With the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the nation in 2020, all gyms across the country were closed down for long periods. This, of course, led to many people cancelling their gym memberships whilst everything was still uncertain.
The urge to hit the gym, lose weight and gain fitness was still high for many Britons. Fortunately, there are still ways to lose weight whilst you’re not back at the gym. After all, even if they are open, you may not feel fully ready to return.
Invest In Home Equipment
When it comes to the gyms being closed, there are options to help bring gym life and ethic into your own home.
Obviously, you don’t have to buy a treadmill or even any electronic equipment. You can get simple equipment such as weights, mats, resistance bands, punch bags, pull up bars, exercise balls or even a trampoline if you’ve got a garden.
This simple equipment allows you to work at your own pace, utilising the same muscles that you would be at the gym.
If you’re missing bigger equipment, such as exercise bikes or rowing machines, then you’ll be happy to hear there are also options for you. You can buy under the desk weighted pedals, that allow you to exercise from the comfort of your home office.
You can even buy exercise bikes that fold away for under the bed storage. These bikes can be battery powered, if you need a heads-up display, otherwise you can just get motion powered bikes, that only run when you use them.
Otherwise, you can’t go wrong picking up some weights and dedicating half an hour each day using them. There are plenty of YouTube videos, guides and apps that can help you get started and progress your fitness routine.
Balance Your Diet And Portions
When it comes to losing weight, one of the most effective methods, is to look at what we eat.
That means in terms of the actual contents of the food, and the portions we have. Larger portion sizes over time have been linked to obesity, mainly because it encourages both children and adults to eat more food as it’s what’s sat in front of them.
Removing this temptation to begin with smaller portions is a great way to help you lose weight, as eating less calories means there will be less calories you need to burn off.
You can do this by either cooking less food to begin with, or serving them onto smaller plates. This tactic is a way of stopping you from putting tempting food into your body. If you’ve accidentally made too much food, then consider putting it into a container, if possible, and put into the fridge for an easy lunch the next day.
Much can be said for batch cooking. Say on Sunday, you could do a giant mass cooking session, with 7 containers ready to be filled. Then you can mix it up a little and add different touches to each one so you don’t get too bored of what you’re eating.
This way, you don’t have to worry about what you’re eating and making each day as you’ve already done the hard work.
Another way in assisting your eating habits, is to use some weight loss shakes. These shakes are designed to slowly digest in your system over a few hours, meaning you won’t be hungry and tempted to eat snacks. You can visit this site here, from Shake That Weight, to browse the different flavours you can buy, with more information about high levels of protein and ingredients.
These shakes are created with the consumer in mind. They are easy to use, requiring you just to add water or milk, depending on what you’d like.
Visit Outdoor Gyms
If you live in a city, and your gym is closed for whatever reason, then there is some good news for you. Outdoor gyms are taking over park spaces. They are almost like play areas for adults, they have obstacle courses, press up bars, lift up bars and some weighted tied down equipment.
They offer a nice retreat away from the gym, with similar comforts. Plus, working out in nature is great for helping you relieve stress, and feel more connected to the world.
With outdoor gyms, you’ve got to be aware that you will be on your own, there are no staff around to advise and help you. So, make sure you take care and don’t injure yourself.
These gyms are great for hopping over to whilst on a daily walk, you don’t have to do much, it can be a little bit at a time.
Drink More Water
You’d be surprised how much drinking water can benefit your weight loss goals, especially if you drink a lot before meals. Drinking a glass of water about 30 minutes before meals can help reduce your hunger, therefore stopping you ingesting as much calories.
Drinking water is also just a great natural drink for your body, as it only contains natural vitamins, rather than artificial chemicals and sugar. Even fruit-based drinks can be packed full of sugar.
A good technique to getting your daily amount of water, usually around a litre, is to get a big bottle that has times and measurements for intake. For example, you can get a bottle that labels in 200ml, showing how much you should have had by 2pm, in two-hour chunks.
If you’re really struggling with getting into water and enjoying it, then you can adventure into flavoured water. Or alternatively, add some slices of vegetables into, such as cucumber, celery or even fresh mint.
Having a routine of drinking water is a great way of normalising it. It’s recommended that you start your day off with a glass of water, as it allows your body to regain moisture that gets lost during sleep through sweating and breathing.
You can stage your daily allowances of water alongside other daily chores and tasks. Certainly, it’s worth doing so if you have the same daily events, such as dinners and meals, driving to work, watching your show.
Turn The TV Off
Interestingly enough, eating food whilst staring at electronics such as TVs, is actually a factor of weight gain.
This is because our brains get distracted when engaging with electronics, and putting the food in our bodies doesn’t register the same way it would otherwise. Eating without distractions is the best natural way to consume food and your body will be better prepared to healthily digest.
So next time you’re having a meal, consider sitting at the table and switching off the tv.
Sleep Well
Having a good night’s sleep will result in you waking up more refreshed. Not only refreshed, but ready and willing to start your day, packed with motivation.
It’s usually recommended that you get around 8 to 10 hours of sleep, waking up at the same time each morning will help give your body a natural wake up point. Your body clock will know when to start operating for the day.
The same can be said for trying to go to sleep at the same time each night. Your body is precious to you. If you treat it right, then it will treat you right back.
