Ways To Use Household Items for Workouts

Have you ever looked at a nice home gym set and thought “I’d need to cash out my life insurance policy to afford that”? It may be your dream to one day have a professional-looking workout area in your home, but you probably shouldn’t go into debt to make it happen. Fortunately, you don’t have to! There are plenty of items in your house that you can use for your workouts, without spending an extra dime on unnecessary equipment.

Sure, you might look and feel silly while using these items, but who cares? No one is there to see you. Besides, by the time you see your newly toned body in the mirror, you won’t care that you achieved your look with the help of a jar of pickles. So, without further ado, here are some easy ways to use household items for your workouts.

Broom-Lift Superman

If you’ve done the Superman exercise before, you know how good it is for strengthening your back muscles. Now, you can up the ante by adding weight to this already challenging workout. Here’s how.

1. Get a broom and a pair of shoes.

2. Tie the shoes at the laces, leaving a gap beneath the knots.

3. Slide the tied shoelaces onto the broom handle and position them so that one shoe is hanging from one end of the broom and the other shoes is hanging from the other end.

4. Place the broom down on the floor and lie down, face-down with the broom a few inches from your head.

5. Grab onto the broom with both hands and straighten your arms out in front of you. Go for a wide grip with your arms out further than shoulder-width apart.

6. Take a deep breath, tighten your core, and lift your arms off the floor as high as you comfortably can.

7. Hold the position for five seconds.

8. Return to your starting point while exhaling.

9. Repeat the process 10-12 times.

You can make this exercise more challenging by lifting your legs as you lift your arms.

Water Jug Squats

A simple water jug can feel like a ton of bricks if you lift it long enough. To get a killer workout that will tone and shape your glutes and quads, do the following workout:

1. Hold a water jug in front of your chest.

2. Stand with your feet in a wide-squat stance with the toes turning slightly outward.

3. While tightening your core, lower yourself into a squat.

4. Hold your squat for five seconds.

5. Come back to a standing position.

6. Repeat this process for up to 30 reps.

To challenge yourself even further, hold the water jug further away from your body as you squat. This will work your chest, shoulders and arms. Just make sure you hold your core in tight so you don’t compromise your form while doing this challenging exercise.

Wall Push-Ups

Are you trying to work your way up to a standard push-up? I’m right there with you. To strengthen your push-up muscles in an easy way, all you need is a blank wall. Here’s how to do quick and easy wall push-ups.

1. Stand about 2 feet from a wall with your feet hip-width apart.
2. Place your arms straight out in front of you against the wall.
3. Bend your elbows and slowly lower your body towards the wall while leaning forward on your feet.
4. When your nose almost touches the wall, return to the starting position.
5. Repeat this process 10-15 times.