Author: Maria Alfano
I know, I know! Exercise is a dirty word! If you’re like me, the motivation to get moving was lacking until I found these 5 easy ways to exercise with household items.
Have you ever paid for a gym membership and all it did was collect dust?!? Of course, we all have. At least with these household items, the cost of admission is really low (many times it’s free). You won’t even need to think about it, you will just do it!!
Getting and staying fit after 50 is not as easy as it sounds. As we go through the change of life, our hormones and metabolism just aren’t what they used to be. That doesn’t change the fact that we need to maintain some form of exercise regimen to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Going to the gym or getting a gym membership can be expensive and it can turn into a white elephant, rarely used and collecting dust. If you have a gym in your building or complex that is free to use, then take full advantage of it. If you have an old piece of exercise equipment at home, dust it off and start using it, even if it’s for only 15 minutes 2 or 3 times per week.
For everyone else looking for easy ways to exercise with household items, this post is for you. We will cover the simple tools you already have at home, the simple low-impact exercises you can do without causing injury, and discover the activities you may already be doing that can be considered exercise.
10 Easy Ways to Exercise with Household Items You Need in your repertoire
You are already exercising and don’t even know it. Some are more frequent than others. While others may be totally brand new to you. Either way, try these on for size…
What Are 10 Exercises You Can Do At Home?
1 – The Paper Plate Shuffle
With one paper plate under each foot, you can do two simple exercises
1. Glide from side to side to exercise and trim the waistline
2. Glide forward into a lunge to work out the legs and thighs. Be careful not to extend the bended knee past the foot and keep your foot pointed forward as best you can
Staying in control of these motions takes practice so don’t give up as it does work out your muscles even while you’re learning how to do this
2 – The weight of water
Exercising the arms to reduce or eliminate the batwings that creep up under our arms as we start to age is not always easy. This simple routine will help get you on your way.
Hold one small water bottle (full of course) in each hand. Slowly raise the hands over your head for a count of 10 then gently drop them back to your sides. Repeat this 5 times.
With your arms at your sides, slowly raise your arms shoulder height straight out in front of you for a count of 10. Gently and slowly drop your arms back to your sides. Repeat this 5 times.
Starting with your arms at your sides, slowly raise your arms out sideways until they are outstretched at shoulder height. Hold for a count of 10 then gently and slowly drop your arms to your sides. Repeat this 5 times.
Take your water bottles for a walk with you around the block all the while pumping your arms as you walk. Water bottles are the most readily available tools to exercise with household items found in every home.
How To Exercise Around The House
3 – sofa stand
Losing balance is not unusual if your core strength is not the best. This exercise will help strengthen your stomach and leg muscles.
Place some big sofa cushions or other thick firm pillows on the floor. Stand on one leg on the cushion and focus on balancing on the pillow. This means you tighten your stomach muscles to keep upright while you hold the pose for 15 seconds. Switch legs. Repeat this exercise 10 times.
No sofa cushions – no problem. This balancing disc is available on Amazon or you can buy similar ones at Walmart, Target, and your local drug store. Take it from me, standing on one of these cushions is no easy feat!
4 – Let’s do laundry
Well – not really…what we want is the jug of laundry detergent. This routine will help work the arms in a similar way as the water bottles. Once you have become accustomed to the weight of the water bottles, you can graduate to the heavier weight of full bottles of laundry detergent.
The full jug will simulate a kettlebell. Start with the jug on the floor or on a chair beside you. Bend at the waist to pick up the jug. Gently and slowly raise up to straighten your posture while holding the jug. Repeat the same exercises as in #2 above.
5 – up against the wall
This is one of my favorite exercises. I find it not only helps strengthen my legs but it also helps relax my back. The best part is every home has a wall – nothing to buy!
Lean your whole body up against the wall. Ensure the small of your back is pressed into the wall as well. Slowly walk your legs forward until you are in the sitting or squatting position. Your back stays against the wall but your legs are as far out as you can push them away from the wall. Hold the position as long as you can. Aim to extend the time each time you perform this exercise. Repeat this exercise for at least 3 minutes
As you get better at this, you can add some tension for the legs by raising one leg and holding as long as you can, then switch legs. Repeat this exercise for 3 minutes or longer ensuring to rotate each leg.
You can add an element of intensity by using a large exercise ball between you and the wall.
Exercise balls are available at Amazon, Wal-Mart, and Target
6 – walk it off
10,000 steps may seem insurmountable when you are first starting out. Start with a smaller goal and work your way up. Try 5,000 first. Most smartphones have a built-in step counter. Use it to track your steps daily. Keep a log so you can see your progress. Keep your phone with you at all times – in your pocket, strapped to your arm, or do it like Granny used to do it, stick it in your bra. This way you will capture every step taken, even when you make a trip to the loo.
daily chores
Everybody does some sort of chore regularly but did you know that some of them are an excellent form of exercise? Even some of our least exciting activities can be deemed beneficial.
7 – Doing the laundry
Yes, this time it’s actually about doing the laundry. The actions of gathering the dirty garments, loading them into the washing machine, unloading them into the dryer, folding them, and finally putting the folded load of clean clothes away, when done for at least one hour are equal to 75 – 100 situps.
8 – Weeding the garden
Yanking out those pesky weeds can make you break a sweat. Doing this for 30 minutes is like riding a bike for 30 minutes. You would be surprised how many muscles you engage while gardening. You will burn a lot of calories by doing something you love. It pays to be outside and plucking those dandelions from the flower beds.
CLB Kneeling pads are available on Amazon. I could not do my gardening without these knee pads. They are stick, sturdy and easy on the knees. Crouching down with comfort is the name of the game with these garden kneelers. The best part is they are water-resistant and will last you for many seasons.
9 -Wash the car
Hand washing the car is a good workout for the shoulders. Wash in a circular motion for a count of 10 in one direction then a count of 10 in the opposite direction. Switch hands and do it again. Repeat until the car is sparkly clean.
10 – Change the sheets
Pick a day to change all the bed linens in the house. 30 minutes of changing the sheets will help burn up to 180 calories. You don’t realize how many different motions are required until you start paying attention. Changing the bedsheets engages many muscles. Who knew that removing that set of Egyptian cotton would be considered exercise with household items!!
Pulling off the dirty sheets is like using resistance bands. They don’t just slide off easily. It takes some effort.
Lifting your arms with heavy sheets in your hands to spread them across the bed is like lifting lightweights
Bending your knees to tuck in the corners is like doing squats.
Bonus – vacuum
Using the vacuum as support you can lunge into each step forward to exercise your legs. With each push forward lunge out and as you pull the vacuum back stand up. Switch legs and repeat until you’re finished vacuuming.
What Household Items can you Use to Work Out with
-A sack of potatoes in a backpack for a weighted vest
-The edge of your counter or kitchen island for bicep presses
-Laundry detergent bottles used a kettlebells
-No paper plates? No problem! Use a towel on the floor as your slider instead.
This post was all about the simple tools you already have at home to use for exercise equipment, the simple low-impact exercises you can do, and discovering the activities you may already be doing that can be considered exercise with household items.