Normally, I would be in the middle of swim season right now, spending most of my free time in the pool working out. But due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I have been unable to swim for almost two months.

I used to love working out, but now that I can’t do it in the pool or with friends, I have had little motivation to get out of bed and do any type of physical activity.

What better time to try a new at-home exercise? CrossFit is a high-intensity fitness program that incorporates elements of several sports and types of exercise.

Before the pandemic, I did some CrossFit at swim practices, but never enough to become an expert by any means.

So, I researched CrossFit workouts and videos online to explore different programs.

I chose a two-week CrossFit challenge and a two-week core workout by CrossFit YouTubers Chloe Ting and Pamela Reif, respectively. 

Ting’s consisted of exercises such as squats, planks and core work. For two weeks, she devoted different days to different parts of the body with some repetition throughout each week. Workouts were 10 to 30 minutes long.

Reif’s workout was shorter in length, but harder. Exercises included crunches, planks, hollow body holds and more.

The first day was a lot more difficult than I had anticipated. I had not been working out very hard for a while, so I was definitely sore.

While Ting’s videos included a lot of new exercises, the hardest video was definitely Reif’s on core workouts. I had to complete 10 straight minutes of high-intensity exercises.

Days two and three were also very hard, especially since I was already sore.

But by days four and five, both workouts became less difficult. I was getting used to the different exercises and getting a lot stronger.

At the end of the week, the workouts were still difficult but much easier to get through. I will continue CrossFit workouts on my own.

CrossFit is a great way to get in a workout during the quarantine. It requires no equipment and very little space. It only takes 10 minutes, and there are hundreds of videos online that target any part of your body for any age or skill level.

— By Emily Asperger

Originally published in the May 26 edition of the Octagon.