How to Build Your Fitness at Home Before You Join a Gym
Workout from home (WFH) in 2023
The third week of the year is coming to a close and many new year resolutions have been and gone. Many of you know that I strongly advocate holding off significant fitness and nutrition changes until you’re back into your normal routine.
For some people, this is the first week of the year. But for many people in Australia, this isn’t until later in January when the silly season finally ends, Australia Day is done, and school is back.
This doesn’t mean you don’t do anything and cut loose during January. This can be a good time to try new strategies or approaches, especially increased physical activity if you have some time off work.Â
There’s also a chance to reset from overly ambitious new year resolutions that weren’t adhereable. Review why they didn’t work out and either reduce the magnitude of the change (i.e. less training sessions or more food) or work out what needs to be reprioritised to make those initial changes happen (i.e. meal delivery or personal training).
Not taking advantage of the new year’s inspiration can seem counterintuitive. However, the reality is that inspiration from a fresh calendar quickly fades and it’s more important to develop personalised fitness and nutrition strategies that suit your goals, experience and lifestyle.
Take some time to think about where you want to be at the end of 2023 and work out 2-3 small changes you can make that will put you on that path.
I’m not taking on any new clients, but if you have any questions feel free to submit them below and I can share the response.
Building a workout-from-home training program to get you started
We touched on getting comfortable in the gym in the last edition of 2022. Most people need to join a gym to access the resistance training equipment required to achieve their strength, fitness and body recomposition goals. Unless they have a stocked home gym, it’s hard to access everything that most people need to get it done at home.
But not everyone wants to join a gym. It might be inconvenient, expensive or otherwise not a viable option. Others might want to avoid joining the gym now and prefer to get started on their own before transitioning to a gym after building a base level of strength and fitness. If you are in these camps, I will share some exercise, equipment and training recommendations for getting started without stepping foot in the gym.
These are all no-equipment and low-equipment programs, so it will not help you build a home gym. If that’s what you have in mind, I would highly recommend doing a few sessions in a commercial gym to find out what equipment you find beneficial instead of trying to guess what you will like - that can lead to expensive and unused mistakes.
Most home training setups have limitations due to the amount of weight or training equipment that can be accommodated. But if resistance training is a smaller part of your body recomposition strategy, you can achieve your goals with a home training setup.
The no-equipment approach
A no-equipment training program relies on bodyweight exercises and repurposing some items around the home as gym equipment. It requires some innovation to envision how these items can be used as part of your trainingÂ
Canned food works well for makeshift dumbbells and is especially useful for pulling exercises because it’s hard to do bodyweight rows or pull-ups when you’re just starting. It’s probably easiest to run through the primary movement patterns and discuss how they can be loaded with minimal training equipment.
Upper body pushing
Push-ups are the obvious upper body pushing exercise, but only some beginners can do a lot of push-ups from their toes. Push-up variations to reduce resistance include push-ups from the knee or incline push-ups using an object such as a chair or bench to elevate the hand position. I prefer incline push-ups with my clients and use them in training programs across all levels.
Cans are useful for targeting the shoulders in place of dumbbells for shoulder presses, lateral raises and similar exercises.Â
Upper body pulling
Cans are convenient for replacing dumbbells for pulling exercises. Many beginners will find tinned foods are too light for pulling exercises, so the primary options are to increase the reps or slow down the exercise to increase the time under tension.Â
Aside from the canned dumbbells, you can also look around the house and shed to find something with a handle that can be loaded up. A bucket with some water or that old tin of paint you’re holding onto fits the bill.
Squat
Bodyweight squats, split squats and single/double leg glute bridges are a great starting point for anyone, and they are the core of lower body training programs for clients when they are travelling. You can make things more challenging without any weight by elevating the heels and adding in steps.
Adding weight to these exercises has limitations. The cans are handy for single-leg exercises where less weight is required. Bigger exercises such as squats and glute bridges require more weight, which might be achieved using bags, suitcases or something similar. It’s not possible to place these on the upper back like a traditional back squat, but these can be held to the torso to add weight in a safe and controlled way.
Hinge
Picking up heavy objects around the house is not a good way to replicate deadlifts or other hinge movements. A critical element of the deadlift is the hand position on the barbell, which is either facing you or mixed (one facing forward and one back). Picking up many objects requires the hands to be facing you, which leads to less control and increases injury risk.
So don’t push your hinge movement to the limit with makeshift equipment. Start by ramping up the reps or slowing down the tempo of these lifts.
Core
The core can be trained with very little equipment, whether in the gym or at home. Planks, twists and dead bugs are all great exercises to get started training the core from home.
The basic gym equipment approach
A basic set of equipment typically involves adjustable dumbbells, resistance bands, yoga or stretching mat and maybe a kettlebell or two. This can all be picked up from a sports store or marketplace for a few hundred dollars. This equipment makes many exercises more comfortable and easier, especially pulling exercises or anything else that requires a solid grip.
Upper body pushing and pulling
Having dumbbells or kettlebells with ergonomic handles makes it much easier to press overhead. The yoga mat can also be used to perform exercises like chest fly while lying on the ground in a comfortable position.
Squatting and hinging
Dumbbells and kettlebells allow more weight than improvising with what’s around the house. Dumbbells or kettlebells can be used for both movements to add load safely and comfortably.Â
There does come the point where additional weight is required to continue building strength in squat and hinge movements, as these use large muscle groups that generate a lot of force. This typically requires the use of a barbell or machine weights to allow additional load safely and effectively.
Do I need a home gym?
Home gyms are handy when you’re short on time, the weather is bad, or you don’t like sharing your training space with a bunch of randoms. But they also require space, maintenance and a reasonable start-up cost if you’re looking to push the strength training long-term.
The basic training equipment mentioned above is fine for starting or the occasional training session when you can’t get to the gym. However, it will not be enough to achieve many people’s strength, fitness and body recomposition goals.
The stage where you outgrow the equipment is a critical time. Many people buy additional home equipment, such as a bench and barbell, alongside some weights plates. While this can be handy for many exercises, it also requires a lot of space, so the car is no longer parked in the garage, or the gear is sitting outside.
My recommendation is once you’ve got your base strength equipment, evaluate whether there is a gym or other training option suited to you out there, or if you want to build a home gym.
If you decide to build a home gym, be prepared to dedicate a reasonable amount of space and money towards its fit-out. It doesn’t have to happen all at once, but it’s a good idea to know the longer-term plan when it comes to designing the gym.
Q&A
If there is anything fitness and nutrition related that you are trying to get your head around, post it below or reply to this email and it will go straight to my inbox. All questions are posted without names unless you specify otherwise.