No home gym? No problem. Dana Santas, a mind-body coach in professional sports, says you can get a total-body workout at home using only bodyweight and some common household items. Her routine uses a backpack, broomstick, chair, towel and water bottles to fine-tune movement, build strength and ease areas of chronic tension. And the best part? It only takes 10 minutes.
- Before you start - Find a space with natural light to help lift your mood while you workout. If you can, face a window. And do a quick warm-up first, like a yoga or mobility flow. Gather the items you’ll need: a backpack, a broom, a chair, a towel and full water bottles. Fill the backpack with enough water bottles so it’s heavy enough to be challenging, but not so much that it messes with your form.
- Backpack squat - Hold it close to your chest with your feet slightly wider than hip distance apart and squat as deeply as possible without pain, while keeping your chest and head up. Do five to 10 reps.
- Broomstick single-leg hinge - Stand with your legs shoulder-distance apart, holding the broomstick horizontally against the front of your legs. Do a single-leg hinge by extending one leg behind you and hinging forward with a flat back. Keep the broom in line with your shoulders as you slowly stand up with both feet on the ground. Repeat on the other leg, five to 10 reps.
- Chair split squat - Put a folded towel on a chair, stand in front of it, facing away from it and bend one knee and put the top of your foot on the towel with the other leg out in front. Bend your forward knee like in a lunge, let your back knee naturally bend toward the floor. Repeat on the other side and do five to 10 reps.
- Towel lateral lunge - Stand with one foot on your towel on the floor. Hold your broomstick for support as you slide your leg into a lateral lunge, then pull it back up to standing. Repeat on the other leg, five to 10 reps per side.
- Backpack lunge - Hold the backpack across your chest horizontally as you step forward to a lunge position, dropping your back knee low without touching the ground. Alternate sides as you “walk” forward, doing 10 to 20 reps.
Source: CNN