THIS ONE’S FOR ALL MY FELLOW HOMEBODIES OUT THERE, THE BUSY MOMS READING THIS, AND THOSE THAT WOULD RATHER NOT WORKOUT IN A GYM SETTING. TODAY I’M SHARING MY FAVORITE HOME WORKOUT HACKS. TURNS OUT, YOU DON’T NEED A LOT OF FANCY (OR EXPENSIVE) WORKOUT EQUIPMENT TO GET A GOOD WORKOUT IN.

WE WILL START WITH MY FAVORITE PIECES OF EQUIPMENT. I RECOMMEND HAVING MINI GLUE BANDS ON HAND, LONGER RESISTANCE BANDS, SOME LIGHT DUMBBELLS, A YOGA BLOCK, A YOGA MAT, AND FURNITURE SLIDERS. MY FAVORITES ARE LINKED ABOVE, BUT YOU CAN ALSO FIND THESE ITEMS AT FIVE BELOW. 

IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR ADDED RESISTANCE WITH MINIMAL COST OR SPACE, RESISTANCE BANDS (LONG BANDS OR LOOP BANDS) ARE A GREAT INVESTMENT. YOU CAN DO MOST MOVEMENTS YOU WOULD DO WITH FREE WEIGHTS WITH RESISTANCE BANDS AS A SUBSTITUTE. YOU’LL JUST NEED A LITTLE CREATIVITY. CONSIDER USING A DOOR AS AN ANCHOR POINT – IF YOU’RE WANTING RESISTANCE TO COME FROM ABOVE, THREAD THE BAND THROUGH A ROLL OF TOILET PAPER, THROW IT OVER THE DOOR, AND CLOSE THE DOOR. SIMILARLY, IF YOU’RE WANTING AN ANCHOR POINT CHEST-WAIST HEIGHT, ANCHOR THE BAND AROUND THE DOORKNOB AND CLOSE THE DOOR. 

FURNITURE SLIDERS (OR EVEN PAPER PLATES ON WOOD FLOORING) ADD A LOVELY STABILITY CHALLENGE. TRY USING THESE WITH LUNGES OR CORE MOVEMENTS SUCH AS MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS. 

IF YOU CHOOSE TO UTILIZE LIGHT DUMBBELLS YOU CAN ALWAYS MAKE EXERCISES MORE CHALLENGING WHILE USING THE SAME WEIGHT BY INCREASING TIME UNDER TENSION– THIS MEANS MOVE SLOWER THROUGH YOUR MOVEMENTS IF YOUR GOAL IS STRENGTH TRAINING. 

A YOGA MAT IS A NICE PIECE OF EQUIPMENT TO HAVE FOR ANY BODY WEIGHT MOVEMENTS OR CORE EXERCISES YOU MIGHT BE DOING LYING ON THE GROUND, WHILE A YOGA BLOCK CAN BE USED FOR A LITTLE ADDED HEIGHT TO CHALLENGE DIFFERENT MUSCLE GROUPS – SQUATS WITH ONE FOOT ON THE YOGA BLOCK, OR PUSH UPS WITH ONE HAND ON THE BLOCK, FOR EXAMPLE. 

AS ALWAYS, YOU SHOULD NEVER FEEL PAIN WHEN UTILIZING ANY OF THESE PIECES OF EQUIPMENT FOR HOME (OR GYM) EXERCISES. IF YOU DO, CALL 903-962-2600 OR EMAIL HELLO@TXPELVICHEALTH.COM. TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT, CLICK HERE.