MOVES YOU NEED

Greta Livingood
Feb 26, 2017
3 min read

everyone loves a good workout but sometimes, repetition and routine can get bland. no one likes running in place or doing that weird movement on the elliptical for 45 minutes....

these 5 things will work your entire body and can be done as a workout itself if you're short on time or as added moves.

ONE: wall sits

wall sits focus on the two major muscles in your leg; quads and hamstrings. holding a wall sit is beneficial for building and toning your leg muscles as well as improving strength and stamina. it also teaches you mental stability since there is a bit of yoga involved. make sure that your body is at 90 degrees from the floor, never letting your knees go over your toes.

challenge yourself: grab two dumbbells and hold them down by your side. do biceps curls or shoulder presses. imagine your driving a car and rotate the your wrists from right to left with a weighted plate. do calf raises or cross one leg over the next.

TWO: push ups

push ups work your chest, arms, back and core. if you're new to push ups, start on your knees. i still do push ups on my knees because i aim to keep my form with every movement. this move also burns fat because you are constantly moving.

challenge yourself: elevate your feet on a bench, push off the the wall (these work your triceps too!), use a wide and narrow grip like the picture above, or the most challenging; single arm medicine ball push ups.

THREE: pull ups

pull ups are a great way to tone your back with out adding stress or heavy weights. along with toning each individual muscle in your back, you are creating new muscle with every movement. there are so many variations of pull ups and i encourage you to try them all.

challenge yourself by trying each variation. for example, wide grip pull ups target the lats or "winglike" muscle in your back. they also target the rhomboids, which are the muscles in the middle near your spine. smaller muscles are worked secondary to the lats and rhomboids.

FOUR: jump squats/burpees

who doesn't love strong muscular legs? i sure do and that's why i incorporate some type of squat into every routine. if your looking for added cardio, jump squats and burpees are popular exercises to tone and get your heart rate going. its an added bonus that jump squats and burpees work EVERY SINGLE muscle from shoulders, core and chest, to your quads, hamstrings and backside. split squats are my favorite because of the difficulty. start with walking lunges and advance to jumping if balance is not your strong suit.

challenge yourself by adding split squats, jump squats or burpees to your routine. no one will say, "you're legs and backside are too big".

FIVE: planks

PLANK IT OUT. is that still a trend? well it should be. another exercise that works a TON of muscles are planks. again, there are lot of variations. doing planks regularly not only significantly reduces back pain but it also strengthens your muscles and ensures a strong support for your entire back, especially in the areas around your upper back. PLANKS provide an enhanced metabolic rate and also ensures that that metabolic rate remains high all day long, (yes, even while you are asleep you can burn fat)