It’s that time of year again folks! At Mend Well, we’re big fans of New Year’s resolutions that start before the new years! 

Today, we’re bringing you three must-have fitness finds that are not only inexpensive but also convenient to purchase! You can find all of these items on Amazon.com since we know scheduling workouts is hard enough, let alone planning to shop for equipment. For each item, you’ll find a lower and upper body exercise to help get you started with your own at-home hustle! You don’t need a calendar date to tell you to start your shape-up journey. Let’s start working on our fitness finesse today!

 Resistance Band with Handles 

This multi-purpose tool offers endless upper and lower body exercise possibilities and is discreet enough to tuck away in just about any nook and cranny. Plus, if you’ve got holiday travel plans on the docket, pack this band in your suitcase and take your fitness on the go!

Upper Body Exercise: Banded Bicep Curls

• To perform this move, place both feet in the middle of the band while holding onto the handles. 
• To begin, start with your arms extended, making sure to keep your elbows pulled in tight against your sides.
• Curl the handles up towards your chest with your palms facing towards you, remembering to contract your biceps at the top of the exercise. 
• To release, bring your arms back down to an extended position.
• Aim to complete 4 rounds of 10-15 curls.

Lower Body Exercise: Banded Front Squat

• For this exercise, begin standing in the middle of the band while holding on to each handle.
• To perform the exercise, squat down so that your knees and thighs create a 90-degree angle at the bottom.
• From the bottom of the squat, make sure to contract your glutes and draw your core muscle in tight before returning to a standing position.
• Note: if you would like to up the burn and add more resistance, hold the band at a lower point on the strap rather than at the handles.
• Perform 4 sets of 10-12 squats.

Exercise Ball

This workout tool not only offers a host of great exercise options, but it also can serve as a stand-in desk chair! While sitting on an exercise ball, you’re forced to engage your core muscles to stabilize and remain upright (trust us, your office will never let you live it down if you’re the goof that rolls right off their exercise ball desk-chair!). 

If you’re looking for a more traditional use of the exercise ball, add these moves to your at-home workout plan!

Upper Body Exercise: Rolling Elbow Plank

• Start at the top of a push-up position with your elbows resting on the exercise ball. You may perform this exercise on your toes or modify on your knees.
• Keep your abs contracted tight and your neck in line with your spine. Hold the pose for 45 seconds.
• Then, slowly begin to roll the exercise ball so that your arms are almost fully extended. Hold for a count of 3 before rolling the ball back to the starting position with your bent elbows inline below your shoulders.
• Aim to perform 4 sets with a 45-second hold to begin followed by 10 elbow rollouts.

Lower Body Exercise: Overhead Squat

• For this exercise, you’ll perform a traditional squat while holding the exercise overhead throughout the entire movement.
• With the ball overhead, squat down to a 90-degree angle. Hold for a count of 3 at the bottom before returning to a standing position (the ball will still be extended overhead).
• Make sure you’re pulling your core muscles in tight while keeping your spine long and upright throughout the entire exercise.
• Perform 4 sets of 10 squats.

Dumbbells

This tried and true workout favorite can be used to boost just about any exercise movement you can think of. Plus, just like the resistance bands, they’re nice and discreet so you can store them just about anywhere in your house without a hassle. Just make sure they’re not too hidden so that you don’t “innocently” forget to ever pull them out again!

Upper Body: Dumbbell Row into a Tricep Kickback

• To begin, bring both feet side by side and bend slightly at the knees. Lean your torso forward to create a slight diagonal, making sure your spine is straight and your core is tight.
• Holding both dumbbells, extend your arms out in front before pulling them in towards your sides until your elbows are bent forming a 90-degree angle.
• Hold the 90-degree angle for a 3-count before straightening your arms back behind you. You’ll form a straight diagonal with your arms extended behind you. Hold for a 2-count.
• Then, bend your backward extended arms at your elbow so that you return to your starting position (picture forming cricket wings).
• Finally, extend your arms back out in front of you to the original forward extended position.
• Shoot for 4 sets of 10 repetitions.

Lower Body: Donkey Kick-Backs

• To start, you’ll come into a tabletop position on your hands and knees. Place one dumbbell behind each knee.
• With one leg, slightly curl your leg so that the dumbbell is secure. Bring your curled leg up so that your thigh is in line with your torso and your foot is flexed.
• Draw your knee slowly down so that it’s just an inch or so off the floor. Then, extend it back as if you were kicking out a ceiling tile.
• Go for 4 sets of 10-15 repetitions on each leg

There you have it! A few inexpensive exercise tools and simple moves to get you started with your new at-home mini-gym! If holiday cookies and cocoa have become a staple in your December diet, then we recommend tacking these items onto your holiday shopping list.