How to Get Up Of Your Butt and Exercise (Despite the Pandemic)

Working out on the regular can be a challenge at the best of times. However, it seems like there are two sorts of people when it comes to exercising during the pandemic. The first are those folks suffering from a severe case of cabin fever that can’t wait to get outside and walk or run. Then there is the rest of us, to whom peeling ourselves from the couch is a mammoth achievement. However, the good news is that for even those of us who are struggling to get motivated to exercise during the pandemic, there is both hope and help. Indeed, keep reading below to find out all about it. 

Bring the gym home 

You don’t need to head out to the gym to get a decent workout during Covid-19. You don’t even have to look any further than your own home, as it is entirely possible to set up a gym in your house. 

OK, so you may not be able to invest in every machine that your gym has, but there are plenty of home treadmills, cycles, and cross trainers available for home use. Not to mention the myriad of weights and benches you can get. 

You can even get the full gym experience by using coaching sessions like the ones run by Tom Waite Training online. Indeed with such professional help on offer in your very own home, you can use the lockdown to work on building both strength and stamina effectively. 

Pick the right time of day 

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You can make your workout much easier by making sure that you schedule it for the right time of day. Of course, only you will know when this is. Therefore, It’s well worth testing whether you are an early bird when it comes to exercise or someone who can benefit from a refreshing mid-afternoon session. 

Measure it to manage it 

Goal setting can also be very helpful when it comes to making sure you exercise during the pandemic. However, your goals do need to be specific and reflect things you can measure. 

For example, the goal of getting fit isn’t specific enough to be motivating. However, doing a 20-minute workout every day is something against which you can easily track your progress. Therefore, it will give you those smaller experiences of success and keep you exercising over the long term despite the pandemic. 

Try mindful walking 

A walk doesn’t only have to be exercise. It can also be a meditation. Indeed, it can be much easier to peel yourself off of the couch if you frame it as such.

The main aim of such an activity is to bring awareness to what you are doing. This includes what your body is doing – all the way down to how your feet hit the pavement and how deeply you breathe. You can also practice meditation by bringing awareness to your surroundings, which can be particularly valuable in times like these when we are spending most of our time indoors. 

You can even increase your workout’s intensity level by choosing longer routes or hill walks and hikes while at the same time still being as mindful as possible of what is going on inside and around you. 

Change things up 

Many people during lockdown can no longer access the usual way of exercising. However, while this can seem like an annoyance on the surface, it could be a real blessing in disguise. After all, the key to maintaining any exercise regime is variety, and the changes lockdown has wrought provide an excellent opportunity to try something new.

With that in mind, your first stop should be to hop online and find some DVDs or youtube videos at the beginner level of the new exercise activity you’d like to try, whether that is yoga, HIIT, Hula hooping, or anything else. If you find something, you like you can also continue to integrate it into your regular exercise routine even after lockdown has lifted. 

Exercise with your children 

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For dads, one of the easiest and most motivating ways to get your butt exercising is to do physical activities with the kids. Indeed, by taking the little ones on a bike ride, playing football, or even challenging your little ones to a game of tag, you will reap double the benefits. The first of these is, of course, the actual workout. While the second is that you will be setting an excellent example for your children, both during the time of the pandemic and in life generally.  


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