Let's Get PHYSICAL!!!

FITNESS IN CONFINED SPACES:

Holed Up, Bunkered Down, Or Just Short Of Space And Resourses-- You Still Need Your Health...

Maybe now so more than ever...

Not to worry; here is Cygnus' 5-Point program for overall body maintenance, fitness and well-being.
I'ts rather simple, really. Just recall-- without the groaning, please!-- your school gym days.
I'll skip telling you to stretch good, and to be sure ANY physical exertion you undertake is physiologically feasible to your person-- this last just self-preservative instinct.
Yet, that is one of the beauties of this pogrom-- it can really be as easy or as strenuous as you deem. Now, enough talking: Let's DO it!!!

• Jumping Jacks: move the blood around well-- an entire body calesthenic. Not much need for detail here-- just watch out for the overhead light...
• Push-ups: Ah, quit yer cryin'! You're gonna needs maintain arm strength for hauling about young-uns, rapid-reload, dragging the dead would-be invader from the premises... y'know-- daily activities. Just do one at a time to start, if you feel that's all you need to. Rest a minute. Do another. In fact, scatter them out-- do ten during each new song on the radio. Or every hour... you get the idea. That goes for ALL the exercises... Just DO THEM...
• Sit-ups: Ditto push-ups-- quit yer bellyachin' (pun intended) and make it fun! (Ideas for said after the last two bullets.. er bulleted items... er-- oh, never mind! "SEE BELOW"; how's that?)
• Leg-Lifts: Yes, another abs/ core one. It's the pivotal point of all bodily activity. [Replace these with easy "standing bends" if you prefer: stand upright, legs together or spread to your comfort. Place hands on hips. Bend at waist, keeping spine as straight as possible; when upper body is parallel with floor, reverse to upright position. VOILA! Simple! And painless- the easiest of them all.]
• No-Weight Squats: Not much to these, either, but the legs are the largest muscle group, so start slow here. You'll feel it, for sure. Easy, chief/chiefess! You're trying to get HEALTHIER, not make yourself immobile for days on end... Just stand, feet about shoulder-width apart, arms at your side or crossed in front of you (or held straight out, zombie-fashion for more effect both physical and aesthetic-- maybe the REAL ONES peeking in your window-- bet ya didn't know bunkers had those, ey-- will see you as "NOT DINNER" and move on to the Jonses'... See what all you can learn from this ol' bird?!?), bend the knees and keep the spine as erect as possible. When the tops of your thighs are parallel to the ground-- back up ye go!

Now, how can all this be fun? Hell, I dunno. For you, that is. Me? Make these things some sort of REWARDS system, rather than seeing them as must-do, self-imposed health care.
Or make a game of it. One of my faves?

Grab a deck of cards. Remove jokers (or leave them in as 25-count bonuses). Shuffle deck. Place face down on table. Now-- push-up time!

Numbers are face value-- a three turned over = 3 push-ups, etc.
Jacks, Queens and Kings are 11, 12, and 13, respectively.
Aces are 15-in-the hole.

The entire deck (sans jokers) added up this way gives you 424 reps.

now, add your own variations. Maybe each suit represent a different exercise: diamonds for push-ups, spades for squats... just go with 4 of the 5 above and HAVE FUN!

Take all day to do them, again. Each time you pass the table, turn a card. (But-- don't avoid the table just out of laziness!)
Peak fitness days for me, we did all 424 with no rest between reps save to stand up and turn cards. Record day? Went thru the deck 2.5 times, all push-ups. YOU do the math.HONEST ABE, Folks!

All in all, just do SOMETHING each day to avoid muscle atrophy. This really is more important if, for whatever reason, you are confined and have minimal out-of-doors movement, limited equipment [I say limited-- I keep a jumprope for serious cardio. Despite what your eight-year old daughter makes it look like-- IT AIN'T A TOY! :D Give 'er five minutes and see, y'don't believe (yet. You WILL inside three of those minutes!!! lol!)]

Limited only by our imaginations, folks.
Hope this has been good food for fodder-- and even more so that you actually TRY it once or twice. Go ahead-- GET PHYSICAL --for a change! [OOH! Catchy slogan! har!] You might find you LIKE it!

Slainte, folks!

Cygnus