No gym? No equipment? No space? How do you maintain strength and burn off some stress during this pandemic?

Yesterday, I did some mobility drills at home and then went on a quick 3 mile run. While I felt great and really enjoyed my run, I knew I would have to come up with a long term plan to scratch my itch for moving some weight. 

Who knows how long this coronavirus pandemic will last and what if gyms don’t open for a few months, a year, or longer? While the easy solution would be to go and buy workout equipment for my house (I would just need a few kettlebells), I wanted to challenge myself to maintain a minimalist approach. Besides, I was confident that whatever weight/resistance I would be interested in buying could be replaced with something I already have. Furthermore, I wanted to use something that was commonplace in households everywhere.

As I was doing some cleaning and putting stuff away, I looked at my backpack and it clicked. My mind starting racing on all the exercise variations I could do with my bag. 

We quickly cleared some space in our warehouse and cut the red tape on the opening of the Pedestal gym. Woo! It’s a mighty 8 X 6 foot space with some turf and great lighting. They say adversity and change sparks creativity. 

Next, I grabbed my bag and loaded it to the top with various items. See photo below. 

While 30 pounds might not seem like a lot of weight, the awkwardness and size of the bag make holding it more difficult. 

Ladies and gentlemen, the first of many full body backpack workouts below!

Warm up:

A-Skip:

 90/90 Hip Progression with Backpack:

 Backpack Deadbug:

Workout: 

5 Rounds of 5 Each – A, B, C

A) Backpack Reverse Lunge w/ Rotation

 B) Half-Kneeling Single-Arm Backpack Press

 C) Backpack Plank

There you have it! No gym, no equipment, and hardly any space. 

Grab your backpack and share your journey with us!

#DITCHYOURSHOES

Be well,

Mike