So I’m in a bit of a situation. I really want to start working out, but I’m limited to only working out from home. I used to weigh 180 something 2 years ago (I’m 21F) and got down to 125 just from changing my diet, however, I was left with some fat hanging out in awkward places bc I lost the weight pretty quick.
I’m really looking to just lose the extra fat and build general muscle (arms, legs, shoulders etc) and just generally be more fit.
Is this possible to achieve with home workouts? And are there any resources online tailored specifically to home workouts?
I’m totally okay with buying some equipment as long as it’s not insanely expensive. I currently have resistance bands that go from 10lbs to 50lbs.
Any advice or tips or nudges in the right direction would be much appreciated.
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I do home workouts and it seems that it’s working. I have lesser fat at the waist and my shirts have started to feel tighter. I can also do better at lifting weights and jumping rope. I feel less fatigued after a day of work.
I started slowly and kept it consistent. I would keep the total duration of my workout to only 15 mins at start; now it’s variable maxing at around 45 mins.
The workout schedule I follow - jump rope, upper body, lower body, yoga (rest day). My warmup and cooldowns are also yoga.
For the equipment - adjustable dumbbells (4kgs to 16kg on each dumbbell), jump rope, yoga mat, lifting gloves.
The workouts I do on resistance days, mostly compound workouts with dumbbells and body weight.
I started off like you without any equipment and slowly kept adding when I needed. So, you can make your own plan with your bands and body weight and start without fussing too much about whether what you are doing is right. That’s to think about later. Remember that any workout is a good workout.
Storm said: @Vale
Thank you for this! When you started did you just wing it with exercises off the top of your head or did you watch any videos etc?
Actually I restarted now. I did resistance back in 2019 but in a different way - each muscle worked once a week.
Now with the new routine I do, I hit each muscle twice a week.
I read a lot of different articles, watched a lot of different videos.
There’s different levels at which you need to be considering this.
Level 1 is what you will be doing across multiple days, like the split I mentioned - cardio, upper, lower, yoga. I do it this way because the cardio I do (jump rope) is a leg thing and I don’t keep it next to lower body day. Then after 2 sessions of resistance, there’s yoga to stretch the pain out of my body. Like upper and lower workout split, there’s push, pull, leg split as well and also full body workouts. If you’re a beginner, go for full body where you will work out the whole body on all days. Then you can try upper/lower. You can Google online for some good routines. But the thing is that only you can figure out what works. What the internet says may be too less or too much for you.
Level 2 is deciding on the workouts per day. Jump rope is easy - 15 mins of jumping up to whatever I can. For upper and lower body resistance days, I first Googled on what I can do with the equipment I have (dumbbells and body weight). I select a few compound exercises and start slowly with them. I watch random videos of the workout to understand the form correctly. Then start with really low weight or body weight to get the form right. After that, I progressively overload. For you, I would suggest basic compounds like push-ups, squats, plank. Just these 3 workouts without any weight: do for 15 mins daily.
Level 3 is deciding on the environment and when you will do. Fix a time and stick to it. If you want to do it daily in the morning after waking up, then fix that. Also, you may need water with you mixed with something to give you energy. I use glucose. This is the most important thing as it builds consistency.
I’ve worked out at home for the past 3+ years. I have a garage gym setup and I’m in the best shape of my life. If you have a power rack, barbell and weights, and a bench you can hit all the major compound lifts safely without need for a spotter. A lot of people will say “get some dumbbells and a bench” but in my opinion, dumbbells aren’t the best way to get started. You need a wide range of dumbbells to load heavy enough to stimulate gains for different muscle groups. Adjustable dumbbells can work, but in many cases they still don’t get heavy enough and you’re still limited in the movements you can do.
What you need to do is make an assessment of what you have and what you can do. Example: I have a weighted vest and a dip bar. So instead of doing bench press I do weighted push-ups or dips.
Another thing you may want to check out are bodyweight workout programs by guys like Al Kavadlo, or Austin Dunham.
I only work out at home and do a lot of training with resistance bands. It’s absolutely possible to get in good shape working out at home. If you’re looking for some resistance band exercises, check out this exercise library.