While gyms and studios have started to reopen, many people are still choosing to work out at home to keep themselves safe from COVID-19. And while reaching your fitness goals is super challenging at home because you don’t have as much equipment available, it doesn’t mean that it’s not possible. Here’s how to build muscle with at-home workouts.
Resistance Training
While cardio is a lot easier to do at home, you need to also incorporate resistance training with bodyweight or weights. Some exercises to try are squats, lunges, planks, and deadlifts.
Use Proper Weights
Make sure you continue challenging yourself with the weights you are lifting, but don’t lift too much that your form starts to suffer. Sure, you can increase your reps with less weight, but you won’t see results as quickly as you would if you were lifting heavier weights.
Strength Train Twice a Week
You don’t need to train every day to build muscle, but you should strength train at least two times a week. Train on nonconsecutive days and the workout should have eight to 10 exercises targeting different muscles.
Eat Protein
While a person should be consuming .35 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day, if you’re trying to increase muscle mass, you need to consume .5 to .8 grams of protein per pound of body weight.
Recovery
After intense exercise sessions, your body needs 24 to 48 hours to repair itself. You can still workout between these rest sessions by focusing on different muscle groups. During these rest periods, you should be doing activities like yoga, foam rolling, and stretching.
