keep track. Maybe you have an intense workout set and you want to make it through the week without taking a day off. Set that is your goal!
- Reward yourself- Once you start achieving your goals, reward yourself with little things. A pedicure, a new dress or shoes, or whatever is on your amazon wish list! Remember that having an unhealthy eating day isn’t always the best reward. That food will be out of your system in 24 hours! The shoes will remind you that you kicked butt and made it through 25 days of extreme yoga and finally nailed the headstand.
- Have fun- Zumba home alone is the best ever. Why? Because you can let your inner samba sister wild and free and not have to worry about 30 people wondering why you are so off beat. Having fun while you workout makes it go faster and you get more out of it! A lot of women I know are afraid to go to the gym because they don’t want to be judged. At home you can workout in your sports bra and short shorts and sweat your ponytail out.
So dance like no one is watching because no one is! -Kristina
