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This is a pandemic! So I can completely assume that we all have been there. Some countries have implemented a complete lockdown and have forced you to stay at home at all times. Others (like the Netherlands) are less strict but definitely closed the gyms for a very long time.
You might be one of those people that are pretty sad and miss their gym or can’t afford to go anymore as the crisis also hit the world economy. You might also be one of the many that worry about their weight going up, as it becomes harder to move as much as before the Pandemic. If you’re in a lockdown or at least interested in knowing how you can work out at your own home and make it as effective as if you were in a gym, then keep reading.
Equipment
Resistance Tubes
Resistance tubes are a wonderful tool since you can use them to replicate movements that you would normally do with dumbbells or a cable pulley. With resistance tubes, you can increase the load, by combining two or several bands together. This is efficient and practical since it saves you space and the need to buy several dumbbells to have the same results. Weighted squats and shoulder presses are only a few of the movements you could do with this piece of equipment. (The kit from the image is from the dutch webshop “bol.com”). Resistance Loop Bands
Another useful piece of equipment is the resistance loop band. You may have seen them, as a lot of fitness Instagram influencers use them while exercising. Similar to resistance tubes, the increase of load is proportional to the resistance of the band. You may find them in packages of 3 or 4 that indicate the difficulty level or how heavy the load will be. Some of the most popular movements are squats, crab walks, and banded kickbacks (check links for examples). However, you can also use the resistance bands for upper body movements, targeting back, triceps, shoulders, and even biceps.
Slam Balls, Wall Balls & Sandbells
Pilates Balls aren’t the only ones that could enhance your home workout. If yours already is deflated, there might be better options that don’t need any air pumping. 
Slam balls do not bounce, they are smaller than a pilates ball (about the size of a basketball) and tend to be quite heavy. Wall balls on the other hand are soft, but bigger in size than slam balls and might bounce (but not as much as pilates balls). These are great tools for functional and HIIT movements. You can use them as well to level up abdominal workouts and for different variations of push-ups and balance exercises.
Sandbells, look a bit like a flat medicine ball, but these neoprene fabric bags filled with sand behave quite differently. A SandBell can offer plenty of variations in your workout: swing it like a kettlebell, toss it like a med ball, slide it like a disc, or push and pull it like a dumbbell.
Lebert EQualizers®
Despite their visual simplicity, these bars provide dozens of variations (check the link for examples) on most common body-weight exercises. These bars come in a set of two, which you can use together or separately. Use them for tricep dips, inclined bench-presses, lying pull-ups or chin-ups.
Have no Money to Spend on Equipment?
That is okay. Bodyweight exercises are an effective way to exercise just about anywhere. There are several exercises that you can try and dozens of variations to increase the difficulty. Some bodyweight exercises are push-ups, supermans, split squats…. The list goes on! But I encourage you to check this article by ACE Fitness giving you a few more examples. Adding Higher Intensity to your Workouts
If your regular squats are already top-notch when they come to proper form, try including variations like pistol squats, jumping squats and split squats. Sometimes by standing on a safe but unsteady surface like a cushion, could do the trick to increase the challenge.
Plyometrics ("plyo," for short) used to be called "jump training". Plyometric Training is a technique that you can use in many different ways (think burpees, jumping jacks, step touches, high knees, and box jumps).
Have Complaining Neighbors?
Okay… You might argue that you can’t jump at home because your knee (or other joints hurt), or simply because you live above neighbors that might complain about the noise. However, high intensity doesn’t have to mean high impact. Intensity and Impact are two terms that often get confused within the fitness industry. Shannon Fable explains in this ACE Fitness article, that “While impact describes the amount of force the body must endure, intensity refers to the level of difficulty”.
Adding time workouts and doing as many repetitions as possible (AMRAP) of the movements you already know, might be one way to increase the intensity of the workout. You could also add more range of motion (think wider or deeper), holding a position for longer periods of time, or integrating new loads for bodyweight exercises.
Still, Feeling Lost and Lack of Motivation?
Contact me! Brave Dame Fitness offers a wide range of services, including Online and Hybrid Training. Hybrid Training is a unique combination of an online program and traditional onsite training. Not only will you have a sense of accountability after the first free consultation and ongoing follow-ups, but you will also receive all the guidance and support you need while training towards goals! 
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