5 ms·

Do any of you have any advice on staying healthy and avoiding any long-term harm from short periods of very low mobility? My wife and I face 6 months of jail t

by KMag 6y ago

Do any of you have any advice on staying healthy and avoiding any long-term harm from short periods of very low mobility? My wife and I face 6 months of jail time if we step out of our 8 sq. m / 86 sq. ft hotel room even once in 13 days' quarantine. (All travellers are quarantined. We've both had negative PCR tests before flying and negative IgM tests upon arrival, with another IgM test scheduled for this Wednesday. The 1st night of 14 was spent in another hotel, provided by the government.) We're in our early 40s and pretty healthy, walking at least 5 km every day in November, often more than 10 km. The first 8 days of our 14 day travel quarantine have gone mostly fine, but I've noticed my muscle mass dropping rapidly, despite some isometric exercises and bodyweight squats in the shower. There's about 2 feet between the foot of the bed and the wall, and 2 feet between the left side of the bed and the wall. Some of that space is taken by our luggage from spending all of November abroad. We've put as much as we can under the bed. We have no chairs in here. There's a writing surface attached to the wall at the foot of the bed that my wife uses for her laptop while working remotely. I work remotely while lying down on the bed, since my wife gets back problems much more easily than I do. I'm aware of cardiovascular and gallstone risk from immobility and rapid fat loss. We thankfully brought 90 days' worth of multivitamins with us on our 30-day trip. (The government changed quarantine policy while we were away. We planned for this possibility, or the possibility of being stranded abroad for a few months, but were hoping to be able to spend our 14 days of quarantine at home. We're glad we planned ahead.)

js2 6y ago
Is there room to do burpees? It is the most effective all-around exercise I know to do in a small space. https://www.healthline.com/health/how-to-do-a-burpee https://www.healthline.com/health/how-to-do-a-burpee
- KMag 6y ago
  Edit: I just realized that not everyone does jumping burpees. If I cut out the jump and am careful to not flare my elbows, it might work. I'll give it a try after my wife wakes up. I like burpees, but the ceiling is barely taller than a standard door frame. Also, I think it would be very careful to come down and not flare my elbows wider than 2 feet. The bathroom is so small that they use a mini square sink, maybe 10 inch diagonal. Maybe I could kick my feet out of the shower and next to the toilet, but that still wouldn't solve the ceiling height issue, and I'd probably eventually injure myself by accidentally kicking the toilet. On a side note, I have a buddy who was using burpees for Tabata training in his kitchen. His wife complained about the sweat on the floor, so he did them on a towel. He stopped doing Tabata when his towel slipped and he hit his chin hard on the tile.
  - NewUserWhoDis 6y ago
    "I like burpees" Three words you rarely see together.
    - watermelon59 6y ago
      Not sure why you're being downvoted. I acknowledge they're great for you, but it's hell to do even just five of them in a set. I don't know anyone who enjoys them other than for the challenge of being able to do a ridiculous number of them in a single set.
  - blackrock 6y ago
    Buy some tennis shoes just for indoor exercising? It will also help with cushioning.
manishsharan 6y ago
I discovered Tony Horton's P90X Yoga during the lockdown. My wife prefers Sean T's Insanity workouts. The Yoga was low impact to the joints ; insanity was too much for my ankles. Whatever you do, do it slowly and deliberately and make sure you dont pull or sprain something.
- KMag 6y ago
  I've done some of those high-intensity YouTube videos at home. Here, I'd either have to do them on top of the bed, or do them in the 2 foot space between the bed and the wall, or in the 3x4 foot shower. The bedroom, toilet, and shower in total area of 8 sq. m. / 86 square feet. That's 8 by 10.5 feet, with a double bed taking up most of it, and a pair of glass walls separating the toilet and shower areas. I haven't measured it, but it's advertised as 8 square m, and looks roughly 8 by 10.5.
sn41 6y ago
Try no-equipment exercises. Pushups and Hindu squats are excellent cardio-core strength combination which I use when I travel. But take care of your knees when you do these. For the long term, consult a doctor and a trainer when you adopt a regimen.
- aksss 6y ago
  Doing well-formed push-ups until failure each morning has very impressive effects. Quantifiable improvement happens quickly. Chest and triceps will start to noticeably tone up. Fat loss (pant size) will be helped as well. The health benefits are great: “In a 10-year study published in February, researchers reported that men who can do 40 pushups have a whopping 96% lower risk of heart disease than guys who can't muster 10.”[0] I had a hard time breaking 37 in one go until I started doing a second set one minute after the first. I could do about ten before failure in second set and soon I was breaking 40 in the first set. [0] https://www.webmd.com/men/features/pushups-help-mens-hearts https://www.webmd.com/men/features/pushups-help-mens-hearts
  - ekianjo 6y ago
    > researchers reported that men who can do 40 pushups That's a very small amount of people then.
    - aksss 6y ago
      Yeah, getting to 40 is surprisingly easy though, and the benefits really reinforce the activity. Takes less than 2 minutes each morning, doesn’t make you all sweaty, and the improvement happens very quickly. It frankly is more mental discipline than anything. If you have the mental discipline the body will fall in line.
faitswulff 6y ago
There’s a subreddit for this, and accompanying app: https://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness https://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness
graeme 6y ago
Hmm, that’s tough. Designate some workout breaks with your wife. Immediately before meals is ideal. Then put the luggage on the bed to free up space and otherwise arrange the environment to maximize things. If you get in the way of each other, you can take turns in the bathroom to free space. Then try some HIIT and bodyweight exercises in rapid succession: * Jumping jacks * Jumping squats * Push ups * crabwalk * army crawl * Lifting and carrying each other. Can be an assisted life if you can’t do a full one. * shoulder raises. Some books or other objects can be good here * Bicep curls with any available objects. Even 5 lb is better than nothing * Planks, side planks * Dips on a chair * running in place All of these are simple, none of them risk injury, and all can be done in an extremely tiny space. Depending on reps and exertion you can do them 1-3x a day. Alternate exercises if needed You can also pace back and forth in the tiny strip you create with luggage on the bed. Lack of walking may actually be the hardest part of your space compared to exercise. Doesn’t sound like much fun pacing that small a strip. Like 3-4 steps? Good luck! There’s plenty more bodyweight exercises out there, the ones above are just those I’ve done regularly. You can tire your muscles and get your heart racing in 5-7 min with those. If I misjudged the space, you can do most of those exercises semi effectively on the bed with luggage on the floor. Just don’t push as hard. It should be doable though. I actually do most of those daily in my spare room, around the corner of a bed. Eg for squats I face the corner of the bed. For pushups my legs go along the bed lengthwise, my arms fan out on the other side of the corner.
- eCa 6y ago
  > Doesn’t sound like much fun pacing that small a strip. Like 3-4 steps? Just wanted to add to the OP: If you do walks of any length in that space, make sure to alternate which way you turn around.
wenc 6y ago
If you youtube "quiet cardio" you'll find a bunch of cardio exercises that you can do with no equipment, no jumping and not a lot of room. These exercises are great for apartment and hotel dwellers. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=quiet+cardio https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=quiet+cardio I've tried them out myself and they sure get the ticker pumping. I managed to save myself from having to buy an exercise bike (which I know I'll never touch after COVID). As for muscle mass loss, I wonder if you could increase the amount of protein in your daily diet (eggs, white meat, etc.)?
x87678r 6y ago
> 13 days' quarantine I'm pretty sure not leaving the house for 13 days is pretty standard for an American family over the holidays and Winter, esp this year, though I guess I'm not sure if they're staying healthy either.
- KMag 6y ago
  Most American houses are larger than 8 feet by 10.5 feet.
pomian 6y ago
Not much space you have there. But, you have a bed. I suggest trying wrestling! It sounds funny, but it can be a serious workout. I mean the Greco Roman style. You don't have to stand. Your bed can be the limits(boundaries.) It's all about pressure, strain, push, pull. And it can be a lot of fun, and produce laughter. Second choice, pillow fights. Thats another proven workout, that's fun!

by KMag 6y ago

js2 6y ago

Is there room to do burpees? It is the most effective all-around exercise I know to do in a small space. https://www.healthline.com/health/how-to-do-a-burpee https://www.healthline.com/health/how-to-do-a-burpee

KMag 6y ago
Edit: I just realized that not everyone does jumping burpees. If I cut out the jump and am careful to not flare my elbows, it might work. I'll give it a try after my wife wakes up. I like burpees, but the ceiling is barely taller than a standard door frame. Also, I think it would be very careful to come down and not flare my elbows wider than 2 feet. The bathroom is so small that they use a mini square sink, maybe 10 inch diagonal. Maybe I could kick my feet out of the shower and next to the toilet, but that still wouldn't solve the ceiling height issue, and I'd probably eventually injure myself by accidentally kicking the toilet. On a side note, I have a buddy who was using burpees for Tabata training in his kitchen. His wife complained about the sweat on the floor, so he did them on a towel. He stopped doing Tabata when his towel slipped and he hit his chin hard on the tile.
- NewUserWhoDis 6y ago
  "I like burpees" Three words you rarely see together.
  - watermelon59 6y ago
    Not sure why you're being downvoted. I acknowledge they're great for you, but it's hell to do even just five of them in a set. I don't know anyone who enjoys them other than for the challenge of being able to do a ridiculous number of them in a single set.
- blackrock 6y ago
  Buy some tennis shoes just for indoor exercising? It will also help with cushioning.

manishsharan 6y ago

I discovered Tony Horton's P90X Yoga during the lockdown. My wife prefers Sean T's Insanity workouts. The Yoga was low impact to the joints ; insanity was too much for my ankles. Whatever you do, do it slowly and deliberately and make sure you dont pull or sprain something.

KMag 6y ago
I've done some of those high-intensity YouTube videos at home. Here, I'd either have to do them on top of the bed, or do them in the 2 foot space between the bed and the wall, or in the 3x4 foot shower. The bedroom, toilet, and shower in total area of 8 sq. m. / 86 square feet. That's 8 by 10.5 feet, with a double bed taking up most of it, and a pair of glass walls separating the toilet and shower areas. I haven't measured it, but it's advertised as 8 square m, and looks roughly 8 by 10.5.

sn41 6y ago

Try no-equipment exercises. Pushups and Hindu squats are excellent cardio-core strength combination which I use when I travel. But take care of your knees when you do these. For the long term, consult a doctor and a trainer when you adopt a regimen.

aksss 6y ago
Doing well-formed push-ups until failure each morning has very impressive effects. Quantifiable improvement happens quickly. Chest and triceps will start to noticeably tone up. Fat loss (pant size) will be helped as well. The health benefits are great: “In a 10-year study published in February, researchers reported that men who can do 40 pushups have a whopping 96% lower risk of heart disease than guys who can't muster 10.”[0] I had a hard time breaking 37 in one go until I started doing a second set one minute after the first. I could do about ten before failure in second set and soon I was breaking 40 in the first set. [0] https://www.webmd.com/men/features/pushups-help-mens-hearts https://www.webmd.com/men/features/pushups-help-mens-hearts
- ekianjo 6y ago
  > researchers reported that men who can do 40 pushups That's a very small amount of people then.
  - aksss 6y ago
    Yeah, getting to 40 is surprisingly easy though, and the benefits really reinforce the activity. Takes less than 2 minutes each morning, doesn’t make you all sweaty, and the improvement happens very quickly. It frankly is more mental discipline than anything. If you have the mental discipline the body will fall in line.

faitswulff 6y ago

There’s a subreddit for this, and accompanying app: https://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness https://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness

graeme 6y ago

Hmm, that’s tough. Designate some workout breaks with your wife. Immediately before meals is ideal. Then put the luggage on the bed to free up space and otherwise arrange the environment to maximize things. If you get in the way of each other, you can take turns in the bathroom to free space. Then try some HIIT and bodyweight exercises in rapid succession: * Jumping jacks * Jumping squats * Push ups * crabwalk * army crawl * Lifting and carrying each other. Can be an assisted life if you can’t do a full one. * shoulder raises. Some books or other objects can be good here * Bicep curls with any available objects. Even 5 lb is better than nothing * Planks, side planks * Dips on a chair * running in place All of these are simple, none of them risk injury, and all can be done in an extremely tiny space. Depending on reps and exertion you can do them 1-3x a day. Alternate exercises if needed You can also pace back and forth in the tiny strip you create with luggage on the bed. Lack of walking may actually be the hardest part of your space compared to exercise. Doesn’t sound like much fun pacing that small a strip. Like 3-4 steps? Good luck! There’s plenty more bodyweight exercises out there, the ones above are just those I’ve done regularly. You can tire your muscles and get your heart racing in 5-7 min with those. If I misjudged the space, you can do most of those exercises semi effectively on the bed with luggage on the floor. Just don’t push as hard. It should be doable though. I actually do most of those daily in my spare room, around the corner of a bed. Eg for squats I face the corner of the bed. For pushups my legs go along the bed lengthwise, my arms fan out on the other side of the corner.

eCa 6y ago
> Doesn’t sound like much fun pacing that small a strip. Like 3-4 steps? Just wanted to add to the OP: If you do walks of any length in that space, make sure to alternate which way you turn around.

wenc 6y ago

If you youtube "quiet cardio" you'll find a bunch of cardio exercises that you can do with no equipment, no jumping and not a lot of room. These exercises are great for apartment and hotel dwellers. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=quiet+cardio https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=quiet+cardio I've tried them out myself and they sure get the ticker pumping. I managed to save myself from having to buy an exercise bike (which I know I'll never touch after COVID). As for muscle mass loss, I wonder if you could increase the amount of protein in your daily diet (eggs, white meat, etc.)?

x87678r 6y ago

> 13 days' quarantine I'm pretty sure not leaving the house for 13 days is pretty standard for an American family over the holidays and Winter, esp this year, though I guess I'm not sure if they're staying healthy either.

KMag 6y ago
Most American houses are larger than 8 feet by 10.5 feet.

pomian 6y ago

Not much space you have there. But, you have a bed. I suggest trying wrestling! It sounds funny, but it can be a serious workout. I mean the Greco Roman style. You don't have to stand. Your bed can be the limits(boundaries.) It's all about pressure, strain, push, pull. And it can be a lot of fun, and produce laughter. Second choice, pillow fights. Thats another proven workout, that's fun!