Buy a kettlebell
A quality kettlebell costs between 30 – 90 euros, last a lifetime, requires very little space, pretty much replaces an entire gym, and you only need one. You can do classic exercises like squats for strength, dynamic deadlifts called swings for endurance, or kettlebell get ups to work your whole body. As a free weight, the kettlebell also forces your muscle groups to cooperate to keep you balanced. There’s not much you can’t do with it:
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Use your body weight
There is a lot you can do without any equipment what so ever. As long as you have a floor you’ve got all you need to do planks, lunges, squats, or single leg deadlifts. Add a regular chair and you can do some triceps dips, glute bridges, and elevated push-ups too. And if you’re worried that without weights you can’t build real strength, just watch this guy. The sky is the limit:
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Take the stairs
You don’t really need anything that would be considered an exercise to get your body fit. A simple choice of taking the stairs instead of a lift can do wonders. A recent study found that 3 intense one minute stair climbs (with a minute rest between each) done 3 times a week raise VO2 max by 7 % after only six weeks. That’s better than what most coaches in the gym can produce in that short amount of time.
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Clean your house
There’s a lot of talk about functional fitness and movement. You can’t be more functional than doing your chores. It might not seem like exercise but an observational study found that doing household chores for 0,5 hour a day 5 days a week substantially reduces the risk of heart disease and overall mortality. If that’s not enough for you, you can always split and carry wood, or move your furniture around.
Commute on a bike
We saved the best one for last. If you already like to ride your bike, there’s nothing easier than starting to commute on a bike regularly. Recent research showed that bike commuters had a 41 % lower risk of mortality than those who drive or take public transportation to work.
