Free or discounted workouts to do at home

As the coronavirus continues to spread throughout the United States, many gyms have closed their doors.

Fitness studios that do remain open are taking extra precautions by disinfecting equipment and surfaces and reducing their class size to help their clients practice “social distancing.” SoulCycle, for example, announced last week that only odd-numbered bikes could be booked, and have temporarily closed some studios in the country.

Other gyms and studios have shuttered.

How do you stay fit if you can’t — or don’t want to — leave your home?

Whether you’re using your SmartTV, tablet or cellphone, there are a number of options available for people who want to maintain their fitness routine at home.

Some gyms are offering regular studio classes online. The Bar Method, a popular barre studio franchise, is partnering with some of its New York City-area studio owners to offer livestreamed classes for its members.

Lara Meehan, one of the owners of Bar Method NoHo and Bar Method Darien, said the goal of the live classes was to make “everybody feel like they were with us and feel the presence of each other because I think that’s everything in the classroom.”

Washington, D.C., resident Taylor Jackson, 28, was asked to work from home for at least the next two weeks. She signed up for Tone It Up’s free month of workouts to help maintain her active lifestyle.

“I know it’s a big part of my mental health in addition to my physical health,” she told NBC News.

Jackson took the mindfulness meditation class, as well as the yoga classes in her living room.

“I’m an extrovert, so I know the mixture of cabin fever and not being active will put me in a funk. So, I’m trying to stay as active as I can with the resources I have at home,” she added.

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For many, going to the gym is becoming an increasingly difficult decision, and others cannot go at all.

Katie Martin, 32, of Dallas, said she was searching for workouts to do at home to avoid unnecessary exposure.

She has a ClassPass membership, as well as individual fitness memberships.

ClassPass, the popular app which allows users to find workout classes and studios in their neighborhoods, is waiving all cancellation fees related to COVID-19 and rolling over unused credits at the end of a user’s cycle, the company said in a news release posted to Twitter on Friday.

However, Martin said that she’s opting to find new ways to work out at home “rather than risk continuing the chain of transmission that probably won’t affect me but could potentially affect others who may be more vulnerable.”

Albert Aydin, 31, said he stopped going to his gym last Wednesday. The Jersey City, New Jersey, resident is working from home now, and finding ways to fit his fitness routine into that schedule.

“I invested in some free weights for my apartment and will be doing workouts on my own with a mix of cardio videos on YouTube,” Aydin said over Twitter. “There are so many but I haven’t researched enough. [I] may just try Beachbody On Demand trial for 2 weeks.”

If you’re looking for more ways to work out at home, these fitness companies offer free workout videos or trial periods:

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/better/lifestyle/gym-closed-here-are-some-free-or-discounted-workouts-do-ncna1159931