Fitness expert Darren Kirby shares his lockdown exercise tips

Darren Kirby, fitness expert and founder of Fitter Healthier Dad®, has shared his top two tips to stay positive and active throughout this lockdown.

According to Darren, getting fitter and having more energy is not as complicated as most of us think.

His career as a fitness expert follows his own transformation six years ago from an overweight, stressed-out city worker (he lost 61lbs/28kg), to now helping countless dads break through barriers and improve their health.

TIP #1 Mental Health: Grounding and Breath Work

In these scary and uncertain times, it’s easy to let our minds wander and not allow ourselves to comprehend what exactly is going on around us. How we start our day is key to how we mentally prepare for the day ahead. Therefore, before the hustle and bustle of everyday life starts, take 5 minutes whilst your tea or coffee is brewing to do some grounding and breathwork.

• Stand outside on the grass, if possible, with NOTHING on your feet (your kitchen will do if the weather does not permit!)
  • Take a deep ‘belly breath’ through the nose, hold for five seconds, and then breathe out through the mouth for five seconds, wait for five seconds, and then do it again. Repeat this three times.

This will take you 5 minutes and will help you start the day with a much clearer mind.

TIP #2 Exercise: Micro Workouts 

‘Micro Workouts’ are a great way of getting some movement and activity into our what can otherwise be a sedentary lifestyle. If you sit at a desk to work, every time you get up from there, which can be up to eight times a day, do 10 of any of the exercises below:

• 10x Star Jumps
  • 10x High Knees
    • 10x Press Ups
      • 10x Burpees

This will take less than a minute, and if you do 10 repetitions and get up 8 times a day, that is 80 per day. Maintaining these manageable workouts will lead to a significant improvement in fitness levels.

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