Three Easy Workouts To Do in Your Apartment

In the winter, it can be infinitely more difficult to find the willpower to leave your apartment. It’s cold outside and it gets darker earlier — in other words, the temptation to stay home and binge watch TV is strong! That’s certainly way more appealing than stepping outside for a run or a gym trip, especially if there is snow and ice on the ground. With these three easy workouts you can do in your apartment, though, you have no excuse to slack on your fitness regimen during the winter – and you can get right back to cuddling up at home after you’ve cooled down.

1. A beginner bodyweight apartment workout

For a comprehensive but brief workout that both builds muscle and gets your heart rate going, try this beginner bodyweight workout. You don’t need any equipment for most of these exercises – and for the one that does require weights, a nearly full gallon jug of water is a great dumbbell substitute.

Here’s how it’s done:

1. 20 bodyweight squats
2. 10 push-ups
3. 20 walking lunges (10 per leg)
4. 10 dumbbell rows
5. 15-second plank
6. 30 jumping jacks

To increase this workout’s intensity, you can add more push-ups, dumbbell rows, or jumping jacks, and you can hold your plank for as long your body can withstand. For the dumbbell rows, use a gallon jug of water if you don’t have a dumbbell, and if you don’t have a workout bench, you can use two chairs or the edge of a firm mattress. If you want to add more dumbbell exercises, consider shoulder presses, shoulder shrugs, and chest presses.

2. A half-hour HIIT cardio apartment workout

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) has been all the buzz in fitness circles lately. HIIT involves brief bursts of maximum exertion followed by rest. This alternating state of exertion and rest rapidly burns calories while building muscle in shorter time spans than traditional workouts allow. For this HIIT cardio apartment workout, you can opt for 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off or 45 seconds off, 15 seconds on – but keep in mind that you’ll be working out for 30 minutes total.

Here’s how it’s done, with visuals for each exercise:

1. Start with butt kickers (essentially jogging in place).
2. Rest.
3. Switch to an alternating-side reverse lunge.
4. Rest.
5. Switch to a pop squat (a classic squat with a toe-touching stretch).
6. Rest.
7. Switch to a downward-dog-to-toe-tap (a variation on the classic plank).
8. Rest.
9. Switch to the skater (combined squatting, lunging, and side movements).
10. Rest.
11. Switch to a traditional plank and hold it.
12. Rest.
13. Repeat this cycle until you reach 30 minutes.

3. A full yoga apartment workout

Often, people think of yoga as an exercise form that takes place in studios in large groups. Thanks to the internet, though, you can easily partake in a full yoga workout without leaving your apartment. Since yoga depends heavily on stretching, holding body positions you might not normally maintain for extended periods, and breathing mindfully, you’ll need a video to properly and safely complete your workout (and a yoga mat wouldn’t hurt either). A full list of yoga apartment workout video options can be found here.

What are your favorite workouts to do in your apartment? Sound off in the comments!