Getting fit at home is totally possible. There’s not much equipment required.

Working out at the gym can certainly help you get closer to your fitness goals, but it can also be a time consuming activity. Just think about how many minutes you spend driving to the gym, waiting for equipment, or for a class to start. It’s much easier to work out at home when it’s convenient for you.

You don’t need much equipment to get an effective workout. All you need is a few good multitasking pieces. They’re inexpensive and won’t force you to rearrange your living room. Most manufacturers include mini instruction booklets that include sample workouts and of course you can find much information online.

Medicine ball
What it does: Builds strength and can help you develop better balance.
Cost: About € 20 to € 40.
How to use it: Lift or hold it as you exercise. For example, do squats while lifting the ball above your head, or hold it while you do crunches for added resistance. Because the ball is heavy, you’re constantly challenging your center of gravity.

Resistance tube
What it does: Builds strength by working your muscles through a wide range of motions; aids flexibility.
Cost: € 10 and up.
How to use it: You can use the tube in a number of ways, either holding it in your hands for upper-body exercises or stepping on it while holding it to work both lower and upper body. You can control how much resistance the tube gives you. Just shorten the distance between your end points for more resistance; increase the distance for less resistance. The tube is also a great stretching tool.

Set of dumbbells
What it does: One of the best strength-training multitaskers, as you can do a huge range of strength exercises with them.
Cost: € 15 to € 50 a pair.
How to use it: Holding them firmly in your hands, you can work upper body, lower body, core, or a combination of all three, depending on the exercise. From bicep curls to shoulder presses, dumbbells can work with every strength exercise.

Balance ball
What it does: Makes any exercise more challenging, as your body – especially your core – will have to work harder to stabilize itself.
Cost: € 20 and up.
How to use it: Give yourself some time to adjust, because the curved nature of the ball can make exercises a little difficult at first. Also, make sure you get the right ball for your height: When sitting on the ball, your feet should rest flat on the floor with a 90-degree bend in your knees. Use the ball to do push-ups, planks, ab crunches, and hamstring curls.