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My gym officially closed this morning. So did a yoga studio I hit up a couple times a month. And a bathhouse I like to hit up for a recovery soak. Our wellness institutions have reached the correct, sobering conclusion that they can now only do more harm than good. It’s hard to believe, reflecting on all that’s happened since last Wednesday night, to think that I was swinging bars and bells around at my gym early last week.
With a lengthy period of social distancing ahead, doctors and medical professionals have encouraged people to hunker down, nestle in and find some level of comfort within their homes. They’re right. There’s simply no reason to be hitting a bar right now (if any are even still open in your neck of the woods). Still, “hunkering down” doesn’t have to mean wrapping yourself in a Snuggie on the couch for eight weeks. Assuming you’re practicing good quarantine etiquette, this can be a bizarrely effective time to hit the reset button on your fitness.
A Peloton would be nice, and that company, alongside other at-home trainers, will probably make a buck this spring. But you can get by just fine with a set of kettlebells. You’ve finally got time to learn them properly, so make some room in the apartment, or head to your garage or driveway, and try out the six-move workout that we picked up from Chris Hemsworth and the other fit folks at Centr. It’s a full-body scorcher that’ll leave you drenched in sweat.
As for your tools. AmazonBasics. Seriously. Lord knows they don’t need help like other institutions will the next couple months (so if you can safely buy kettlebells locally, look into that), but the e-commerce giant makes a perfectly reliable, glossy black enamel set in 10 different casts. They’re half the price of most kettlebells on the web, and will most likely arrive at your house this week. I’d recommend picking up a super light one for practicing form, a heavy one because certain moves should be low-rep, high-challenge, and two goal, “working weights” that you can use for multi-bell rows.
Once you master the Hemsworth workout, seek out other circuits. There are endless options on the net. And make sure these kettlebells are either completely your own, or only shared with people you know and trust.
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