5 Ways to Stay Active Indoors All Winter Long

When the temperature drops and the sun sets before 5 p.m. each day, staying motivated to exercise outside can be a challenge. The good news is that you can simply bring your workouts indoors during the winter months. We asked three fitness experts about their favorite indoor exercises for maintaining fitness, energy, and an improved mood all winter long.

If it’s too frigid to stroll outdoors, you can still get your steps in—which is a plus, since walking helps boost energy and heart rate, improves mental clarity and circulation, and supports your lymphatic system, a network of organs, vessels, and tissues that helps fight disease and infection, said Lindsey Bomgren, CPT, founder of Nourish Move Love.

Bomgren strives to get 8,000 to 10,000 steps per day, and said you can still hit that—or any walking goal—on a treadmill or walking pad. If you don’t have either, she recommends walking up and down the stairs (if you have them) in your home or following a no-equipment walking workout on YouTube.

According to Bomgren, it’s also important to incorporate daily mobility and stretching exercises, such as 90/90 hip rotations and cat-cow pose, which can easily be done in the comfort of your home.

“Winter can make you feel sluggish, but doing hip, spine, and shoulder mobility exercises is a great way to keep your body moving pain-free in every season,” she said. Stretching is especially important for older adults, as it can improve strength, flexibility, mobility, and quality of life.

 How to do a 90/90 hip rotation:

• Sit on the floor and place your palms behind you for support. 
• Bend one knee in front of you at 90 degrees. Your outer thigh should touch the floor. Bend your other knee behind you at 90 degrees. Your inner thigh should touch the floor.
• Lift both knees up and turn them as you face the leg that’s behind you, moving your knees down to the side as you go. Keep your heels on the ground. 
• Keep switching sides for 40 to 60 seconds.

How to do a cat-cow pose:

• Start on all fours in tabletop position with hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips.
• Inhale, then drop your belly toward the floor, drawing your shoulder blades together and slightly lifting your head up toward the ceiling. 
• Exhale, then round your spine, tucking your chin slightly and pulling your bellybutton inward, lengthening your tailbone.
• Repeat for 40 to 60 seconds.

If you have access to a fitness center with a pool, it’s time to dig out your goggles and swimsuit. Swimming is especially beneficial for posture and spinal extension, particularly for people who sit at a desk for most of the day, Matthews explained. “It opens the chest, strengthens the body, and gets your heart rate up,” she added. 

Research also suggests that swimming may lower blood pressure in people with hypertension, improve cholesterol levels, reduce body fat percentage and BMI, boost mental health, and ease joint pain and stiffness for people with osteoarthritis.

Whether you use dumbbells, kettlebells, barbells, or your own body weight, resistance training lends itself well to indoor exercise. And given its many benefits—including building muscle, improving bone density, and reducing the risk of chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease—it should be a key part of your workout routine this winter (and beyond).

Strength training can also be easily incorporated into a home routine. For instance, you can use commercial breaks while watching TV to knock out pushups, squats, or sit-ups, suggested Rocky Snyder, CSCS, author of the training guide Return to Center. “You can build strength from anywhere using just your body weight,” Bomgren added.

Another ideal wintertime indoor activity? Pilates—something nationally certified Pilates teacher Lindsay Matthews, NCPT, founder of Peachy Pilates, discovered first-hand. “Winter is when I first fell in love with Pilates,” she said. “I realized pretty quickly that my usual running routine was not always realistic once the weather became unpredictable.” 

You don’t need a high-end studio to practice Pilates. Any spot in your home that has enough space for a mat will do for this low-impact workout, which may improve muscle strength, posture, mobility, and flexibility.

Matthews’ go-to mat Pilates moves include the bridge and a series of abdominal exercises. Here’s how to do both. 

How to do a bridge:

• Lie on your back with your arms at your sides, feet flat on the ground, and knees bent.
• Squeeze your glutes, press into your heels, and drive your hips up toward the ceiling.
• Raise your hips until you form a diagonal line from your knees to hips to chest.
• Hold for 10 to 12 seconds.
• Lower your hips back to the floor.
• Repeat three times.

How to do exercises that target the abs: 

• Single leg stretch: Sit on the floor and lean your torso back slightly. Alternate pulling one knee to your chest while extending the other leg out at a 45-degree angle. Perform this move for 10 to 12 seconds. 
• Double leg stretch: Sit on the floor and lean your torso back slightly. Extend both knees out at a 45-degree angle. Perform this move for 10 to 12 seconds. 
• Single straight-leg stretch: Sit on the floor with your legs extended and lean your torso back slightly. Alternate lifting one leg to your chest while extending the other out at a 45-degree angle. Perform this move for 10 to 12 seconds. 
• Double straight-leg lower/lift: Lie flat on the floor with arms and legs extended. Simultaneously lift your torso and legs to meet, making a “V” shape with your body. Return to starting position. Perform this move for 10 to 12 seconds. 
• Criss-cross: Lie flat on the floor with legs extended and hands behind your head. Lift your shoulders off the floor. Extend one leg straight while bringing the opposite elbow to the bent knee, then alternate sides. Perform this move for 10 to 12 seconds.