This year’s summer heat came unexpectedly quick and probably threw everyone's fitness regime into chaos. Coupled with a busy lifestyle and the never-ending COVID related lockdowns, it may seem almost impossible to stick to your outdoor fitness regime.  

 We say skip the fuss and focus on some low impact joint-friendly indoor exercises. You may be surprised by how close to a home gym your house actually is.  

 Here are our top 3 exercises to get the most from indoor fitness. We have even thrown in a complete HIIT class for you.  

Yoga is exercise 

Yoga is the perfect exercise to balance your mind, body and soul, and you don't need to be an expert to master the poses. You will actually get more out of it by easing yourself into each pose and letting your body adjust slowly. Yoga offers the perfect way to get deep into the connective tissue and stimulate lubrication around your joints.  

Yoga takes a little to get used to so we recommend finding videos online to get you started. We have attached one of our favorites here.   

Plank with Pilates 

Pilates is excellent for anyone from beginners to experts and perfect for building strength and coordination. It also compliments yoga perfectly. When you work out consistently, you can expect to see firm, lean muscles from these types of movements. Like yoga, Pilates is low impact and safe on your delicate joints.  

As with yoga you may need a little direction with your Pilates workout. YouTube really is a mecca of online gems. Here’s one to get you started.  

Hit up a HIIT class 

If you are looking for something a little more challenging that will get your heartbeat up, High-Intensity Interval Training may be precisely what you are looking for. Generally, you will complete short bursts of intense exercise such as weighted squats; these short bursts usually last between 30secs to 1min depending on the activity. They are then followed by a short period of rest which is generally 30 secs. This type of training is really great for ramping up your heart rate and metabolism.  

The icing on the cake is that the entire exercise usually only lasts 30 minutes but can deliver impressive results! Try our simple but effective routine below:  

YOUR HIIT CLASS 

You will complete 6 exercises. All you need to do is complete each exercise for 30 seconds, rest for 30 seconds, then move on to the next exercise – repeat for 30 minutes.  

Warm up 

Start with a warmup, your body will thank you for it. You will experience faster recovery and get the most out of your workout. Here’s a great 5 minute one.  

Exercise 1: Burpee  

Start this exercise standing, lower yourself into push up position, take one push up, then push yourself back up and jump into the air, lower and repeat again.  

Here’s a video if you’re looking for a visual.    

Exercise 2: High knees 

Place your hands from elbows in a 90 degree angle at the front of your body. Lift your knees in a marching style to tap your palms. Try to keep the momentum up, keep those knees lifting high and avoid lowering those hands.  

For this one, you will find fantastic tips here.  

Exercise 3: Push up  

Start in plank position and lower yourself down as far as you can (without touching the floor). Lift yourself back up into plank position and repeat. Remember to keep your elbows tucked in and do not let your hips dip – keep that core nice and strong and engaged.  

Forms important here, watch for some great tips.  

Exercise 4: Star jump  

Star jumps are fun! They are high energy and they take you back to the school yard. If you have children you can even get them involved. All you need to do, is stand up, jump into a star position with hands and legs lengthened out. Return to standing and repeat. 

There’s also a more challenging variation that involves crouching down, watch here for the variation.   

Exercise 5: Squat  

From standing position, place hands in front of you or on hips and simply squat back into a seated position, you can lower yourself down as far as you can go but be mindful not to round your back or look down.  

Form is again important here! watch this video to check yours is correct. 

Exercise 6: Crunches 

Crunches can have some serious impact on your abs! lay with knees bent on the floor, place fingers softly behind ears and lift from your core, lift your shoulders up as high as you can - you should feel your abs engaged, you should feel that burn.  

Here’s some extra tips to perfect the crunch. 

How to maintain your indoor fitness routine  

Life will throw obstacles at you that may throw your fitness routine into disarray; this is what's great about indoor or at-home exercise, they're convenient and provide more flexibility. The trick is to just start and keep reaching for your desired fitness goal. Eventually, it gets easier, and your exercise will become non-negotiable and habit. Remember it takes between 18 and 254 days to form a new habit, so don’t be so hard on yourself and keep going - science says so! All you need to do is find what makes you feel good and stick to it.  

Motivation and consistency really are crucial to getting to your fitness goal. Incorporating low impact indoor fitness into your daily routine not only supports the health of almost every system in your body but also helps protect your joints. Your joints are part of what holds your body together and they allow you to move comfortably around this beautiful life. It's essential to take care of them. 

Joint Support contains a complex of nutrients designed to promote the health of your joints. They make a fantastic addition to an active lifestyle – to keep you active!