BLAIR MOREAU - MERCY HEALTH PARTNERS - That national weeklong holiday, spring break is right around the corner and gyms are packed with people hoping to get a few last minutes work sessions in before heading south. There are a couple tweaks you can make in your exercise program to give it that extra caloric burn. Here are four of my favorite body-weight-only exercises:
Pushups are overall the best workout to tone and strengthen the body. It incorporates all the muscles of the upper body, the arms, abs, and legs.
• Balance on all fours, hands and balls of your feet
• Make sure your hands are placed directly under your shoulders (not spread out too far)
• Make sure your back in a straight alignment and your butt is flat
• Inhale as you lower down and exhale as you move back to the starting position, make sure you suck in your stomach (this will help to incorporate your abs)
• Do as many pushups as you can, rest and then do some more
Body Weight Squat this is a great exercise to tone the legs, butt, and stomach
• Stand tall with feet about 8 inches apart and arms by your side
• Bend forward at the waist and bend the knees until the upper part of your legs are parallel to the floor
• Keep your back and butt tight and suck you stomach in and raise your arms until they are parallel to the floor (you can add weights to help tone the arms)
• Do as many as you can, rest and then do some more
Wall Drill is a great exercise for the upper body (chest, shoulders, arms), stomach and legs
• Place hands on the wall, wrist aligned with shoulders, legs straight and heals slightly raised
• Keeping hands planted, quickly alternate driving knees toward your chest in a high knee running motion
• Continue for at least 1-minute, rest then repeat
Abs
• Lay down on the floor, preferably a mat of some sort
• Make sure your spine is completely flat
• Bring your legs up so they are bent and the lower legs form a 90-degree angle to the floor
• Place your hands across your chest
• Inhale as you lift up, contracting your abdominal muscles
• Suck in your stomach pressing it into the floor and hold for 5 seconds
• Slowly exhale and return to the starting position, always keeping your legs up and contracting your abdominal muscles
The awesome concept about these exercises is that they can be done while you are on spring break. Try these exercises with your workout program and you will notice results.