The easy way to fitness- a homely gym

Exercise is a way of life. Through proper diet and exercise, a person can not only tone his muscles but may also retain his vigor, vitality, and youth to an advanced age. The lifespan may increase, the person remains fit and healthy, and, due to good effect on attitude and due to an improvement of positive outlook, a person may achieve success and in his profession, may achieve a higher standard of work.

Exercises are of many types. There are freehand exercises as well as weight training. A person may attend a gym or club but people refuse due to time shortage or the little cash. Club facilities are few. Many are students with little cash to spend or expensive equipment. But if there is a real desire to improve health, it is very amazing what can be done with a little initiative and ingenuity. 

One can work wonders with small objects and make a gym for themselves at their homes. One may have a spare room, a garage or shed which he can transform into a little gym for himself or with friends. The majority of people have only their bedroom or a small bed-sitting room.

Some consideration will naturally have to be given to the size of training space and whether one is situated in the upper room, ground floor, or anywhere where any too vigorous form of exercise might disturb others, or upset the family members. One doesn’t want to risk bringing a ceiling down or make cracks in the roof of an old house. 

But one should also bring the exercise of skipping with an imaginary rope to improve the fitness of heart and lungs and for good circulation before other exercises. It is good for speed, stamina, and coordination. A space of 8 ft x 7 ft. or even less would give one sufficient room to carry out a full exercise routine.

If one is exercising in his room, there should be adequate ventilation. There should be a reasonable flow of fresh air. Exercising in a warm fuggy room is only fatiguing. Hence any heating like a gas fire should be turned off. In cold weather, one should wear warm loose clothing.

Most of the rooms have some pieces of furniture which can be used for resistance work. For instance, with feet on the bed or an upright chair, and hands on the arms of an armchair, one has an excellent base for dips, which is an excellent arm, shoulder and chest exercise.

A heavy book like an encyclopedia can also be used for a great variety of exercises like pullover at arms’ length, taking the book to thighs, single arm presses, single arm curls, single arm swings. If two books are available, one can add lateral raise sideways and upwards, alternate forward and upward swings and side bends.

If one can get a small plank of wood about three ft. Long and 12-18 inches wide, one can improvise a little bench by standing the plank on a couple of books and covering it with an old blanket.

Two bricks can be used for all these exercises, giving the muscles more resistance to work against.

An excellent wrist and forearm strengthener can be improvised by tying a brick, stone, flat iron or book to a piece of string which is attached to the center of a small piece of wood about a foot long and 1-2 inches thick. Holding the stick at either end with arms forward, the wind and unwind the string several times by rolling it in the hands. This exercise is very good for strengthening forearms, arms, shoulders. The forearm can also be strengthened by twisting and turning a sandbag drenched in water.

There are several forms of dips or press ups with the use of chairs, boxes or stools, like-

1. Dips with feet and hands on chairs or boxes to form a triangular base.
2. Dips with feet on a chair, hands on the floor.
3. Dips with both hands on one chair, feet on the floor.
4. One of the best exercises is to take a sitting position with the heels on a chair, hands slightly behind on two others, lower the buttocks towards the floor by bending the arms, and then stretch. This is an excellent shoulder and triceps strengthener.
5. Dips between two chairs, hands on the backs, feet free, as done between two parallel bars. A little bending of the knees is essential for clearing the floor.
6. Another good use of a chair is as a support for the single leg full knee bend. It is better to stand on the chair seat on one leg, with the other leg forward. Holding on the back of the chair with one hand do a full knee bend and stretch. Repeat with the other leg. This exercise is good for quadriceps of the thighs and the knee joint.
7. One can even devise a good barbell by filling two boxes from cement and fitting them on either side of a long, stout bamboo. Hence one can do good bench press, pullovers, and upright rowing exercise.
8. One can also do many forms of pull ups or chin ups by fitting an adjustable bar in a doorway. Chinning or pull ups can be done in several ways- overgrip, undergrads, and pull up to behind the neck position. It is also ideal for abdominal work such as legs raise and knees raise.
9. If one can fit hooks to the wainscot in the room various types of expander work for legs, abdominals, etc. can be done

There are several types of expanders in the market that have necessary fittings to adapt them for leg and abdominal work.

A medicine ball is very useful for abdominal work such as –

1. Back lying, arms above the head holding a medicine ball, trunk raised to forward reach. Good for abdomen
2. Back lying, the ball held between feet, leg raises.
3. Place the ball on the floor, and roll it with the abdomen.
4. Ball held at arms’ length overhead, trunk circling.
5. Trunk exercises- a. Hold the ball at arms’ length feet astride, bend down to swing the ball between the legs, and return to upright.
6. Stand astride, hold the ball overhead. Trunk bends freely from side to side.
7. Hold the ball in front of waist, move a ball from left to right with trunk twisting.
8. The single arm was throwing upwards with the medicine ball, or even single arm presses can be done.
9. Stand astride, hold a ball at arms’ length, drop arms behind head holding the ball and stretch them to upright.

One can also experiment with isometrics, a form of self-resistance. Pressing against a wall with both hands, clasping the hands together and trying to pull them apart is a good isometric.

Thus by experimenting in new ways, one can improvise many forms of exercises to develop good health and also stamina, energy and vigor.