6 Ideas for 10-Minute Workouts to Do at Home

Warning: A non-numeric value encountered in /home/wealffco/public_html/wewt/wp-content/plugins/adsense-daemon/Adsense-Daemon.php on line 243

Warning: A non-numeric value encountered in /home/wealffco/public_html/wewt/wp-content/plugins/adsense-daemon/Adsense-Daemon.php on line 243

Don’t have time for a 30-minute workout all in one chunk of time? Then these 10-minute workouts you can do at home may be your panacea to exercising. They are simple, quick and effective.

1) Chair Squats

Stand in front of a chair, feet hip-distance apart, toes pointing forward. Lean forward slightly while at the same time bend at the knees until your butt just touches the top of the chair seat. Don’t seat down! Once touched, then push yourself back up to the standing position. For the proper form, keep your weight centered over your feet. Do 10 to 12 reps.

2) Step-Ups

This can be done on the bottom stair of a staircase or with anything where you can step up. Some use a stack of books, a wooden box, or a platform made for step-ups. Start by placing your entire right foot on a stair or a sturdy platform. Then follow by bringing up the left foot on the platform. Next step down with your left leg, making sure your foot lands around 12 inches back of the stair or platform; follow with your right foot. Do 12 times, keeping the abs pulled in and back straight. Then switch sides and repeat.

NOTE: Both the Chair Squats and Step-Ups can be made more effective by doing them while holding hand weights.

3) Chair Dips

Sit on a sturdy chair with hands resting next to hips and on the front edge of the chair. Slide your butt just off the edge and lower yourself down until your elbows are at a 90-degree angle. Keeping your back close to the edge of the chair, push yourself back up. Do 10 to 12 repetitions.

4) Butterfly Crunches

This exercise doesn’t even require a chair. Start by lying on your back with the soles of your feet together, knees out to the side. Place your hands behind head with elbows out. Start raising yourself up by tightening your abs until your shoulder blades are off of the floor. Then slowly use your abs to lower yourself back down. Do 10 to 12 reps.

5) Oblique Crunches

This is generally the same as the standard crunch, but with a twist (literally). Start by lying on your back, knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Now cross your left ankle over the opposite knee. Place your right hand behind your head with your left arm perpendicular out to the side. Lift your right shoulder toward your left knee. Release back down. Do 10 to 12 reps, then switch sides and do another 10 to 12 reps.

6) Modified Push-Ups

Get down on all fours, knees together. Walk your hands out in front of you just a little and lift your feet so that you are supported with just your hands and knees; move your hands slightly wider than your chest. Be sure to keep your head, neck, back and butt in one straight line; no sagging in the middle of your back. Keeping your abs tight, bend at the elbows and lower your chest towards the floor. Press back up. Do 10 to 12 reps. To make this exercise more difficult, do it as a standard push-up with your knees off of the floor.

Each exercise can be done as part of a circuit training, that is progressing from one exercise to the next with minimum rest in-between. They look easy to do, but as you will find out, will kick your butt. As they get easier, you can add more repetitions per exercise or cycle through the whole circuit more than once.

How to Make More Time in Your Day to Exercise

A common excuse for not exercising is a lack of time. However, when analyzed most people have the time to exercise if they choose to make it a priority in their lives. Increasing the amount of exercise 15 minutes each day reduces the risk of premature death by 14% and adds three years to your life expectancy. In this article we discuss ways to “make time” to exercise so you can live a healthier life longer.

10 Minutes at a Time

Some people think they can’t free up a 30-minute block of time to get in a workout, so they end up doing nothing. Studies have proven three 10-minute workouts can be just as effective as doing it in one chunk to time. Ten minutes in the morning before work, at lunch and again after work can get you all the exercise you need.

Walk To Work

Another myth is that many people think exercising has to be done in a gym for it to count; nothing is farther from the truth. Walking is great exercise. Instead of parking close to your place of work, park at the far end of the lot and walk in the rest of the way. Or if you take public transportation to work, get off a stop or two before your regular stop and walk the rest of the way. Once in your building, take the stairs instead of the elevator (depending on which floor you work). Instead of eating a lunch ladened with saturated fat and calories in the cafeteria, take a walk at lunch and then eat the healthy one you brought from home before returning to work.

Schedule Workouts

Busy professionals schedule everything they do including workouts. By entering a workout into your daily work schedule, it becomes just another thing to check off of the list. If not scheduled, it is easy to not make time to do it.

Multitask

A lot of time is “wasted” watching TV. Instead of sitting in a chair or on the couch, watch TV while walking on a treadmill or using an elliptical trainer. That way you get your entertainment and exercise at the same time. Just be sure to stop exercising well ahead of bedtime, so your body has time to wind down.

These are just four ways to work in a workout into your daily life. There are several more ways to “create” time to exercise once it becomes a priority in your life.