Home workouts with a visual impairment
Having a visual impairment makes it tricky to do home workouts. However, that doesn’t make it impossible. It’s important to have a positive attitude when you have a visual impairment. This can help you to look after your mental health and improve wellbeing. Even when visually impaired, barriers can be broken down by making an attempt at things with a positive outlook.
Equipment:
It is important to check that you have lots of space before starting a workout at home. You don’t want to have a falling ironing board injury! After clearing the room for space, you will need to go and get your equipment i.e. a mat and weights. Starting off, it’s easier to stick to exercises that you know well. No point trying anything that you might not be ready for in the early stages. The usual suspects I always turn to are sit ups, squats and jogging on the spot. Equipment is not essential for any of these so no need to rush to the shops. You can find short videos of me doing these on my Facebook and Instagram pages @irelandsblindgolfer.
Most of the exercises that I do at home I have done before in the gym. During my personal training sessions with Darren, I get him to take videos. Then I use this at home to remember the correct technique of each exercise. This is something that works really well for me and could be useful for others too.
It’s helpful if you have an enjoyable routine to stick to. This also makes it easier to remember which comes in handy with visually impairment. If you’re looking to change up your routine it’s useful to do this in the gym for the first time before starting at home. Another option is to get whoever you live with involved and have them demonstrate the exercise for you.
Important things to remember:
When using weights make sure you have a tight grip. Try not to drop them out of your hands as this could cause injury. Also, if you have a punch bag make sure it doesn’t swing back and catch you in the face.
I really enjoy doing workouts at home, I started off with supervision from parents but now I’m doing them independently. This keeps me fit and active from one session to another and Darren gives me exercise tips to keep me going. These workouts have really helped my mental and physical health. So, if you’re visually impaired there’s no reason why you can’t start exercising at home too. It might take a bit longer but at the end of the day workouts can be adjusted for your level of ability.
Due to COVID-19 we are now in lockdown. Home workouts have become very popular as a result of this. I’m currently doing mine through Zoom with my personal trainer between 2 and 3 times a week. Getting family and friends involved makes it even more enjoyable and helps keep them fit too. It can be another way of having light-hearted fun during this time.