The provisions that the governments of the various countries are adopting to stem the health risk to which we are unfortunately inevitably all exposed are clear: one must remain at home and limit the places of aggregation as much as possible. The only attitude to adopt, therefore, is not that of giving bad and useless examples that push to panic, to flee and to indifference but to follow the rules without acting unconsciously endangering our health and that of others…there is need to despair? Absolutely not, just a little creativity and even staying at home won’t be so bad! If you run out of creativity, however, we at The Blonde Salad have decided to help you with: THINGS TO DO AT HOME. Let’s start from what is causing more disagreements among young people: closed gyms (no, closed discos are not considered a drama to us).
The workout is an activity that, although it is beautiful to do outdoors or in the gym, can also be performed daily in the living room of our home. You will need some essential elements: 1 yoga mat (or gym), 1 super cool sports suit (let’s joke up) and if you have them but not necessarily, 1 kettlebell or elastic bands. The daily workout mainly affects 3 parts of the body: arms and chest, abs and legs and buttocks. We have thought of 5 standard exercises to be performed safely at home, without renouncing the benefits of the classic gym workout. PS. Always start and end your workout with stretching!
ARMS: Pushups on the knees
This is the most classic of exercises for firming the arm muscles. Its more classic version would like it with the legs stretched out, but to avoid too much fatigue in those who are not super prepared, we recommend this version on the knees, lighter but effective. How is it done? Prone, with outstretched arms and open hands at chest height. Your knees are resting on the ground with your feet raised. Bend your arms until your chest is almost in contact with the floor, then go up and repeat. 10 reps X 4 times. TIPS: Do not bend your back if you don’t want to hurt yourself, head, shoulders, and hips must always be on the same line; also the neck should not be strained too much, to avoid it fix a point on the floor.
ABS: Traditional and oblique crunches
Traditional Crunches: Lie on the floor with your knees flexed so that both feet are resting on the floor with the plant. The lower limbs must remain motionless, the arms are only resting behind the head with the shoulders that do not touch the floor. Close the abdomen and lift the upper back from the support surface, while the lower part always remains in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. In this case too, do not apply strength with the neck but only and exclusively with the abdomen. 20 reps X 4 times.
Oblique Crunch: Lie on your back, bending your legs back on the left side and placing your hands behind the back of your neck. Keep your shoulders parallel to the floor and contracting the abdominal muscles, lift them from the support surface, exhaling and bringing the chest towards the pelvis. Hold the position for 1 or 2 seconds and return to the initial position. Start on the right side and alternate the sides 20 times. Repeat the complete exercise 4 times.
SQUAT / LUNGES
We come to the buttocks! Two fundamental exercises to tone them are squats and lunges; if you are a fan of cardio training try to replace them with Mountain climbers, Jumping Jack or Jump Squat as in this video
Otherwise, try:
SQUAT: It starts with standing, shoulders, pelvis, and ankle aligned on the same axis, in an upright position. Through the simultaneous flexion of the hip, knee, and ankle, the lunge position is reached, keeping the buttocks well contracted and outward. 20 reps X 4 times. If you have a kettlebell or weight, hold them during squats.
LUNGES:
Again if you have a kettlebell or weights, grab them otherwise proceed without. Take a step forward with your right foot and concentrate on the left leg, you will have to bend it down to form a right angle. Stop a few centimeters before touching the floor with your knee, your right leg will flex accordingly. Repeat the exercise 15 times per leg.
In case you needed more motivation, watch this: