5 Tips to Keep Fit and Healthy at Home

Hi, I am Kendyl Roodt from Active Health Osteo, we are passionate about helping you stay fit and healthy. Having said this, if you are anything like me, you will be super motivated to do exercise one day, and then the next you will not have any motivation at all…I have found that the best ways to keep fit and healthy are quite simple and achievable for everyone.

Figure 1: Kendyl Roodt, Principle Osteopath: Active Health Osteo. BApplSc Human Biology. Masters of Osteopathy

1.       Find an exercise you like

If you don’t want to do something, it is going to be hard to “stick it out”. For instance, some people love running. Personally, I HATE it (sorry to all the runners) so you will not find me running on the side of the road EVER, but if I have a good kickboxing workout, you better watch your head…I would suggest that you find an exercise video/channel on YouTube that looks fun to you, even if it is just 5 min long.

There are heaps of good exercise channels on YouTube, I could suggest some (get in touch if you want one) but my experience is that everyone likes different types of exercise. You are more likely to exercise consistently if you take ownership of your fitness levels and find something that you enjoy doing.

YouTube has options to suite everyone from Pilates, Kickboxing, High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), dance workouts, weight training, full-body workouts without equipment, etc, so jump online and find something!

2.       Get up and move around at least every hour

If you are working at home, get up and do 10 squats every hour… you will have done around 80 squats a day! You can alternate squats with push-ups, burpees, planks, or other simple exercises. The point is, do SOMETHING, and do it often.

3.       Always Warm Up Before Working Out

People often forget to warm up dynamically before exercising, which drastically increases your risk of injury. In an attempt to decrease this risk, ACC has a variety of different warmups to help you achieve and maintain your fitness levels. See the link below.

https://www.acc.co.nz/newsroom/stories/warming-up-gives-you-the-edge-all-season/

4.       Stretch AFTER Workouts, NOT before

It is not good to do static stretches (stretch and hold) before exercising. This is because the muscle fibres get pulled to a “weaker” position before exercising, which increases the risk of injury.

However, static stretching after working out is good as the stretch helps to “open” up the muscle again, allowing the proper transfer of blood and therefore oxygen into the muscle and allows the oxygen-deprived blood and toxins out of the muscles. This will help decrease the effects of the delayed onset of muscle soreness (DOMS).

5.       Recovery is important, so put your feet up

Most people’s circulation isn’t as great as it could be, however lying down and putting your feet up is actually a great way to give your circulation a bit of a boost as well as helping you relax and unwind.

I find lying on the floor with my feet up against the wall (at about a 45-degree angle) for about 5-10 min a day is a great way to improve circulation as it is easier for your legs to pump blood back to your heart if gravity is working with them, not against them. Wiggle your toes and pump your ankles in a flexion to extension motion to help pump the blood.

Lie down with your arms out to the sides with your hands in a “stop sign” position. If you are tight in your shoulders and pecs, your wrists might not touch the ground, but they will after a few days of doing this stretch! This also helps straighten out your back and improve your posture as well.

Believe it or not, this position also helps switch on the muscles in your intestines, so if you’re suffering from constipation, I would recommend trying this one out!

If you have any existing injuries or develop any when exercising, do not hesitate to get in touch with your local osteopath. Feel free to contact us if you require any information or to book a consultation. Our clinic is open at Covid levels 1 and 2. At levels 3 and 4 we are happy to do a free phone consultation. Contact Us Today.