Apartment Exercises

[Looweewoo]

I and a couple of other folks were talking about exercises one could do with no equipment at home in your apartment. Obviously there are yoga-like routines one could do but we were thinking more about strength exercises Using body weight for resistance.

So I offered to start this thread to discuss it and maybe enlist a group of like minded folk to do a community/accountability thing.

Anyone interested?

I'll be posting some descriptions of what I am doing (nothing fancy) and would love to hear descriptions and schedules from other folks.

[HerBoudoir]

Although it's not "no equipment", I use inexpensive hand weights and a DVD....$15 total investment and it's working really well.

The dumbbells (3 lbs each) were $5 total on sale at a local sporting goods store. Walmart also carries inexpensive ones but if it's like my local Wally world, they don't seem to stock much in the under-10 lb range.

I started doing Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred on On Demand; liked it so much I bought the DVD for $10. I've also done other workouts on On Demand (under Exercise TV - free with On Demand) with them and enjoyed the workouts. They do rotate the workouts so you can try different ones. Since the workouts are mostly parts of exercise DVDs, you can pick them up if you like them.

I can really feel a difference between doing those kinds of exercises and just walking, which is my standby exercise.

Schedule-wise, I'm shooting to work out 7 days a week...which means I do about 5 :-) I try to do 3 days of weight-incorporating exercises with cardio only in between (mostly walking).

I would like to add some yoga in there and possibly Callanetics. I do best when I have an exercise on the TV to follow; still searching for a good yoga exercise that's about half an hour.

[mirchi]

I have a Pilates reformer than I used to use. I haven't in a while, but I am getting back to it. One can also use the pilates ring thingy...

I also jump rope. But that only works if you are on the ground floor, otherwise the neighbours will smack you.

Dumbells work great.

[2bflawless]

Squats, push ups, pull ups, sit ups, dips, planks, lunges, running up and down the stairs with someone on your back (no kidding- borrow a small kid under 100 pounds) even weight lifting moves but instead of weights sub with gallons of water, etc.

[Shimmer]

How about resistance bands? They wouldn't take up much room for storage.

[Looweewoo]

Wow! Lots of responses and I haven't even had time to post the link back to the original thread yet!

In my case, any expenditure is too much and I have to avoid things which will irritate my neighbors so many jumping exercises are out. Bands are a great idea and I should try to find some for free, maybe from the county office.

[moonmirror]

I had great results in the past simply doing squats, situps, and pushups. I did 3 sets of ten of each. Those three will give you a full-body workout.

[HerBoudoir]

Check your local Freecycle - people give away exercise equipment all the time there.

[TaDa!]

Originally Posted by Looweewoo

Wow! Lots of responses and I haven't even had time to post the link back to the original thread yet!

In my case, any expenditure is too much and I have to avoid things which will irritate my neighbors so many jumping exercises are out. Bands are a great idea and I should try to find some for free, maybe from the county office.

Loo ... Using things like canned foods as arm weights .. and gallon jugs filled with water (to simulate kettleballs) might serve you well!! I hear you on the "any expenditure is too much" thing -- I have been there many times!

I think what you are proposing is very doable!! I will be taking my weights book and weights with me for my 3 weeks at my folks .. if I think of any kind of other "weights" substitutes, i will post for you ..



Pauline

[lowcarbie]

I do the Leslie Sansone walking workouts every day, the tapes and DVD workouts enable me to workout in my bedroom without having to have exercise equipment and I walk at least a mile a day, she has workouts that you can do 1,2,3,4 or more miles and what I like about it is that you don't have to buy expensive equipment, the weather can be lousy outside and you can exercise when you want to, you don't have to wait to work out with someone else. I live in the South and it gets hot quick in the mornings and I can walk anytime no matter how hot it gets outside. I used to walk outside on the track but I stopped because I didn't have anyone to walk with and it wasn't safe for me to walk by myself, it was hot outside and I would have to drive to the track when I wanted to work out. With Leslie Sansone, you just put the tape or DVD in and start working out at anytime.

[peanutte]

Pretty much all of my workouts involve nothing other than what you're describing--my own body weight. I do use 10 pound dumbells too, though.

Squats, push ups, pull ups, sit ups, dips, planks, lunges, running up and down the stairs with someone on your back (no kidding- borrow a small kid under 100 pounds) even weight lifting moves but instead of weights sub with gallons of water, etc.

Seriously--do not underestimate the effectiveness of "power squats"--you can do them with feet at shoulders' width apart, you can do them with your feet further apart, but those--and lunges--are good, non-jumping basics.

Pushups and other things in the plank position are really great for your core.

Knee lifts, side leg lifts, "roundhouse" kicks, front kicks and back kicks do not involve jumping, and are excellent for balance, since you must keep your weight on one leg and keep that leg strong and stable. Oblique crunches are my very favorite thing. I love doing ab work while standing; it's just a lot more fun than classic crunches.

Having said that, though--lying down, you can do pike crunches, where you point your toes, keep your legs together, raise your arms up over your head, and slowly bring your arms and (straight) legs up toward each other. Don't let your heels hit the floor-keep them about two inches up off the floor.

I hope you find some things you like to do!

[itsmeshelly01]

Fitnesstv.com!!! The best thing i ever found. Tons of free videos that just use barbells or u dont have to use anything. There are lunges and squats and pushups and all kinds of things. They are great. You can pick anything from 10 min videos that target specific to 40 min videos that are total body. I started with doing the 10 min videos and then went to doing the 40 min videos. There are 3 of them i switched off doing everyday and they totally transformed my body. They have a 30 day weightloss program you can download that will tell you which videos to do on what day of the week. It was really great. I still do them and have incorporated some of the exercises into my own routine i do everyday.
And you cant beat totally free!!!!

[HerBoudoir]

....except that it's Fitnesstv.tv not .com :-)

[sfmama123]

Greetings Looweewoo!

I echo the comments about resistance bands, maybe check out some DVD's fromt the library? I get great workouts from TurboJam, Leslie Sansone, and Mari Windsor pilates. Also, like 2bflawless said, squats and lunges!!! I've spent loads on a good personal trainer, just to have the majority of my workout be lifting lots of weight, and interspersing that with squats and lunges for an extra cardio kick. They're hard as *bleep*, but I don't think anything else works as well for the gluts.

If all else fails, find some heavy things around the house that you can lift safely, and do cardio intervals in between sets, like running in place or the aforementioned exercises of torture. You'll definitely get a good workout

[itsmeshelly01]

Sorry, i have it saved in my faves and didnt even realize it was .tv. Great site though!!!

[DEEDLYNN]

One thing I did invest in was a kettlebell and it is one heck of a workout. It is overall body and strengthening......

I get all my videos/DVD's at Goodwill $1 usually each...but I bore with them very easily.

I also make use of the stairs in my house. If I am walking with Leslie Sansone. I will step up some of it by walking upstairs and back down. Its a tri-level, so it is like 1/2 flight of stairs.

There is also something to be said for good ole floor exercises. Leg lifts, donkey kicks, the old bicycle thing (on your back)...those exercises did it for many folks long before we got the fancy schmancy equipment.

[Blondie Baby]

I workout in my house because during the summer here its just too darn hot to go outside and run or ride my bike or even walk! I have a floor mat, a few dumbells and assorted DVD's and VHS tapes. My current favorites are Jillian Michaels - No More Trouble Zones - which only requires a mat and dumbells, and Jillian Michaels - Burrn Fat, Boost Metabolism, which only requires a floor mat!

[danielsgirl]

here is my 2 cents worth.

IF you have a subscription to Netflix you can get work out dvds from them not to mention the TONS of workouts that you can "watch instantly" on your computer or TV. I personally don't have cable or satellite anymore I use netflix and stream it to the home TV. I can pick a work out watch it on my tv. They have a very wide variety of workouts including Dance, yoga, pilates, bootcamp style, ect ect. I love it.

[kristie88]

I like resistance bands.. its a great workout and no jumping around here is a site that shows you how to use them. Plus if you do some crunches reg, side and reverse. Hope it helps!!

Resistance Band Exercises

[Gnossienne]

Any other masochists out there using this?

It hangs from any doorway, and it will make you hurt so much you'll wish you'd never been born.

I love resistance training and I love working out at home, whenever the mood strikes. I often get a burst of energy late at night before bed, and it's great to have an outlet right there - rather than have to get dressed and drive to the gym.

[canadianwoman]

I turn on the radio and dance to music.

[Shimmer]

Originally Posted by Looweewoo

In my case, any expenditure is too much

Your local library should have lots of fitness/exercise videos = FREE!

[HerBoudoir]

Originally Posted by TaDa!

and gallon jugs filled with water (to simulate kettleballs) ...

Am I the only one who had a vision of swinging the gallon jug of water and it exploding?

[Chasintrail]

Google prison workout ;>

Bodyweight exercises are great! Do the 100 pushups challenge, crunches, squats...

[Looweewoo]

Thanks every one for all the suggestions!

I've been watching some youtubes on resistance bands... apparently that's turned into some kind of an industry! LOL! I was just thinking of that stretchy stuff that you get at physical therapy sessions.

I also just remembered that my church has a workout room! They put it in when I lived too far away (so I ignored it) but now I live less than a block away from it. How silly is that to forget?

Exercises today:
50 modified crunches (Diastasis Recti friendly(DRF))
50 Modified side leg lifts (25 each side, DRF)
20 Modified Burpies

By Modified I mean that I have done something to allow me to actually do them. With my spinal injury and the danger of herniating my abdomen there are some things I just can't do. (But thanks everyone for suggesting them, because we have other folks reading this).

For instance, my modified Burpee ends up like this:
Stretch up and raise to toes
Squat down partially
Place hands on the arm of my couch while stepping back slightly
Push-up at 45º
Step forward and squat
Stretch up again.

Obviously not much, but since I started at only a few and now do 20, and since my angle on the push-up and the depth of the squats have already changed, there's been some progress. And there's still plenty of room to grow, although for the safety and comfort of my downstairs neighbors, I will probably never incorporate the jump that burpees usually have.

More on this as I add to my routine, and more detailed descriptions of anything I add.

I also want to add a late night walk, since we are having some cool evenings.

[Cheezee]

I have a rebounder (mini trampoline!). Fun to do the Sansone workout on it, or just "fake jog" on it in front of the tv. Very quiet too. I'm up on the third floor and the walls are very thin.

[TaDa!]

Originally Posted by HerBoudoir

Am I the only one who had a vision of swinging the gallon jug of water and it exploding?

good point!! You could either buy them and leave them sealed, or use empties and fill with sand to your desired level ...

hth!

[Looweewoo]

Originally Posted by Chasintrail

Google prison workout ;>

LOL! That's actually where I got the idea for this thread... not that my apartment is a prison, but the equipment is about the same!

[Looweewoo]

Originally Posted by TaDa!

good point!! You could either buy them and leave them sealed, or use empties and fill with sand to your desired level ...

I have Clorox bottles filled with water, and a length of PVC pipe with water in it and the ends capped.

But even that is probably more equipment than some folks on this thread might have.

[PianoAl]

Is it for cost or space that you are avoiding the equipment?

Cost-wise I've gotten my weights (dumbbells) and weight bench from garage sales (the bench was $15, but I've seen the same one for $3). I bought the chin-up bar new.

Space-wise, you could get by without a weight bench, but that limits you. I started out without a bench, doing bench presses on the floor, and the one armed row by a bed. They probably make some that fold away. Here's how much space my stuff takes up:

Weights.jpg

I actually only use two of those dumbbells.

Here's why I prefer weights over resistance or body-weight work: You get the optimal benefit when you can only do the exercise with 8-12 repetitions. If you can only do 10 pushups, then you're all set, but if you can do 30, then you're not getting the same benefit that you'd get from dumbbell bench presses. With weights, you can add weight until you fall into that range. That's my understanding, anyway.

I strongly recommend this book:

Amazon.com: Strength Training Past 50 - 2nd Edition...
Here is the workout I do twice a week (it takes about 30 minutes):

WeightSheet.jpg