Make the most of your fitwatch during lockdown

Being stuck inside doesn't mean you have to miss out on some quality exercise. 

If you are an exercise junkie, you are likely to have all your home workouts lined up and your smartwatch loaded with videos and interval timings.

If you are new to keepfit, a 30 minute workout 3 times a week is great for beginners as well as a maintenance workout. You can definitely work on your muscle tone and general fitness.

Government guidance

The latest government rules regarding social distancing mean only one trip out of the house a day, this can be for essential items or for exercise.

If you like cycling or running, there's a simple solution but one of the main attractions of working out at a gym is the weights section. Lifting weights is great for your physique by toning muscle, changing the weight and the reps to work for your goals.

It might be worth investing in some equipment, such as a set of dumbells, bar bells or even a weights bench, if you do not have such items in your home, so you can spend more time enjoying a home workout. 

Washing hands is currently a priority, as is cleaning contact points such as door handles, light switches etc...so it makes sense to keep your fitness monitor screen sanitised (follow the manufacturers instructions), and your fitness/smart watch strap.

Focussed

There are lots of tricks to getting more for your money when it comes to exercise methods, and your fitness monitor can be your personal trainer.

Keeping an eye on your heart rate is great for keeping the effort up. In the gym it's easy to slip into a comfortable, easy workout but it's the pushing yourself that makes the big changes to your fitness.  This is easier to measure with a pulse rate monitor, but even if your fitness watch doesn't come with a pulse monitor, keeping focussed on your activity will help you get the most out of it. 

Too much of a good thing

Moderation is key, long distance running, endurance cycling and High Intensity Interval Training has been shown to leave the immune system vulnerable for a few hours after training. 

Get to know your fitbit! 

Take some time to look through the functions of your fitness monitor, there may be useful tools to get the most out of your workout. 

Monitoring the time spent working out can also keep you motivated to do a few more minutes, to get on with it when you could just skip it. 

Pull your weight

Bodyweight exercises mean you don't use any extra weights, just your bodyweight - so press ups, sit ups, the plank, squats, lunges all these lovely exercises that do so much but without using extra weights. 

Fitness watch extras

Your fitness monitor / smartwatch may come with a great resource for home workouts and getting the most from your fitness device. Garmin Connect offer premade workouts with instructions on how to perform them, they have a whole range from pilates to strength building. 

Home workout ideas

There are plenty of ways to enjoy a great workout, even if you don't have expensive equipment. 

1. Create a circuit, include step, sit ups, running on the spot, star jumps, dips etc. Some fitness watches allow you to set intervals, 1 minute of sit-ups, 10 second rest then 1 minute of lunges.
2. Download a fitness dvd, the novelty of trying something new can be a great motivator and add variety, concentrating on learning something new can be rewarding and stimulating for the brain.  
3. Use milk cartons filled with water as weights, great because they have a handle and weigh 2kg when filled. 
4. Use your housework as a warm up and cool down
5. Yoga or pilates is effective yet gentle, perfect if you live in a flat! 
6. Gymball - a cheap piece of equipment you can get online, great for working the core muscles, used as a balance ball you are keeping yourself stable by engaging lots of muscles.

Mind how you go! 

The aim is to keep yourself healthy and active, feeling great and fighting fit.

You do have to be careful about "form". Make sure your position and technique do not cause you an injury. If possible set up a mirror so you can check your form whatever exercise you are doing. Make sure you know how to lift and how you are supposed to do the exercise, with no personal trainer to let you know if you are doing it correctly, you could end up hurting yourself. Don't overdo it and if it hurts, stop!