Despite some limitations, there are countless exercises suitable for home workouts. When creating a routine for yourself, Kom recommends including a blend of strength, cardio and mobility training. The following are three expert-recommended home exercises.
Push-Ups
Target area: The push-up is a classic exercise that works the muscles in the chest, shoulders, arms, core and legs. What’s more, push-ups feature both regressions and progressions, meaning you can modify their difficulty depending on your current ability.
How to do it:
- Begin in a high plank position with your hands shoulder-width apart and your legs stretched out straight behind you. Your fingers should face forward or slightly inward. Contract your core muscles and legs so your body is stiff.
- Slowly lower toward the floor by bending at the elbows. You can keep your elbows tucked into your sides or flare them out slightly. Keep your core and leg muscles engaged so your body remains in a straight line—your hips should not sag or lift.
- Once your chest touches the floor (or hovers just above it), push back up to the starting position, keeping your head and spine in a straight line, to complete one rep.
Modifications: To make a push-up easier, perform the exercise with your knees on the ground or with your hands on a countertop, recommends Hodges. To make it harder, Hodges suggests changing the tempo by lowering your body slowly and then exploding upward quickly.
Squats
Target area: Another classic exercise to add to your at-home repertoire is the squat, says Kom. Squats primarily work muscles in your lower body, including your glutes, quads, hamstrings and calves.
How to do it:
- Start in a standing position with your feet about shoulder-width apart.
- Hinge at your hips and bend your knees, lowering until your thighs are parallel with the floor (or as close as your range of motion allows). Keep your feet flat on the floor and your ankles and knees parallel without collapsing inward.
- Return to the standing position to complete one rep.
Modifications: To make the squat easier, perform a partial squat, keeping your thighs higher than parallel with the floor, or hold onto a solid support like the back of a chair for balance. To make it more of a strength challenge, hold an object, such as a dumbbell, kettlebell or jug of water, in your hands while you squat. To turn squats into a cardio exercise, try a jump squat. In this variation, instead of standing up out of the squat, push off your toes to explode into a jump before moving straight into the next squat.
Jumping Jacks
Target area: This gym class standby gets your blood pumping. Jumping jacks not only challenge your heart, improving your cardiovascular health, but also work muscles all over your body, including your calves, hamstrings, quads, deltoids and core. Use jumping jacks as a warm-up, as part of a circuit or in between strengthening exercises.
How to do it:
- Start by standing with your arms at your sides and your feet together.
- Jump your feet out wider than your hips and bring your arms above your head simultaneously.
- Return your arms to your sides as you jump your feet back together to complete one rep, staying on the balls of your feet and maintaining a slight bend in your elbows as you continue through your set.
Modifications: If a regular jumping jack is too difficult or you’re looking for a low-impact option that still increases your heart rate, try stepping one foot out to the side at a time, raising both arms above your head each time you step out, instead of jumping. Meanwhile, you can make jumping jacks more difficult by landing in a squat position as the feet jump out.
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