A Workout You Can Do Anywhere

3 minute read

Memorize these five moves and you’ll have a metabolism-boosting routine you can do anywhere. All you need is a sturdy waist-high surface, like a kitchen counter, a desk, or the back of a park bench. (Consult your doctor first if you are pregnant or recovering from an injury.) “You can even do these in your street clothes,” says Sadie Lincoln, the founder of Barre3, who created this sequence. Repeat it three or four times throughout the day. “By bedtime you’ll have burned more calories than you would have with one 30-minute trip to the gym,” says Lincoln.

 

Sumo Slide

(A) Standing with feet a little wider than shoulder-width apart and turned slightly outward, bring your hands to your thighs, push your weight into your heels, bend your knees, and sink your rear end down and back behind you. (B) Push your weight into the balls of your feet, tighten your core, and lift up to standing. With the same fluid motion, lift your arms up over your head and slide your right heel to your left heel. Repeat 15 times, sweeping your heels together on alternating sides.

Narrow Athletic V

(A) Stand with your heels together, your palms flat and together, and your toes pointed outward, three to four inches apart. (B) Bend your knees as in a plié, lowering your body about six inches, then hold. Keep your back straight, as if you’re up against an imaginary wall. (C) Lift your heels up one inch, then return to the starting point. Repeat 30 times.

Horse Pose

(A) Stand with your feet slightly wider than your shoulders, with your toes pointed out to 2 o’clock and 10 o’clock and your arms stretched out away from your sides. (B) Bend your knees to lower your body one inch while keeping your back straight, as if you’re up against an imaginary wall. Your knees should be pitched forward over your middle toes, so that when you look down at the ground, only your big toes are visible. (C) Lift back to the starting point. Repeat 30 times.

Starfish

(A) Start in horse pose, with a waist-high surface, like a couch back, to your left. (B) Once in the bent-knee position, place your left hand on the surface and reach your right arm out to the other side. (C) Press your left foot into the ground and lift your core up, sweeping your right arm up over you head and lifting your right leg straight out on your right side. (D) Lengthen the right side of your body, stretching out your right arm and leg, so that you end up leaning over the surface. (E) Return back to horse pose. Repeat 30 times on each side.

Standing Plank

(A) With your feet shoulder-width apart, place your hands on a waist-high surface. (B) Take a small step back and lift yourself onto the balls of your feet so that your heels are hovering off the ground and your body is leaning slightly forward. (C) Press into the surface and hold and breathe for one minute.

This article originally appeared on RealSimple.com.

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