6 Bodyweight Moves You've Never Tried
To get a strong, toned body, you don’t always need to use equipment at the gym (or at home!)
We’ll wager a guess that your go-to bodyweight routine — the one you employ at the park, in front of the TV, and in hotel rooms — is stale. You can only get so psyched to do the same lunges, squats, and push-ups. Which is exactly why celebrity trainer Anna Kaiser created this total-body workout. “I wanted to challenge people, get them out of their comfort zones and more connected to the exercises they’re doing,” says Kaiser, who uses the moves in the explosive strength-and-cardio classes at her New York City studio AKT. “If the move feels new, you’ll be more engaged, push harder, and find it more fun than doing the push-ups and burpees you’ve done forever.”
Related: The Only 8 Moves You Need to Be Fit
But fun doesn’t mean easy. Perform these six moves correctly, and you’ll be winded and shaky by the end — a nice reminder that you’re not just strengthening every muscle, you’re getting in cardio too. Do the six moves in order, taking no breaks between exercises, then rest one minute. Do three rounds total.
Puzzle Push-Up
Start in plank position. Lower your body halfway down and hold, elbows at a 45-degree angle. Maintaining that position, lower your knees to tap the ground, straighten them, and push back to plank position for 1 rep. Do 15 slow and controlled reps.
Related: 10 Ways to Do a Push-Up
Reverse Lunge to Single-Leg Jump
Stand with feet directly under your hips, hands clasped together at chest. Step backward into a deep lunge, so both knees are at a 90-degree angle, right knee nearly touching the floor. Drive the left heel into floor and explode up, raising right knee quickly in front of you and jumping off the floor with your left foot. Return immediately to the deep backward lunge. Repeat, trying to get as much range of motion as possible, for 10 reps. Switch sides for another 10 reps.
The Ab Swing
Sit on floor with knees bent, hands planted behind you, fingertips pointing forward toward your heels. Driving heels into floor, raise your hips up to a table-top position, keeping your chin tilted toward your chest. Now, lower your hips toward the floor, and swing them back through your arms, tucking your pelvis under and keeping hips off floor. Return immediately into the bridge position. Keep your arms straight throughout the exercise. Do 15 reps without pausing.
Related: The 10 Moves You Need to Get a Rock-Solid Core
Shuffle-Lunge
Start in an athletic stance, feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, hands in front of chest. Shuffle quickly to the right fours steps, and end lunging your right leg to the side, sinking down into a deep lateral lunge, so your right thigh is parallel to floor, left leg straight. Push out of the lunge with your right heel, keeping the left leg straight. Repeat to the other side: Shuffle to the left four steps into a lateral lunge on left side. Continue for 1 minute.
Crab Hops
Sit on floor with knees bent, hands planted behind you, fingertips pointing forward toward heels. Driving heels into floor, raise your hips a few inches up, and extend the right leg toward ceiling. In one motion, bend your elbows into a triceps dip, as you hop to switch legs and extend your left leg toward ceiling. Continue, dipping and switching legs, for 1 minute.
Superman Switch-backs
Lie facedown on the floor, hands next to sides, and tighten your glutes. Lift your upper body off floor, and pull your shoulder blades down and back. Extend the left arm in front of you, bicep next to your left ear, as you lean to the right and reach your right hand back toward your right foot (you should feel all the muscles along your left side engage). Switch to the other side, bringing left arm down to your side to reach back toward left foot as you lean to the left, and extend right arm out with biceps next to right ear. Continue for 30 seconds.
By Marissa Stephenson
