With this time at home, it is still important that we stay active and strong. So we’ve put together 5 simple exercises for you to keep up with your strength training.
These exercises will cover most of your big muscle groups and even work your core muscles which are so important if you are sitting down in front of your desk all day!
They are easy to simplify and if you are not a beginner anymore you can add on to them very easily.
PS: Remember to add some cardiovascular exercises to your daily routine. Walking, running, cycling and having a skipping rope makes cardio really easy when you are at home.
1. Bicycle crunches:
- Which muscles are activated?
This exercise focuses on your abdominal muscles like the rectus dominus. The secondary muscles will be your oblique muscles which define your waist and lastly, it will activate your hip flexor muscles.
- How to do it?
Lying on your back with your hands behind your head – start with bending your knees, take your left knee towards your right elbow while you straighten your right leg. Hold the position for 1 to 2 seconds.
- Important:
Do it slowly and control your movements to avoid injuries.
2. Plank:
- Which muscles are activated?
Abdominal muscles (rectus abdominis & transverse abdominis), stabilising muscles like obliques (defining your waist), hip flexors, your upper leg muscles and your chest.
- How to do it?
Lay down on your stomach, rest your body weight on your forearms and toes. Keep your hips in line with your shoulders. (Remember to work with your belly button towards your spine.)
Start with 20sec and aim for 3minutes.
- Too easy?
Do a side plank! Turn on your side, one forearm on the floor, keep your ankles and feet together on the floor – now push your body weight from the floor.
- Important:
Always control your movement. Work with your belly button towards your spine. Don’t try and do the side plank if you are not comfortable with the normal one yet.
3. Tricep dip:
- Which muscles are activated?
This exercise focuses primarily on the back part of our arm, your triceps. It will also activate a bit of your chest (pectoral muscles).
- How to do it?
Stabilize your hands on a hard surface like a chair or bench behind you. Lower your body weight between your arms until your elbows are 90 degrees. Now press yourself back up.
- Important:
Your hands should face forward. Keep you back and bum as close as possible to the bench or chair, this will keep the strain off your shoulders.
- Too easy?
Straighten your legs in front of you, heels on the floor and toes in the air. Put your legs on a bench or on a ball.
4. Lunges:
- Which muscles are activated?
This will work primarily the legs. It will activate the bum muscles (glutes), your inner thighs, your quad muscles. Your stabilizing muscles for this exercise will be your calf muscles, abdominal muscles and back muscles.
- How to do it?
You can do a forward and backward lunge. Take a big step forward/backward and lower your back knee to the floor. Or stay on one spot, one leg in front of the other and lower the back knee.
- Important:
To stay away from injuries it is important that you keep your front knee on a 90-degree angle and not push your knee over your front foot when you lower down into your lunge position.
Start with 10 on a leg and aim for 100 later on.
- Too easy?
Add weights in your hands, like a filled water bottle in each hand.
Something interesting: According to a Harvard study, someone weighing 70kg doing 10 minutes of lunges can burn 55 calories 🙂 Cool, right?
5. Squats:
- Which muscles are activated?
Bum muscles (glutes), your quadriceps in your upper leg, your hip flexors and calves.
When you open your legs a little wider, with your toes turned outwards, this is a sumo squat, you’ll also activate your inner thigh muscles and little muscles in your back.
- How to do it?
Push your bum slightly back and lower down to the floor. Make sure that your knees are not pushed over your toes while you keep your weight on your heels. Imagine you going to sit on a chair.
- Too easy?
Add weights in your hands or on your shoulders.
***Disclaimer: Please always listen to your body and if you experience any pain, please stop with the exercise and consult with us or another fitness or health professional. The content provided is a direction only and cannot take into account your own personal abilities. While we draw on our professional expertise and background in Personal Training, you acknowledge that we cannot support you when replicating the exercises at home.****
