5 keys to fitness: Add these basic elements to your exercise routine

Strength training, or muscular training, is another key component to fitness. This type of training increases bone strength and muscular fitness, helping you manage your weight or lose weight, while improving your ability to perform everyday activities.

Aim to include strength training of major muscle groups into your fitness routine at least twice per week. Although most gyms offer various free weights, resistance machines and other tools for strength training, you don’t need to invest in a gym membership to earn the benefits of strength training. Hand-held weights or homemade weights, such as a plastic drink bottle filled with water or sand, will work just as well. Resistance bands are another inexpensive option. You also can try pullups, pushups, leg squats or abdominal crunches.

Aerobic fitness, also known as cardio, is the basis of most fitness training programs. Aerobic activity is an essential factor because these exercises cause you to breathe faster and deeper, which maximizes the oxygen in your blood.

Essentially, the better your aerobic fitness, the more efficiently your heart, lungs and blood vessels are at transporting oxygen through your body. And that makes it easier for you to complete routine physical tasks. There are many choices when it comes to aerobic activity, including walking, biking, jogging, swimming, dancing and water aerobics.

Core exercises use the muscles in your abdomen, lower back and pelvis. These exercises protect your back and connect upper and lower body movements.

Core strength is key to a well-rounded fitness training program.

To help you maintain balance as you age, make sure you incorporate balance training exercises into your workout routine. While balance exercises are good for all ages, they become particularly important the older you get since balance tends to diminish with age. Diminished balance could increase the risk for falls and fractures.

Anyone can benefit from balance training, given that it can help stabilize your core muscles. Try things like standing on one leg for increasing periods of time or activities such as tai chi to improve overall stability.

Last but certainty not least, flexibility and stretching are important aspects of physical fitness, and it’s a good idea to include these activities in your fitness program. Stretching exercises increase flexibility, which makes it easier for you to perform many everyday activities. Stretching also improves the range of motions of your joints and may stimulate better posture, while relieving stress and tension.

You should consider stretching after you exercise, when your muscles are warm and responsive. As for stretching before a workout, you can warm up first by walking or exercising for five to 10 minutes before stretching. Ideally, you will want to stretch whenever you exercise to combat injury or joint pain, but if you don’t exercise regularly, you might want to stretch at least two or three times a week to maintain flexibility.

“What we observed over the quarantine period is that a lot of people resort to randomized programs — stuff they see on social media or stuff their friends are doing — that they simply aren’t ready for,” said Clifton Hempstead, personal trainer and co-founder of Anthos Training Clubs.

Hempstead said a lot of these programs are high-intensity and designed to make you feel exhausted. Instead, he said you should seek out a program that is working toward a goal, with exercises you’re capable of doing.

Alysha Bazan, trainer and fitness director at CrossTown Fitness, said weightlifting is one of the most common exercises she sees performed incorrectly — especially deadlifts, in which people will sometimes round their back while lifting.

“Take your time and don’t rush through the movement. Make sure that you’re stabilizing your core,” she said. “Make sure you’re doing the form properly without the weights first before loading it up.”

A lot of home workout programs that don’t require equipment include exercises such as planks, squats, push-ups and sit-ups. But having bad form can lead to injury, said Alex Nsiah-Kumi, trainer and owner of Paramount Personal Training.

When doing squats or lunges, your knees and toes should be going the same direction. “So that, long term, your knees don’t start bothering you,” he said. “Rep after rep, doing it wrong adds up.”

Yoga is best done in the presence of an instructor, said part-time Chicago yoga instructor Whitney Katz. But that’s not always possible, even in in-person classes, she said: “Not being watched properly by a teacher has hurt me more than it’s helped me.”

Katz recommends making live, virtual classes part of your at-home yoga practice, especially if you’re a beginner. Even over the internet, having an instructor watching can help you tune the poses to your body.

“You certainly are at risk for injury any time you exercise,” said personal trainer Shane Schroeder. “You want to check with your doctor to make sure it’s safe to start an exercise program.”

Schroeder also recommends getting a trainer who can help you virtually. His service, Train With Shane, delivers his programs to clients through an app and he follows up with weekly coaching calls. People who use a free online program for fitness should do so with caution, he said.