How to Stay Active in and Around Your Home
#StayActiveStaySafe
With lots of people staying at home during this unprecedented and challenging time, many of us will be wondering what to do to stay active and how we can support those around us to keep moving too.
Active Devon is developing different ways to ensure we can provide the most effective support to wider communities across Devon, and to help and encourage people to remain active during this period – providing you are well enough.
We believe remaining active is incredibly important. Being active in a way that is right for you, improves your health, helps manage stress and anxiety, and just generally makes you feel better.
Over the coming weeks, we will be sharing useful tools, tips and information across our website and social media, so please do keep checking here to find what you need to stay active. And, please share with your family and people in your community who may need to keep moving more than ever.
Great Ideas for Keeping Active
You can still go outside for one form of exercise a day, such as a walk, run or cycle, either alone or with members of your household, and provided you are well enough. Please see the latest guidance on social distancing.
Alternatively, here are some handy exercise and movement ideas for keeping active in and around your home – again, provided you are well enough.
If You’re Older
The Chief Medical Officer’s physical activity guidance highlights the benefits of maintaining muscle strength, balance and flexibility. These specific exercises are great for all ages, but particularly if you’re over 65:
And you can also follow these home workout videos from the NHS, which includes a strengthening workout and a 10-minute cardio workout.
Stay active, stay safe. Follow the guidance.
We passionately believe that being active is as important as ever. However, safety is paramount, and it is crucial that everyone follows current government guidance if leaving their home to exercise. See here for more Guidance On Being Active, and for further advice visit Get Active at Home.
#StayActiveStaySafe
Online Home Workouts
If you can’t go to the gym, or perhaps don’t want to, you can bring the gym into your own home.
There are a number of websites with online home workouts that you can watch and download whenever you want, some for free or with a free trial. For example,
Fitness Blender has over 500 free workout videos.
Other Gym-Free Workouts
From sofa workouts to cardio jumps, the NHS has put together illustrated guides showing some other equipment-free workouts, many of which you can do at home.
Only got a few minutes? The NHS’ 10-minute workout ideas are perfect if you’ve only got a bit of spare time when you’re at home.
This Girl Can
This Girl Can has put together a useful list of exercises to try at home, from table-top press ups to living room wall sits – and they’re great for women and men alike.
With the Kids
These Disney dance-alongs are a perfect, and fun, way to get active with the kids. You can get moving to all of them by clicking the button below.
And Change4Life has created some Disney-themed indoor games and activities, including a Toy Story 4-inspired Find Forky game. These are bundles of fun and will get the kids moving.
There are also lots of ways to keep disabled children and young people active indoors, including a seated version of a classic obstacle race.
Getting Outside
Walking is one of the easiest ways to get active, if you have some space or you’re able to leave your house, of course.
Find out a bit more about its benefits and take a look at some other useful resources.
The Active 10 app, from the NHS, is a great way to help you monitor and gradually increase your brisk walking levels over time.
It’s available to download via the App Store and Google Play.
Couch to 5k is a nine-week programme of podcasts that does exactly what it says on the tin – taking you from the couch to running 5kms.
Consisting of three runs a week, the programme gradually builds up intensity and gives you a choice of coaches – from the NHS’s Laura, to multiple Olympic champion Michael Johnson.
This content is based on an article published 16 March 2020 by Sport England. Together we will #StayInWorkOut.
Share Your Ideas
If you’ve found a great way to keep active online, use the #StayInWorkOut on social media to share it with others.
