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How to exercise at home (without significant equipment or investment)

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It’s oh-so-easy to give in to inertia and just sink into the couch until this all subsides. But there’s no reason to let social distancing turn you sedentary. It’s possible to get a great workout at home, and you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars on trendy exercise equipment to do so.

Las Vegas-based fitness instructor and certified personal trainer Patricia Castro offers these workout-at-home tips. When the world goes back to normal, you can find her at Alley Fitness on Commerce Street in the Arts District. In the meantime, she’s adapting to our current reality by posting short exercise videos to her Instagram account (@patriciaecastro) and conducting personal training sessions via FaceTime.

Get Streaming

Castro swears by the online classes offered on the ClassPass app. She likes to stream Pilates classes from a studio in West Hollywood. But that’s just one option. There are tons of exercise classes that can be streamed through a variety of fitness apps or online. The easiest way is to go to YouTube and search for the type of workout you want to do. Some local gyms, like TruFusion and Planet Fitness, are offering online fitness instruction during the shutdown.

A little goes a long way

Some people assume that if they don’t have an hour to devote to exercise, there’s no point even trying. But Castro says the opposite is true. If she’s feeling stressed or anxious, she’ll take a 10-minute break and do a little yoga, some deep breathing exercises or meditation. “It makes my day run smoother if I even do just 10-15 minutes,” Castro says. You can add multiple short workouts throughout the day for a cumulative effect.

If you want to get fancy

There’s no need to buy any equipment, but if you feel the need to online shop, Castro recommends stocking up on these products: a yoga mat to contain the sweat; light weights (even just 3 pounds) to help with toning; a fabric resistance band “to feel the burn right away” (she sells one online called a Peach Band); a physio ball; and some gliders for increased range of motion during mountain climbers.

Try this workout.

If you’re stuck for ideas or don’t know where to start, Castro recommends trying this basic workout. Do each step for 30 seconds with a 15-second break in between. Aim for three rounds, but anything helps.

Jumping Jacks Provide full-body cardio

Stretch Do some basic movements, such as trying to touch your toes.

Hold a Plank Strengthens the core and arms

Mountain Climbers Strengthens the legs, core and arms

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