Blog

Stuck Inside? A simple 10-exercise workout you can do in your living room.

March 5, 2021

Dear Chaski,

I'm stuck inside due to the lock-down in my city/town/country. What's a good workout I can do without leaving my house?

- Nick (and many others)

We've gotten lots of questions from athletes and coaches all over the world with the same general theme.

I've been there. I'm as stir-crazy as they come and can't even sit through a trans-Atlantic flight without getting up and jogging up and down the aisle, let alone a weeks-long quarantine.

You might get some weird looks working out in the galley of a 787, but you'll have no problem breaking a sweat with just a few square feet in your home.

The Workout

Below are 10 exercises listed in order; a set of all 10 is called a circuit. You'll do each exercise for either 30 seconds (beginner), 45 seconds (intermediate), or 60 seconds (advanced). In between each exercise, you can do an equal amount of time of jogging in place (or back and forth/around your living room if you have enough space).

Once you've done one full circuit (which should take 10 to 20 minutes depending on your level), take 2 to 5 minutes recovery (or until your heart-rate gets down to about 60% of max, ~120 beats per minute for most folks), and then repeat the entire circuit again. Build up to 3 total circuits or 1 hour of total work.  The idea here is to do something that works the whole body and that’s going to keep the heart-rate continuously elevated (hence the jogging between reps) but isn’t going to be as monotonous as just running in place for an hour.

Each exercise has listed the name (which you can click if there's a photo to help explain it), the muscle(s) it's targeting, and a quick description.

Chaski Quarantine Circuit

30/45/60 seconds per rep (for beg./int./adv,), equal time jogging (in place or small loop) between reps. All these should be done slowly and controlled (unless otherwise noted).

Crunches - Abs - On your back, knees bent, hands behind head, raise your shoulders up towards your knees. Side leg lifts - Glutes - On your side, body and legs in a straight line, lift one leg up Push-ups - Shoulders  - With your elbows perpendicular to your body, hands shoulder width apart, slowly lower down and back up. Bird dogs - Back - On all fours (hands and knees), slowly raise your right leg and left arm so they're both straight. Repeat w/ opposite pair. Flutter kicks - Abs - On your back, lift your heels 6 in. up and move one leg up and one down (just a few inches) and repeat quickly. Squats - Legs - With feet shoulder, slowly lower yourself down as if you're about to sit down in a chair and raise back up. Tricep Dips - Arms - With your hands flat on a chair or bench and your legs straight on the floor, slowly lower yourself down and back up. Calf raises - Legs - Stand tall, raise yourself high onto your toes, lower slowly. Front plank - Abs - Hold on yourself on your toes and bent elbows. Fast feet -  Legs - With feet shoulder width apart, run in place as fast as you can.

Want to learn more?

We’re stoked you want to get in touch! Our real, live human staff of elite athlete-coaches will get back to you as soon as we can.

Tyler Andrews

Learn More

Fredy Moposita

Learn More

Kathy Pico

Learn More

Morgon Latimore

Learn More

Amelia Boone

Learn More

Coree Woltering

Learn More

Mike Wardian

Learn More

Pete Kostelnick

Learn More

Alicja Konieczek

Learn More

Maggie Fox

Learn More

Zandy Mangold

Learn More

Emily Schmitz

Learn More

Sarah Burns

Learn More

Kimber Mattox

Learn More

Jon Waldron

Learn More

Sue McNatt

Learn More

Carolyn Stocker

Learn More

Calvin Lehn

Learn More

Kat Edwards

Learn More
Slider Left
Slider Right