You don't need equipment to get fit or stronger!

So you’ve decided to start your fitness journey but can’t afford a gym membership does this mean with all your good intentions you’re going to fall at the first hurdle? Not at all! There are so many ways of getting fit without the need for equipment especially for someone who has decided to get fit for the first time. From cardio to bodyweight strength exercises there is something for everyone!

No equipment for cardio? Well just put on your trainers and have a jog or a brisk walk you obviously have to get a bit of a sweat on and raise that heart rate. It's all very well thinking that your daily walk to work or the train station constitutes a workout but if it doesn’t get that heartbeat thumping and a nice sheen on your forehead you are sadly fooling yourself. So trainers on and go for a jog and there you are free cardio.

Then there are the hiit workouts that everyone raves about, you will find plenty of videos on youtube that take you through the sessions, the only advice I would give to you is get your technique right in the first instance as bad form could increase the likelihood of an injury and then that would ruin any hopes of finishing your fitness journey having achieved your goals in the timeframe you wanted. Also hiit workouts should only really be performed 1-2 times a week, because they put stress on your body so you need to give it time to recover. For the other session to add recovery and still get moving I would add a slower cardio based workout such as a slower jog/walk if cardio is what floats your boat!

Next onto equipment free strength exercises ‘what ?’ I hear you say! Well yes, strength training can be done using just your own bodyweight. Squats, lunges, push-ups all the old favourites are in there and they really do work. I lift heavy weights in my main session but after I’ve performed all the lifts I then move onto my assistance exercises these include, pull-ups, push-ups, tricep dips, hanging leg raises all these are just using my bodyweight as the resistance, granted you need a pull-up bar but you can still do push-ups, squats, lunges and tricep dips and there are plenty of children’s playgrounds with climbing frames so if you're brave enough to put yourself out there go for it!

I always add a few bodyweight exercises into my clients sessions, I think it's a way of letting them think out of the box and make them realise they could - if they wanted to -do these sorts of exercises at home. So there you have it, exercises without equipment-what a novel idea! Please try it, start with one push-up and push-on, you will be amazed what results you get using just your bodyweight as the resistance. Leaner, toned muscles and a change in your body shape are all the outcomes of adding these important exercises as well to your routine.

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