Low impact home excercise ideas?

[Panter]

I'm pretty sure that there isn't actually an answer to this but thought I'd ask anyway.....

I'm very lucky in that I live a fair distance from work and so can cycle occsionally and get excercise that way.

My Wife, however, works literally a 5 minute walk from home.
She needs some ideas for low impact excercise she can do at home as we have a Daughter and she, quite understandably, doesn't want to go out cycling on her own when it's dark.
The turbo trainer's out as we tried that last Year and she got so bored with it that she gave it up. We also don't have the money to buy a good X-trainer just yet, we tried a cheap one last Year but the action was very destructive on the knees.
Any ideas?

 

[jimboalee]

Teach your daughter to use a vacuum cleaner, duster, toilet brush, lawn mower, steam iron, hand whisk, garden spade, hedge shears and maybe a J Cloth around the bathroom.

Excellent exercise......

 

[Losidan]

indoor rowing?
I use one on an evening...30-40 mins on I find it gives a decent workout.

Quite similar to turbo training in terms of the interest level but there are different things you can do to keep it less monotonous. I always use the ipod too. Very low impact being seated and hits most areas.

Michael Hutchinson and Rebecca Romero were rowers in their early days so it must have some benefits to cyclists!

 

[onlyhuman]

Any ideas?

Exercise bands and cords. Dynabands, Therabands etc. They come in all kinds of strengths and sizes, dead cheap, a gym in your pocket, weigh next to nothing. Little or no "impact". You can exercise while lying on the sofa watching the TV, in fact that's what I did, I made a rule that I could only watch sport on TV if I was doing exercise with resistance bands at the same time. Or sit-ups maybe.

There are online guides, videos and books about using exercise bands, with a bit of ingenuity you can think of all kinds of ways to use them. If you need more exercise, double the band or increase the speed.

 

[jimboalee]

One piece of exercise equipment every house should not be without. A step-box.

Other necessary equipment are a four inch paintbrush and a living room ceiling.

 

[Panter]

Thanks guys.

A rowing machine is a great idfea but we just don't have the cash for a decent one. Like the X-trainer, we tried a cheap one before and it was awfull.

Jimboalee, thanks for the tips but I'm not quite sure how getting my Daughter to do the housework will help my Wife get fitter?
I think I'll try the steps thing though although I did think it wouldn't be very knee friendly?

Onlyhuman, thanks for the ideas. I hadn't seen those before, they seem beautifuly simple. We'll give them a try

 

[onlyhuman]

, they seem beautifuly simple. We'll give them a try

The simplicity really appeals to me too. Your wife might like to try wearing cycling mitts when using the bands, just to stop the rubber rubbing.

 

[jimboalee]

Thanks guys.

A rowing machine is a great idfea but we just don't have the cash for a decent one. Like the X-trainer, we tried a cheap one before and it was awfull.

Jimboalee, thanks for the tips but I'm not quite sure how getting my Daughter to do the housework will help my Wife get fitter?
I think I'll try the steps thing though although I did think it wouldn't be very knee friendly?

Onlyhuman, thanks for the ideas. I hadn't seen those before, they seem beautifuly simple. We'll give them a try

Oops, misunderstood.

Replace "Daughter" with "Wife".

Another great indoor 'low impact' exercise is 'stirring curry'.

 

[Losidan]

Oops, misunderstood.

Replace "Daughter" with "Wife".

Another great indoor 'low impact' exercise is 'stirring curry'.

Definitely. I also like to superset that exercise with the compound exercise stuff yourself full of curry. It's hard work, but someone has to do it

 

[ASC1951]

Consider also an exercise ball. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exercise_ball I got one from Boots.

It has the same problem as all indoor equipment - it's as boring as hell, so it gathers dust just like my turbo trainer.

Sorry to state the obvious, but just because your wife has a 5 minute walk to work, that is the minimum. How about a 20 minute route now and then? Or a 35 minute blast on a bike at lunchtime, shower at home and walk back to work? Or a 35 minute run, which gives me as much exercise as three times the time on a bike?

We do actually need some impact exercise, women particularly.

 

[Panter]

I fully understand what you're saying but the problem is she's lazy, like me

She may do it a few times and then get bored with it, but I will suggest it.
She won't be able to take a longer route to work as she works at the school and takes our Daughter as well as a couple of other kids so it wouldn't be practical.
She also works two part time jobs there so she's not entitled to a lunchbreak but there's no reason that she couldn't take a fast excercise walk after School.

The idea of the home excercise is that I can do it as well on the days I don't cycle to encourage her.

Thanks for the ideas, it's the obvious stuff that gets overlooked!

 

[Dave5N]

Circuit exercise. AN hour or 45 mins of squats, push ups, spiderman. planks etc.

 

[zimzum42]

Swiss balls are great, and the rubber bands are pretty good too. Not great for cardio, but brilliant for core strength and flexibility

 

[gavintc]

Indoor exercise, at least the stuff you can do in the house, is boring. If she did not like the turbo, she will not get on well with the discipline of other training regimes. She needs to get out of the house - go for a walk, cycle, go to the gym, etc.

 

[Bill Gates]

My wife has a huge collection of aerobic videos to be used at home. I've never seen her do one yet.