I prefer to work out at home. One reason is the convenience of not having to get dressed and drive somewhere. Another reason is that I am fairly self-conscious when I’m in a gym. I must be an outlier here as I recently polled some friends and learned most people in my circle prefer to go to a gym.
But, I feel like a total clod when I’m trying to use the gym equipment. I am very uncomfortable trying to figure out which machines to use, how to use them, how much weight to add to them, and so on.
So, instead, I’ve built up a supply of useful things at home. I have dumbbells in various weights ranging from 3 pounds up to twelve, 12- and 15-pound kettlebells, a weighted vest, straps and bands and an exercise mat. Most of these were acquired as gifts from my family over time. For my birthday this year, my favorite stepfather got me the portable gym bench that was on my wish list.
During COVID, my daughter Betsy told me about a YouTube fitness expert who was gaining in popularity. Her name is Lucy Wyndham-Read. She owns LWR Fitness, has over 3 million followers and at one time, was the fastest growing YouTube fitness coach. She is from Great Britain, served in the British Army for five years and has over 30 years of experience expert. She is absolutely fantastic. Lucy literally has over 1,000 online workouts, all of which are free and require zero equipment. And, she has something for everyone. She has beginner, intermediate and advanced workouts. She covers every time limitation: 5-minute, 7-minute, 10-minute, 12-minute, 20-minute, 30-minute workouts. She has both high and low-impact workouts, chair workouts, no jumping workouts, knee-friendly workouts, fun workouts for kids, dancing workouts and walking workouts, some of which take you to beautiful places like Paris or London. She has full body workouts as well as those that pinpoint certain areas, like arms, glutes, legs, abs. Lucy also recently introduced me to “exercise snacks” which are short workouts you can do quickly at various times of the day. I could go on and on. Whatever level you are at your exercise journey, she will have something for you. I will always have Lucy in my rotation. In addition to YouTube, you’ll find her on Facebook and Instagram. If you give her a try, also watch Lucy’s 10-minute TED Talk, which gives some insight into her history.
While Lucy’s workouts are free, you do need to be willing to allow ads to pop up every so often. Eventually, this led me to pay for a YouTube subscription, which is still cheaper than a gym membership, and offers other benefits.
After a few years of primarily doing Lucy’s workouts, I branched out to try some other options. Some of the ones I like include:
HASfit with Coach Kozak and Claudia – they provide lots of great workouts some of which include equipment. I especially like their variety of stretch routines. If you ever suffer from sciatica, they have helpful exercises to reduce pain and mitigate reinjury. You can find them on YouTube and they also have an app.
Jeff Cavalier of Athlean-X –I learned about him when he was featured on the Diary of a CEO (with Steven Bartlett) podcast. I especially like Jeff’s 10-minute ab workout challenge. Look for him on YouTube.
Tracy Steen Move Daily Fitness on YouTube (she also has a great podcast called Move Daily Talks) – I found Tracy when I learned about the Norwegian 4×4 that has gained popularity (watch for a blog on this soon) and was trying to find a way to try it. She is from Canada. This woman is a total bada$$ and I have really enjoyed trying her program. If you workout with her, you’ll see what I mean. She can also be found on Facebook and IG.
Sandy Sklar of SandySklarXFit caught my attention when she came up in my social media feed within the past year. I enjoy trying the exercises she posts based certain muscle groups you may be working on. Her posts are quick and easy to follow. Find her on IG, as well.
Dee Jackson of DeeJ’s FitNation is a competitive body-builder who does a fantastic job of explaining the way our muscles work and how to exercise safely and more effectively. Her Facebook posts are fun and interesting. She can also be found on IG.
My enjoyment and understanding of physiological health has certainly grown by following these different individuals and trying out some of their teachings. What a wonderful world we live in where we can have access to so many things like this!