5 Simple Exercises to Stay Fit in Kenya Without the Gym

Key takeaways

1. 1. Gym attendance is often cited as one of the most challenging obligations in most daily routines.
   2. While gym culture is rapidly gaining popularity in the Western world, in Kenya, it is still largely seen as a luxury reserved for the wealthy.
   3. Many Kenyans, especially those in urban areas, find themselves juggling demanding job schedules and long commutes to and from work.
   4. Others simply cannot afford gym membership to work on their dream physique.
   5. The desire to stay fit has sparked the widespread publication of valuable resources offering guidance on personal fitness, nutrition, and instructor-led workouts.
   6. This article outlines simple exercises you can pursue for personal fitness without paying for the gym.

Also read: Top 3 Sports Nutrition Brands in Kenya

1. Take a walk

1. 1. Walking is arguably the most embraced exercise routine in Kenya, often during early mornings and late evenings.
   2. Taking walks is a known stress reliever and can improve your mood, especially after long stressful days.
   3. People often go on walks to reflect on intense situations that require out-of-the-box thinking.
   4. The daily walks between manageable distances between home and workplace can greatly assist in maintaining a healthy weight.
   5. Regular walking helps strengthen the heart muscle, making it more efficient at pumping blood. This improves circulation, reduces the strain on the heart, and lowers the risk of heart disease and stroke.

2. Dead Hangs

1. 1. A dead hang is a shoulder exercise that is done by simply gripping and hanging from an overhead frame.
   2. While most people often use part of their door frames, you can easily install a special hanging frame at a convenient location within your house or compound.
   3. This exercise primarily targets your grip strength, shoulders, and core, and is often done as a warm-up for more advanced exercises like pull-ups.
   4. Dead hangs are also great at relaxing your spinal cord by allowing your body and back to fully extend.
   5. Regularly performing dead hangs can also help decompress the spine and relieve tension in the shoulders and upper back.

3. Normalize taking the stairs

1. 1. Going up and down a flight of stairs is highly recommended exercise to improve your heart’s work rate and burn off extra calories.
   2. This simple exercise targets key muscles in the lower body, particularly around the thighs, helping to tone your legs and shape them into a more athletic form.
   3. Taking stairs when moving around the workplace is also an efficient weight management exercise especially when you want to lose weight.
   4. The intense physical activity helps boost your metabolism, burning fat, and contributing to overall fat loss.
   5. Avoiding the lifts could be a silent game changer in your efforts to stay fit.

4. Hiking

1. 1. Hiking is a recreational outdoor activity that involves walking through natural environments, mostly on paths in forests, mountains, hills, or other scenic locations.
   2. Hiking is increasingly being embraced as a weekend or holiday activity in Kenya where enthusiastic hikers take fun walks on flat terrain to challenging treks over rugged or steep landscapes.
   3. Ngong Hills just outside Nairobi and the Aberdare Ranges in Central Kenya are some of the most favorite spots frequented by hikers.
   4. Hiking is typically more strenuous than walking and sometimes requires specialized outfits like hiking boots which are relatively costly to acquire.
   5. The intensity of hiking depends on factors like trail difficulty, elevation gain like mountain climbing, and weather conditions.
   6. Physical activity and interaction with nature help reduce stress among other benefits on your mental health.
   7. Hiking also requires coordination and balance, which helps improve flexibility and stability.
   8. Hiking as a fun active lifestyle and fitness activity is considered one of the most worthwhile ways to spend your leisure time.

5. Go for a run (Jogging)

1. 1. Alongside walking, jogging is among the most preferred forms of keeping fit in Kenya.
   2. This fitness niche is especially valued due to internationally recognized Kenyan athletes like marathoner Eliud Kipchoge and 800-meter champion David Rudisha.
   3. Mr. Kipchoge in particular, has gone out of his way to promote running culture to promote individual health and fitness in Kenya and across the world.
   4. Jogging not only helps you stay fit but also boosts your endurance and increases lifespan by reducing the risk of chronic conditions like heart disease.
   5. Whether you’re jogging for fitness, stress relief, or weight loss, it’s a versatile and accessible exercise that benefits both the body and mind.
   6. Looking up to the fitness of top athletes and role models like Kipchoge more Kenyans have included jogging into daily routines to stay fit.

Conclusively, staying fit doesn’t require a gym membership. Simple exercises like walking, jogging, dead hangs, and taking stairs can effectively improve your strength, endurance, and overall health.

You can, therefore, maintain an active lifestyle without the need for specialized equipment or a gym.

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