No time for a marathon gym sesh? No excuses. These short, simple exercises can be done on the daily to improve strength and muscle tone.
Full-body super intense sweat sessions are not always an option. Maintain your hard-earned muscle tone with these easy daily exercises.
Planks
Planks are EVERYWHERE right now and for darn good reason. (Twice as effective as crunches, thank you very much.) This oh-so-simple move works your core of course, but it also improves strength for the back, bum, quads, shoulders, and chest. Regular planking can also improve posture, which will prevent your body from slipping into bad habits.
Make sure you’re using the correct form; start out with two sets of planks for 20 to 30 seconds each. More on form, benefits, and plank variations here.
Squats
Squats in all their glorious forms are stellar staples for maintaining legs. They challenge balance; are bizarrely fun (see the delightfully silly, sumo-esque Ninja Crawl below); and target a multitude of muscles, like quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, and calves.
Here are a few options to try:
Hop Scotch Drop Squats (Bonus points if you can say that three times quickly.)
Ninja Crawls (Please send selfies @aliveHealth.)
Squat and Shoulder Press
Squat Rollups
Push-ups
Picking yourself up and setting yourself down again doesn’t sound like much, but these simple exercises will ward off wobbly arm demons from creeping up on your biceps and triceps. Plus, they’ll make you feel like a champ when people ask you for help with heavy things.
Take your pick from these easy-to-do moves.
Dips
Wall Push-Ups with Stacked and Staggered Feet
Wall Clap Push-Up
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