Staying Active Indoors! – Stacey Copeland
Staying Active Indoors! – Stacey Copeland
Being physically active is hugely important when it comes to overall wellbeing and so I wanted to share some ideas of things I’ve found useful this week:
1, Routine. If you have set times when you usually train or attend classes, try to workout at these same times. If this isn’t possible then just try to feature exercise in your daily plans.
2, Get outdoors. Since we are allowed to get out and exercise once a day, whether it’s running, walking, cycling, or just being outdoors, make the most of it!
3, Equipment. If you have gym equipment then plan your workouts around it. If not, be creative!
Weights – take a rucksack or gym bag and fill it with heavy items, (tinned food, bottles of water, washing powder etc.) You can then use this as a weight for upper body and lower body weighted exercises (squats, chest press, shoulder press, side bends, lunges etc)
Chairs – great for tricep dips, hamstring bridges, or decline press ups)
Tinned cans – punch outs with a tin can in each hand can add a little weight instead of dumb bells
Stairs – you can run/walk up and down them or use the bottom step like an aerobic step (class demos of routines are available on line)
4, Online sessions – I have been hosting free online fitness sessions via Zoom for those who usually attend our boxing fitness sessions, but also for anyone wanting to join in. There are lots of people offering free live stream sessions which you can join in, but if the times don’t suit you then there are tons of online sessions on YouTube and other sites that you can follow at home.
5, Motivation. If you attend group classes, have a running partner or a race to prepare for then being indoors without these usual factors can make it difficult to remain on track, so to stay motivated:
Goals – keep setting goals (daily/weekly/overall) but adapt them to your new circumstances
Inspiration – watch your favourite sporting moments to spark some inspiration!
Diary – keep a training diary either online or in a notebook, this helps you track your progress
Variety – change your exercise each day and maybe use the time to try something new, me & my boyfriend Tim have created our own ‘Corona Cup’ where we have different challenges such as bat & ball, badminton, frisby and other fun games to keep us active (I’m top of the league table so far! Ha)
Mind – we focus a lot of time on developing our physical qualities in sport, this is a good time to work on the mental aspects of sport, especially if you are a competitive runner/athlete. There are lots of books, podcasts, videos and articles which you could use to develop this.
Connection – stay connected with your running group, gym members, coaches, or others who are exercising from home, this way you can stay in touch and know that you aren’t alone!
Music – if you are lacking motivation then stick on the music you love to train to, turn it up and it’ll get you going!
6, Fun! It’s really important with all that is going on, to try and include some fun elements in your workout. At home I’ve been shadow boxing & using my spin bike for cardio, and Tim has been holding the pads for me (he is basically doing a crash course in boxing coaching!) But we are also trying new things together – AcroYoga for example (to varying degrees of success, ha!) And at the end of our Zoom online sessions we have finished with a fun song,…so far we’ve done a barn dance to Cotton Eyed Joe and high intensity drumming to the ‘bongo song!’ It’s just for fun but is great for overall wellbeing and it’s something everyone can join in.
Stay in touch, stay positive, we really are all in this together, sending lots of love and everyone at Running Bee is here for you and looking forward to seeing you as at the events as soon as we can!