Fit At Home: Leg Exercises

Staying active is an important component of healthy living. If you can't make it to the gym, or would rather avoid the crowds, you can still get a good workout at home.

Nurse and exercise physiologist Irene Lopez from the University Health Fitness Center at the Texas Diabetes Institute teaches you how to get fit using common items around your home. In this video, Irene focuses on strengthening your legs.

Here are a couple things to remember before you get started:

1. Make sure you have permission from your doctor.
2. Immediately stop if you begin to feel chest pain, shortness of breath or any pain in the rest of your body.
3. Breathe while you exercise.
4. Using proper form is more important than lifting a lot of weight.
5. If you have knee or hip issues, we recommend using the modified exercises, or avoiding them completely.

We will be using these simple tools during the exercises:

• 1-2 light dumbbells or 1-2 16-oz bottles of water
• Resistance band
• Chair

We will be doing these exercises:

• Squats using a chair
• Lunges