Whether or not you love working out getting to the gym right now can be a challenge, it’s often busy, making social distancing safe. Plus, who wants to peel themselves away from the TV in the name of a better bod? So we’ve found a way for you to stay safe, stay at home and still get a workout in.
Get ready to Netflix and Sweat. Because it turns out, there may even be benefits to getting your sweat on in front of the telly. As long as you’re able to still concentrate on correct form and safety, letting the TV distract you a little into doing more reps is going to be the key to getting your body moving so we’ve chosen some of the best shows to workout to.
Tiger King
The best thing about watching Tiger King while working out is that you can pay as much or as little attention to what’s going as you want. There aren’t too many mind-blowing twists and turns that require your attention but there’s a whole lot of “oh my” to keep you entertained!
Try a mix of floor-work exercises while watching this show—everything from planks and squats to mountain climbers, split squats, pushups, and jogging in place.
In fact, a move that is perfectly suited to TV time are side-lying leg lifts, which work the outer thigh and butt. The only real difference between these and lying on your side on the couch is that you’re toning up while you do it, so win win.
• Start by lying on one side with your bottom leg bent and your top leg straight out (roll back slightly so you are lying on the muscle and not directly on your hip bone)
• Then lift and lower your top leg with your foot flexed and knee and toe facing forward.
• In the same position, kick your top leg straight in front of you and then back at a diagonal.
• Repeat as many times as you want until your leg gives out, or the episode ends.
The other positive about watching Tiger King is that the pure absurdity makes you want to keep watching (marathon style) because you won’t be able to handle waiting to see what happens next, so you can work out for long periods of time and set your own pace, which is great for less intense, leisurely workouts.
Gilmore Girls
If you’ve never watched Gilmore Girls we’re going to break it to you, it’s a little slow (don’t hate us!) but that works in your favour, after all, it’s nice to have a bit of a distraction, because working out to a show you’re obsessed with would never actually make sense because, chances are you’d stop to watch two minutes in.
For this one try some at home yoga or Pilates, something slow and easy to keep pace with the show. There are lots of videos online with easy routines to help get you started.
One of the easiest Pilates moves to do is triceps knee marches (they’re awesome for your triceps, glutes, and core).
• Hold on to the edge of a chair with your elbows bent. Keep your feet out away from the chair with knees bent at a 90-degree angle (your butt should be level with your knees).
• March your right knee upward as you extended your arms and lower back down to starting position.
• Alternate right and left for 20 reps with a rest in between, for two complete sets.
Gossip Girl
Let’s be serious: if you’re looking for motivation to break a sweat in front of the TV, it would be Blake Lively’s legs. The main factor that keeps your eyes glued to the tube when Gossip Girl is on is that everyone looks like a supermodel. So, you’re automatically inclined to try harder.
Mix it up with some jumping jacks, running in place, and various plank moves, before switching over to an ab workout: situps, bicycle crunches, lower abs leg lifts, and abs pulse-ups.
Stranger Things
The major benefit of working out to a sci-fi drama is that it’s easy to get your heart pumping—quickly but, since Stranger Things is a show you really need follow closely selecting moves becomes slightly trickier.
We found that anything on your back, on a mat works, or anything involving fast movements like jumping jacks and running in place also works. Pretty much anything that doesn’t block your view of the screen works as well, like dumbbell curls, chair dips, boxing, etc.
Friends
Naturally, some of these shows are well-suited to gym workouts, they not only offer a welcome distraction but they also help you to track your time – a 20 minute episode means 20 minutes on the treadmill, perfect. Plus, watching something funny helps to further engage your abs and core.
Let us know what your favourite shows are to workout to over on Instagram just tag @KcalExtraUAE and join the conversation!
Written by Lauren Jacobsen, Nutrition Director
