How to Stay Fit at Home

As an avid boutique fitness enthusiast, my fitness routine has been thrown in complete disarray now that my options are limited to inside the home. I miss the community and accountability I get from taking classes. I have found it more difficult than I anticipated to stay motivated on my own. Working out is the one activity keeping me sane at the moment. So I knew right away I had to find a new routine and stick to it. I’ve been making a point to move my body in some way every single day. It’s the least I can do for my mental and physical health. So I set out to test and try as many different streaming services and home workouts as I could physically handle.

As devastating as this time is for the fitness and wellness industry, the community has really stepped up in terms of supporting each other and giving back to their customers. There are truthfully more workouts (free and paid) than any one person can do. It’s really just a matter of finding the classes and routines that you enjoy the most. I’ve included all of the different workouts I’ve tried in the running list below, along with my honest review of each of them.

How to Stay Fit at Home

Streaming Workouts

+ Alo Moves 

After taking some time off from my yoga practice, I have a newfound love and appreciation for yoga, thanks to Alo Moves. The entire experience is seamless, from the user interface to the variety of classes and the quality of instructors. The on-demand streaming platform features truly phenomenal instructors leading high-quality yoga, fitness (strength, HIIT, pilates, barre, etc.), mindfulness, and skills classes, so there’s something for everyone. The site allows you to filter classes by length, level of difficulty, and intensity. So you’ll always be able to find something to fit your mood. Looking for a quick morning flow and guided breathwork to ease you into the day? A sculpting vinyasa flow designed to build heat and allow you to break a sweat? Or challenging inversion and flexibility workshops?

Alo Moves has them all, and more.

Alo Moves has the best collection at-home yoga and meditation classes I’ve come across. The classes are as close to an in-studio practice as you can get and I may not go back to a yoga studio after this. I love that I need minimal equipment to practice from home – a mat is all you need, although other props (yoga blocks, a strap, blankets) may be beneficial towards your practice.

I’ve been trying to take 20-30 minute classes every morning with an emphasis on stretching and mobility. It’s a great compliment to running and strength training. I’m focused on improving my flexibility over the next few months. And I love that practicing yoga is back in my daily routine. I’m also excited about jumping back into a more invigorating yoga practice. So I’ve bookmarked a series of more energizing vinyasa flows as well.  I’ve even started to identify which of the instructors are my favorite, and have over 50 classes saved under “My Practice” to keep me busy during this time at home.

I would recommend this app to anyone, regardless of their yoga experience. The 14-day free trial is absolutely worth checking out, after that the classes are $20/month or $199 for the year. This is definitely a subscription I will keep after my free trial, as the price for a year’s worth of classes is the equivalent of a 10 class package at a yoga studio and the quality is just as good (if not better). It’s also great if for traveling, as you can easily squeeze in a short workout in your hotel room.

+ The Sculpt Society

Dance cardio and sculpting classes led by Megan Roup, a former professional dancer and fitness instructor. Megan has amazing energy and actually does the entire routine with you, which is so motivating! Initially, I was skeptical about the workout and signed up for the free trial to see what all the fuss was about.

Dance cardio is not my favorite, so I usually skip those sections at the beginning and only take the sculpting portions or classes. As someone who is used to lifting weights and taking more intense HIIT classes, I found myself pleasantly surprised by the sculpt classes. The Sculpt Society burns in a different way – Megan’s goal is to lengthen and tone, and she applies her experience as a professional dancer to her workout. My favorite sections are the mat exercises that focus on your glutes (with ankle weights!).

You don’t need any equipment to do the workout.

But if you plan on committing longer term, it’s worth investing in a few pieces of equipment to take your workout up a notch. I would definitely recommend ankle weights and sliders for an extra burn, as well as light hand weights (2 or 3 pounds, canned food will also work if you can’t find weights as they are sold out almost everywhere at the moment).

If you enjoy dance cardio (think 305 Fitness or Body By Simone) and are looking for a toning workout, I would absolutely suggest trying out their free 14-day trial to get a feel for the classes before you commit to a paid subscription ($19.99 per month or $119.99 for a year). If you prefer more intense workouts, The Sculpt Society might not be for you.  As far as at-home workouts go, The Sculpt Society is a fun, moderate-intensity class.  I’m still on the fence about keeping my membership, as the monthly price is the same as other platforms and the collection of workouts is a bit limited. I’m hoping she continues to add more workouts on her app.

+ Tracy Anderson Online

I tried this and found that it was not for me – but I have friends who love it! Similar to the other streaming programs, TA Online offers a free 14-day trial. As far as the workout goes, it is very similar to The Sculpt Society, but I think a bit harder. TA Online uploads one workout a week and provides a recommended schedule to follow. However, I found the movements throughout to be much more complicated and difficult to follow, and there’s zero instruction or voiceover the entire time. The format was hard to watch and get into, so I gave up on this after a few tries.

+ P.volve

After hearing good things about P.volve from some close friends, I bit the bullet and purchased this set of equipment (the “P Ball” is a proprietary ball that is important for a lot of the workouts, and I can use the hand and ankle weights for other workouts). Once I receive the equipment and test the workout, I’ll share my review after the 14-day free trial!

Live Instructor & Studio Workouts

A lot of studios and individual instructors are offering free live workouts (sometimes daily!). Be sure to check your local studio’s social media accounts and website to see if they are offering any at-home workouts. Many studios are offering free workouts through Instagram Live, and their instructors will often post free workouts on Instagram and YouTube.

Some studios are also offering virtual classes at home -these are typically done over a video conference and cost between $6-$15 per class. My trainer, Jenn is offering Zoom workouts a few times a week for $7 and I highly recommend these!

My two favorite LA-based pilates studios, Natural Pilates and The Studio MDR are offering streaming pilates classes for $15 each.

Equipment for At-Home Workouts

Most workouts can be done with little to minimal equipment, but since it appears home workouts are the only option for the foreseeable future, I do recommend purchasing some equipment so you can get the most of your workouts. You can definitely get creative as well – think using canned food or a wine bottle instead of dumbells, or a towel instead of gliders. Based on the workouts I’ve tried, I would recommend the following equipment or finding a substitute for them. Once you have these, you’ll be able to follow a lot of at-home workout programs.

+ Yoga Mat

+ Resistance Bands 

+ Sliders

+ Jumprope

+ Weights

+ Ankle weights 

How You Can Continue to Support the Fitness Industry

The entire fitness and wellness industry is currently struggling as a result of closures – while some studios offer paid classes that are taken online via streaming, many are

+ Buy a gift card

If it’s within your means to do so, a gift card goes a long way. A lot of local businesses could use additional cashflow – many of them are just trying to cover their existing bills and pay their staff if they can. Even if you can’t pay for future services in advance, you can still support a studio or instructor you love in other ways.

+ Take paid streaming classes

Some of the free workouts are great, but I find myself personally more motivated when I am held accountable. Taking a class, even if virtually, provides a sense of community and accountability.

+ Ask individual instructors/trainers if they offer virtual sessions

If you can afford a private or semi-private session, many trainers are offering at-home workouts via video conference.

+ Share your favorite workouts

As I mentioned before, there are so many options for at-home workouts now, it can seem overwhelming to most. I spent the last few weeks trying a ton of different programs and IG workouts before landing on a routine. If you find something you love, share it with your friends or on your social media.