Welcome to 2020. When coffees are takeaway only, and workouts are done at home using a tin of beans and the closest and least sentimental piece of furniture in sight. At least that's how it was in Lockdown 1.0. As the year has progressed and Lockdowners have turned from extravert to sanitary obsessed introvert, the idea of sharing gym equipment and waiting for someone to 'finish their set' has become a distant memory. 

2020 is the year of nailing your home (or outdoor) workout routines.  

What's that I hear you say? You're fed up with body weight workouts and can't get any overpriced dumbbells on Amazon? Well, fear not fellow Lockdowners, as Arc Fit is on a mission to help perfect your home workout routines in the most dynamic and effective way possible. Whatever the fitness ability, mood, time and effort available.  

Now, the age old saying 'failing to prepare is preparing to fail'. And it's true. PLAN 👏🏼YOUR👏🏼WORKOUT👏🏼. Now more than ever, exercising takes preparation, motivation and determination, so as soon as you have those words down on paper or written in the notes on your phone, it's on like donkey kong. You've set your destiny for the imminent future, and you better buckle up for a whole load of guilt if you try to shortcut your way through.   

With this in mind and when planning your session, make sure you listen to your body and remember that a good old stretchathon or rest day is just as important as a real heart raiser. There really is no point writing a massive strength session if your body is fatigued, as this is when injuries occur and corners get cut. Diarising your workouts can also be a handy trick that allows you to visualise your achievements, however this can be a slippery slope into obsessive tracking, so do what is most beneficial for you.   

It goes without saying, be conscious. Whether you live in a flat, semidetached or mansion with five acres, now is not the time to be making enemies with neighbours. It's not smart or considerate to be full steam ahead into a set of squat jumps and burpees in the evening when you've got a sleeping baby and a highly strung mother in the flat beneath you. Let’s not forget that our workouts can be done at the local park or communal basketball court, so maybe save the heavy footed routines for then.   

Now, onto the exercises. First things first, never forget to stretch. Imagine a piece of spaghetti, it'll simply snap if manhandled, but give it a nice hot bath and it's agile and ready for combat. We advise to spend at least 5-10 minutes stretching to awaken your muscles, and steadily raise your heart rate.   

Secondly, look around to see what kind of furniture or stable objects that you can utilise throughout your session. Get creative, not ambitious. The last thing you want is to do step ups onto a glass coffee table, as we all know how that ends. We opt for stairs (if available), dining chairs or the end of a sofa.  

Constructing your workout can hugely vary depending on the type of routine you have planned. For those who are complete beginners, your workout typically consists of reps and sets. A rep is one whole action, for example 1 Arc Fit Front Squat. You also have a set, which is a group of repetitions performed for different exercises. For example I may do 3 sets of 10 Arc Fit Front Squats. This means I will perform 10 squats, rest, and then go again, rest, and then go for the final third set.  

The most common sets are rep based, where typically lower reps = heavier weight and higher reps = body weight endurance. If you're using the Arc Fit Bag and attempting a Devil Press, then it’s wise to have a manageable weight for roughly 8-10 reps. On the contrary, if you'd like some more endurance based exercises then you may attempt an Arc Fit Front Squat, with a goal of between 30-50 reps.  

For the more competitive of natured individuals, an EMOM (Every Minute On the Minute). This is more of a challenge based set, where you complete an exercise for a certain number of reps in under a minute. The remaining time within the minute is your rest period which is extremely important, but may get less and less the more fatigued you become. At the top of the next minute, your next set begins, and so on. 

Lastly, you could have a Time based set, so X seconds on and X seconds rest. For example 20 seconds of exercise, 20 seconds rest, or 45 seconds exercise and 15 seconds rest. For this it works best to have a timer propped up just in front of you.  

We hope this helps you have the confidence to construct the perfect home workout. If you’re looking for some inspiration then head over to LINK where we have a huge selection of example exercises to get stuck into.