We might sometimes feel envious of those people we see jogging past the house each morning, or those who can jump about during a cardio session seemingly with ease. But these kinds of high impact workouts aren’t for everyone. 

You might be getting back to exercise after an injury or an illness. You might have post viral fatigue, or long Covid which means that you simply can’t exercise to the intensity that you used to. Other reasons for not wanting to, or being able to exercise at a high impact include being pregnant, being very overweight or obese or having a condition such as arthritis or osteoporosis. 

Or you might have experienced a prolapse and you’re struggling with the symptoms associated with this condition such as finding it difficult to retain urine – especially so when jumping around or striking the floor heavily during running. 

Some of us might simply have an aversion, or fear, of high impact exercise. The fact is, we’re here, looking for low impact exercises that we’ll enjoy, and that’s amazing. And we’re here to help. 

Although low impact exercise is often associated with “light” exercise regimes, it can still be beneficial, especially if the alternative, high impact exercise, is out of the question for you. As a general rule, low impact exercise is exercise with at least one foot on the floor at all times. So here’s our top five low impact workouts that really get results – which one will you try first? 

1. Yoga – OYG has an excellent Yoga Class Section, and in it you’ll find everything from absolute beginner to advanced classes that you can move onto when you’re ready. Nobody can perform the perfect downward dog straight away, so don’t be put off by what you might think yoga is all about, and try our Downward Dog Tutorial to help you get off on the right foot. 
2. The OYG Strength Plan – low impact exercise doesn’t have to mean that you can’t build muscle and our Strength Plan proves that! Use a light hand weight that feels comfortable to keep the impact down – check out our article Am I Using the Right Weights for more info on choosing the right weight for you. 
3. Walking – the beauty of walking is that you don’t need any fancy equipment or an expensive gym membership. You just need a sturdy pair or walking boots or trainers, and weather appropriate clothing. Then off you go! Enjoy looking around and enjoying nature as you go.
4. Pilates – the OYG Pilates Classes help you build strength and tone as well as helping with stability and posture so they’re ideal for anyone looking for an enjoyable low impact exercise class that can be easily carried out at home. 
5. The OYG Flexibility Challenge – this four week challenge focuses on stretching which can help if you’re feeling stiff and immobile. Work though this challenge and you’ll soon be reaping the benefits!