Your Gym at Home: Use Everyday Objects

Not having access to a gym may feel like a barrier to getting exercise, but in fact items in your house work just as well as pricey gym equipment!

Check out these ideas on how to stay fit without leaving the house:

• If you have a flight of stairs…You have the perfect cardio opportunity! Walk up and down a flight of stairs 3 times, and then rest for 30 seconds. Repeat up to 10 times. Start slow, and increase your pace as you feel comfortable (1 flight = up & down).
• For an added challenge, try walking up every other step (only do this on the way up, not the way down) or do 5 push-ups in between each flight.

If you just have a couple steps…

• You can try the “step-up with weights” exercise from the Prostate 8 Sample Home-Based Resistance Exercise Workout! Go to the Get Active webpage and click on “Toolkit” in the heading at the top. Begin standing in front of the first step with both feet together. Alternate left and right leg stepping up onto the step.
• Try this exercise with one full water bottle in each hand for a more advanced movement.

If you need weights…

There are items all over your house that can be used as weights! Try the dumbbell squat, seated row, and shoulder press in the Prostate 8 Sample Home-Based Resistance Exercise Workout. Use any of the following household items as weights:

•  1 pound weight substitutes: 16 oz. soda bottle, 16 oz. bottle of vinegar
• 5 pound weight substitutes: Standard bag of flour, half gallon of milk or orange juice
• 8 pound weight substitutes: Gallon of water or milk
• 10 pound weight substitute: Large bottle of laundry detergent (4.43 liters or 1.17 gallons)

If you have a chair…

You can use it for a number of strength exercises at home:

• Incline push-ups: Place the chair against a wall, so it will not slide out from under you. Then, place your palms on the seat of the chair and walk your feet back so that your body is in a straight line (“plank position”), forming a triangle between the chair, the floor, and your body. Then, slowly bend your arms to lower your chest toward the chair and push back up to straight arms. Throughout the movement, be careful to keep your abdominal and back muscles engaged, so that you do not arch or hollow your back or bend at the waist — your body should form a straight line the whole time with only your arms moving.
• Seat Taps: Stand facing the front of the chair. Simultaneously lift your right arm up to the sky and bring your left leg up to tap the seat of the chair with your left toes. Immediately bring your left foot and right arm back down, and repeat on the other side so you lift your left arm and tap the seat with your right toes. Continue to alternate taps for 45 to 60 seconds, using your arms for momentum and balance. Start slowly to get used to the movement, and increase your pace as you feel comfortable. You may want to have the chair set against a wall so it will not move out from under you, and you can grab the back of the chair for balance if needed.

If you have a paper towel roll (or any other non-fragile object that is approximately 6” high and wide)…

Place the roll on the floor and jump (or step) back and forth over it for 60 seconds, getting your knees up as high as possible. Repeat 10 times with a minute rest in between.

• To make this movement more advanced, start on one side of the roll and lower your body to the ground (bottom of a push-up position). Stand back up and jump or step over the roll. Then lower your body to the ground on the other side, stand back up, and repeat. This is called a burpee-jump over.