Can’t get to the gym? Here’s how photographers can stay fit while stuck at home

If you’re a regular gym-goer, you know that the coronavirus outbreak has had all the gyms closed down. And if you’re anything like me, the lack of physical activity makes you feel sad and nervous. But worry not: Gerald Undone has a perfect solution for stuck-at-home photographers and filmmakers. He has teamed up with a few “camera fitness experts” to bring you a series of exercises that you can do at home with your camera gear. That’s right, your gear won’t only help you keep your creativity in shape, but also your body. So let’s get started.

Here are some exercise suggestions from the video, but note that there are plenty more in the video itself. Also, note that the video is pretty funny, so even if you don’t plan to exercise, you can still watch it, it will brighten up your day.

1. The camera bag pushup: for starters, Gerald shows you his favorite exercise, “the camera bag pushup.” And yes’ it’s exactly what it sounds like. Load your camera bag and put it on your back as you normally would. But instead of wandering outside with it, get on the floor and give me 100! Or as many as you like, you get the point.
2. Lens/camera bicep curls: Lee Zavitz shows you another exercise and you can do it with your lenses. It’s up to you whether you’ll lift a 600mm lens or a “nifty-fifty,” it all depends on you. Bigheadtaco does bicep curls with two cameras, clicking each time the camera goes up. I wonder what those photos look like. All jokes aside, you can load the camera bag and use it instead of weights.
3. Camera wrist roller: if you’ve ever used a wrist roller, you know that it looks funny, but your forearms will hurt like hell. Check out the video as Cody Wanner will show you how to make a wrist roller from your camera. It looks even funnier than the real deal, but it does the job!
4. Video tripod exercises: I honestly don’t know the name of the exercise that iPhonedo is showing. But if you have a video tripod, you can do all sorts of exercises with that heavy thing.
5. Old cable jump rope: okay, this is just brilliant. Chris Brockhurst has made a DIY jump rope from a few old cables taped together. In case you’re not like me and you never skip your cardio sessions.
6. Backdrop roll shoulder exercises: if you have a backdrop roll, use it to strengthen your shoulders and Julie Whelan shows you how. If you don’t have a backdrop roll, I think this will also work with a video tripod. No excuses!
7. Exercises with video gear: Philip Bloom, Tommy Callaway, and Dave Maze share all sorts of exercises you can do with video gear. Just don’t get too carried away, that stuff is expensive.
8. Sandbag weights: if you have sandbags and a light stand, you can improvise a set of weights and do all sorts of exercises with them. Jeven Dovey shows you how.
9. Gaff-tape ab roller: we all know how versatile gaff tape is, right? Another brilliant workout “hack” comes from Kitty of Atola Visuals, who made an improvised ab roller with a roll of gaff tape.

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The video is as hilarious as it is useful, so I found it really enjoyable to watch. Plus, there are so many amazing creators who joined forces for creating it! But although it’s funny, you can actually use lots of these ideas to work out at home. And if you use kitchen items for photography instead of making delicious treats… You’ll stay in great shape even while stuck at home. In your face, quarantine!

[Stay-At-Home Workouts for Camera Nerds & Photographers via ISO 1200]