While gyms, outdoor facilities, and the general outdoors are still not a hundred percent safe, working out at home has become the best way to exercise amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. However, our homes are not always the best places to workout. The lack of space, the stuffiness, and the presence of distractions (and food!) can drive down your motivation to break out your yoga mat or hop on the treadmill. So, what can you do to make your home more conducive to fun and comfortable exercise?
Here are several tips that are worth trying:
1. Improve ventilation
Stuffiness is among the most common killers of workout motivation. When you engage in any strenuous physical activity, you tend to respire more as your body demands more oxygen. But when the room you’re working out in is poorly ventilated, it’s harder to breathe, you feel warmer, and exercise easily becomes uncomfortable.
To improve ventilation in your workout room (and home in general), the first thing you need to do is address any HVAC repair and maintenance issues that you may have. For instance, a poorly performing HVAC system may not be ventilating your home enough to maintain optimal levels of humidity. As a result, the air feels stuffy, and the heat from your body while exercising does not dissipate as well as it should.
Another good tip is to use a fan to improve airflow in your workout area. Open the windows and place a fan facing out the door. As the fan pulls the air from the windows and out the door, you’re going to get more fresh air inside the room, making exercise more comfortable.
2. Designate a workout area
Having a room dedicated to working out is perhaps the best way to motivate yourself to exercise more at home. If you have a spare room, turn it into a home gym with a few wide mirrors, some workout equipment, and a layer of high-density EVA foam for your floors.
Is a home gym out of the question? Dedicate a workout area in your bedroom, living room, garage, or any other part of your home that has enough space for your workout and equipment and the type of exercises you’re going to do. Apart from being a physical reminder that you need to work out, having a designated workout area in your home will save you the hassle of laying down and putting away your equipment over and over again.
3. Adjust the temperature
It’s not fun nor comfortable to exercise in a home that is either too hot or too cold. Working out in a hot environment can dry you out faster than what’s healthy. On the other hand, staying in a very cold environment with damp clothes can be downright uncomfortable.
Find the optimal temperature for working out and adjust your thermostat accordingly. However, avoid constantly making changes to your indoor temperature to avoid overworking your heating or air conditioning system.
4. Let more natural light in
Natural light is the best type of light for virtually any activity, including working out. Here are the best ways to increase natural light in your home:
- Open the curtains. There’s no better way to let in more sunshine into your home.
- Clean your windows. Dirty windows can block light from entering your home, so clean them regularly.
- Add mirrors. Light bounces off mirrors. The more mirrors you have, the more light they will reflect inside your home.
- Get bigger windows. If your windows are too small to let an optimal level of sunlight in, consider replacing them with bigger ones, at least in your workout room.
5. Watch TV
One of the benefits of working out at home is that you have a TV to entertain yourself while doing reps or running on the treadmill. With the lower level of stimulation in your home compared to a gym, watching TV is a great way to make your workouts more fun and engaging, even if you’re by yourself.
Play your favorite Netflix shows, watch some Youtube videos, or perhaps pop in exercise videos to get you in the mood to sweat. If you get tired of your usual exercises, you can also use the TV to squeeze in some rounds of Wii Sport or Wii Fit games into your exercise routine.
Exercise shouldn’t have to feel like a chore, especially when you’re doing it at home, which is not always conducive to workout motivation. With these tips, you can make your home a better place to workout in, helping you become more motivated to reach your fitness goals and push past your comfort zone.
