How To Get In A Quiet, Effective Workout At Home

Many gyms globally are reopening ✨

Still, with the many restrictions and rules in place, you may be feeling an unshakeable sense of trepidation about heading back. You’re not alone.

What about all your gains, though? Well, your next best alternative would be home workouts. Yes. Once again. Although … this whole pandemic issue has lasted for more than a year now.

Your neighbor downstairs might have tolerated all your jumping, weight-dropping, and pounding shenanigans during the lockdown(s).

But understandably, now that things are gradually opening up, your neighbours might be a lot less gracious and more short-tempered than they used to be.

To avoid waking up to yet another passive-aggressive note taped to your door, here are a few workout tips that'll have you building muscle and losing fat in the quietest manner possible (bonus: there'll also be a sample apartment-friendly workout plan).

Find low-impact exercise alternatives

5 sets of lateral lunges with hops, followed by 5 sets of mountain climbers, then finished off with 5 sets of burpees?

Yeah … chances are, even the most affable neighbor out there would be calling the cops by the time you're done.

Instead of all these 'jumpy' exercises, find low-impact exercise alternatives that'll have you getting in an effective workout – but in a quiet manner.

For instance, if you’d like to do burpees, you can do a walkout plank instead.

It targets the same muscle groups, is equally tiring (give it a go if you don't believe this), but most of all, it is so quiet that your neighbors wouldn't even know you're home.

Just remember: the most important thing for building muscle is for you to get as close to failure as possible.

Meaning? So long as you find quiet exercises that adequately challenge you, your apartment-friendly workouts will get you progressing toward your fitness goals.

Low-impact exercises to include in an apartment-friendly workout

To help get you started, here are a few low-impact exercises (particularly for the core and lower body, since upper body workouts tend to be pretty much silent) that'll help you get in a quiet yet effective workout:

1. Lunge pulses
2. Bridge pulses
3. Air squats
4. Planks
5. Russian Twists
6. Wall sits
7. Split squats

Feel free to add weights (e.g. dumbbells, water bottles, a heavy bag pack) to up the difficulty factor of these movements.

Remember: get as close to failure as possible.

Invest in 'quiet-friendly' equipment

Don’t be mistaken. Investing in equipment doesn’t refer to things like a full-fledged squat rack or dumbbell rack. Those are expensive – and frankly unnecessary unless you’re interested in building a home gym.

If you're looking to tide through the next few months, waiting for things to settle just a bit before heading back to the gym, the equipment you should be looking at include:

Thick mats

As much as you don’t wish for it to happen, sometimes you’ve got to drop the weights you’re using. Or you just prefer to train in a manner that builds power and explosive (e.g. plyometric exercises).

In such cases, you really should get yourself thick mats that’ll help absorb the sound.

And if you’re straight-up deadlifting in your apartment?

Then consider investing in removable gym flooring.

These will be a lot cheaper than actual gym flooring – but will still sound-proof your muscle-building efforts (for the sake of your neighbor’s sanity).

Sliders

One of the best ways to modify your workouts to be quieter is definitely sliders.

Let's say you're doing reverse lunges. You're likely to land a little harder than you intended 3 times out of 10. Even the most patient neighbor would be miffed – especially if they're on an important work call or trying to get a newborn to sleep (eeks).

This is where sliders come in.

You can slide your leg behind you instead of plopping your foot heavily behind you.

Plus, when you use sliders, you'll be able to reap an additional benefit: increased core activation. Don't want to spend on sliders?

Here's a tip. You might not need to. Household items like socks and towels can do the trick, too. Just make sure they're sufficiently thin and slippery (yeah … I know what this sounds like).

Rowing machine or elliptical

The above tips are great and all. But they’re only good for strength training.

Say you’re worried about leaving the house for a run or a hike, where you’ll likely find it challenging to distance from others, what can you do for a quiet cardio workout?

A treadmill is out of the question for sure. Have you heard those things? They sound like a machine gun – and are pretty expensive.

Well, have you ever considered either a rowing machine or an elliptical?

Both are great at raising your heart rate and are pretty affordable options compared to the treadmill.

Tweak your workout schedule

What if you’ve done everything you can to get in as quiet of a workout as you can … and it still isn’t enough to please your neighbors?

Nope, don’t move out. And please do not start a fight.

The best way to deal with this would be to reach out – and ask them for the best times for you to get your sweat on.

For instance, do they leave their homes at any point in time (they should!)

If they have a predictable schedule, work out in those 'windows of opportunity'. And if they don't? Well, try asking them for times for you to workout that would disturb them the least.

Asking nicely will get you many things in life.

Sample apartment-friendly workout

Want to get started on a quiet workout right away? Of course. Here’s a full-body workout you could use:

1. Push-ups, 3 sets of 15 reps
2. Bicep curls, 3 sets of 12 reps
3. Reverse lunges, 3 sets of 12 reps
4. Squats, 3 sets of 15 reps
5. Reverse Nordic curls, 3 sets of 10 reps
6. Overhead press, 3 sets of 12 reps

Looking for more apartment-friendly workouts?

Admittedly, doing the same exercises day-in and day-out will get boring.

If you’re someone who craves novelty – and is more likely to stay consistent – with your workout routine, then you’ll appreciate GymStreak.

With its extensive library of at-home exercises recorded using a real personal trainer wearing a motion capture suit, you’ll not only discover new ‘quiet’ exercises … but also understand exactly how to perform these exercises.

Best of all? You'll get a customized workout routine. This ensures that you achieve your fitness goals as quickly as possible (without the typical headache of planning exercises, sets, and reps). Sounds good? Then check out Gymstreak today.