Tips For Implementing Movement During Shelter In Place
Written By:
Quinten Lawrence, Saint Mary’s College Junior, Health and Fitness Advocate
Here I am about 200 days into the shelter-in-place finishing up what seems to be my 1000th at home workout. At this point I look around and almost recognize the same quality of workout room as my local gym. I got to this point through a number of forks in a very complicated road. Like many other people when the shelter-in-place started I did not workout for a little but once the gyms closed, and that came back to get me when I realized the prices of gym equipment had risen through the roof.
I knew that In order to maintain sanity and some strength I had to create some space in which I can have the familiarity of the gym. So in order to keep the same movement up as I am able to achieve with thousands of dollars of equipment at my disposal, I went to work. Over the period of the shelter-in-place I have seen my workout routine evolve, from what I thought I needed to, to what I know I actually need. It has gone from heavy dumbbells and big machines to a set of resistance bands, a spare tractor tire, and a garden pot full of rocks.
My movement routine has evolved in such a way that I am actually happier with what I am doing now than before when surrounded by thousands of dollars worth of gym equipment. The main reason I am able to keep up a schedule of movement during the shelter-in-place is because I hold myself to a list. Yes a written list, it can be bullet points or numbers. Everyday I write a list of tasks I need to do for the day, and everyday working out is on that list.
I also make sure to keep track of my sets and routines on my phone to be able to differentiate what I have done over the past week. Especially now it is vitally important to mix up your routines to not allow your body to get accustomed to what you are presenting to it.
I went into the start of the shelter in place with bg plans to get a whole customized home gym, but as I really zoom out from my situation at this point I realize I don’t need what everyone says one needs to get a good workout in. Instead I have realized that I need what makes me feel the most comfortable when moving my body.
If that is a silly looking barbell or a pot of rocks than that’s the way it is. That is probably the biggest thing I have implemented during the shelter in place. The realization that I am different from everyone else and that is okay. I have things that work for me that don’t work for everyone else, and that is okay. So I leave you with that message if you’re unsure of working out because of the anxiety that may come with it. Tell yourself: “I am on my own journey” and implement that into your daily routine when moving your body.
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