Exercise at home to strengthen your immunity

Whether you’re stuck inside, looking to sneak a quick workout in or simply prefer to exercise in the comfort of your own home, by doing so you will be strengthening your immune system as well as the rest of your body. Thankfully, The Fast 800 makes small-space, equipment-free sessions easy.

Importantly, not having access to large spaces or a gym membership shouldn’t stop you from exercising. In fact, consistent exercise is integral to long-term metabolic health and here you’ll see just how easily it can be done without using expensive equipment or going to the gym.

New research shows by leading a physically active lifestyle, we may be less likely to contract contagious and non-contagious diseases. So, regular exercise may just bolster your immune system on top of its more obvious benefits of fitness and strength!

It’s important to incorporate a combination of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and resistance exercise into your lifestyle, as is set out for you as a member of our 12-week online programme, because studies have shown this combination, alongside incidental exercise, leads to weight loss and positive health outcomes.

When spending extended time at home, it’s easy to lose structure in your day and ultimately fall off track, however, exercise is a great way to get you feeling productive. Plus, starting a routine in the comfort of your home will help to reset your relationship with exercise.

Read our tips for working out at home and then try our FREE 7-day workout plan to get started.

How can you do resistance exercises with no equipment?

Resistance training is extremely important in the maintenance and growth of muscle mass. This is important in maintaining strength, posture, bone density and tone. Our resistance training sessions are time based, meaning you can focus on your technique properly without having to worry about completing a certain number of repetitions in an allocated time period.

Time-based sessions also enable you to progress your weights and duration of the exercises from one week to the next.

What you need:

• A towel or yoga mat for comfort
• A clear space – if it fits your mat, that’s usually enough
• Dumbbells if you have them, although filled water bottles or canned goods make great substitutes
• A chair or bench

Here’s a taste of the resistance exercise videos from The Fast 800 online programme:

HIIT exercise at home

HIIT is characterised by repeated work phases of vigorous or ‘maximum effort’ exercise, each separated by periods of rest or low intensity exercise and finished with a cool down. We love HIIT because it takes just five minutes to get a great workout in.

Since the discovery of HIIT, evidence of its benefits has continued to grow. Researchers have learned that unlike steady-state exercise, HIIT directly targets visceral fat, the fatty deposits that can lead to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.

You can choose your HIIT exercise based on your own abilities and preferences – simply choose something that will get your heart rate up during the “work” phase.

Here are some great exercises to mix up your workouts, you can even combine a few:

• squats/weighted squats
• reverse lunges
• marching, high knees or jogging on the spot
• step ups onto a single step or up/down stairs
• jumping jacks
• glute bridges
• mountain climbers
• lateral skaters or side steps
• punching/shadow boxing (optional 0.5-1kg weight)

You can also do your HIIT sessions by cycling/exercise bike, using a rowing machine, on the cross trainer or even swimming in the pool if you have access to these options.

Maintaining fitness with incidental exercise

This is the exercise that you do in your typical day-to-day activities. It has long been proven that people who incorporate lots of incidental exercise in their day tend to live longer, healthier lives and better maintain their weight. Your activity level between training sessions also strongly impacts your health. In a review of 48 studies conducted over a 15-year period from 1996 to 2011, researchers found a clear link between sedentary behaviour (independent of physical exercise) and mortality risk. Living a sedentary lifestyle was also a predictor of increased weight gain from childhood to adulthood. A further study has shown that in older adults, incidental activity can help to protect against cognitive decline.

If you’re spending lots of time at home, try incorporating these ideas into your daily routine:

• Take the stairs to your apartment, or go up and down your staircase every 30 minutes
• Walk the dog
• Walk around while you are on the phone
• Download audio books to listen to while you do housework - a good swap for reading in bed!
• Download the new Fast Asleep audio book and take a walk in fresh air while you listen
• Drink plenty of water. This will make you get up regularly for the toilet, if nothing else!
• Do some gardening
• Finish a DIY project or chore
• Do 10 squats before opening the fridge, 10 sit-ups before turning on the TV, etc

Members of The Fast 800 online programme have access to weekly exercise plans tailored to their fitness level and based on the formula of 2-3 HIIT and resistance sessions each per week. All workouts can be done at home with little to no equipment. Additionally, members have access to exercise video guides to check their form, learn new techniques and stay motivated.

Try our exercise beginner, intermediate or advanced plans with a 7-day free trial for the Online Programme: