Home workouts are a great way to train, whether you're tight on time or don't want the expense of a gym membership. But many routines assume you have equipment around. Fortunately, you don't need any weights for this full-body workout.
While investing in a set of the best adjustable dumbbells can be a great way to build muscle at home, it's not the only way to develop strength — this nine-move routine developed by Sweat co-founder, Kayla Itsines uses your body weight alone.
You don't need any weights to get started, although rolling out a yoga mat can offer underfoot support and make floor-based moves a bit more comfortable, but it's not essential so long as you have a bit of clear space.
The aim is to do 20 repetitions of each exercise, and repeat the nine-move round four times for an effective, no-equipment way to build muscle all over. You don't even need to do them all in a single routine, either.
"You can easily combine these exercises to make a full-length HIIT workout, pick a couple of them when you just want a short burst of movement, or even use them as a way to warm-up or elevate your heart rate in the middle of a workout," Itstines advises.
Once you've got your space set up and a gym water bottle to hand, you can practice your technique using Itsines' demonstrations. This is essential if you want to get the most from your training and avoid injury.
Watch Kayla Itsines' nine-move full-body workout
It's important to do each move with perfect form, but if you're finding it a bit too challenging, it's okay to switch to an exercise you can do with perfect form instead. "I make plenty of changes to my workouts and adapt exercises whenever I need to," explains Itsines.
"When I tested my strength 10 weeks after [my son] Jax was born, I could only do a couple of push-ups and mountain climbers, and any time things weren’t feeling right, I would choose other exercises. If a move isn’t right for your body, swap it, adapt it — do what works for you!"
Although training to reach a specific goal is a worthy target, you can also just exercise for happiness if that's what you want. And if you do go that route, your workouts don't have to look a specific way either.
"One of the things that often stops people from working out or beginning their fitness journey is the idea that you need a heap of equipment and a large amount of space," Itsines told us.
"Sure, [they] can be part of your training, but you don’t actually need these things to have a really effective workout. I’ve always been a big fan of high-intensity exercises you can do at home with zero or minimal equipment," she explained.
But high-intensity sessions won't suit everyone. If you're looking for a way to move your body without the pressure of a workout routine, consider taking a soft hike. The aim is to wander without purpose and just enjoy the experience.
