The Best Quickie Workout You Can Do in Your Bathroom
Between brushing your teeth and washing your face, jumpstart your metabolism.
Let's say you have ten extra minutes every single morning. What do you do? Craft a tastier breakfast? Put a little more care in assembling your outfit? (Come on: snooze is the lazy man's answer.) Those are viable ways to use your time, for sure. But may we posit something else: exercise. Before you change out of your pajamas, even before you sip your morning Joe, there's a way to kickstart your metabolism and limber up for the encroaching day. And best of all, it's only a 10 minute workout, and it requires little space, so you can do it in your bathroom. So between brushing your teeth and washing your face, slate this in. You'll be fit as a fiddle in no time. And if you have a few minutes before you leave for work, try adding the single best morning exercise of all time to the routine. Let's begin with the warmup:
1
High-Knee March and Arm Circle (20 reps)
Stand tall with your arms held out to your sides parallel with the floor, palms up. March in place at a moderate speed, raising your knees as high as you can with each step. Two steps equal one rep. Simultaneously circle your arms backward. Start with tight circles and gradually increase their size. After 10 marching reps, reverse arm circle direction. For more great warmups, learn the 5 stretches that will limber you up for any workout.
2
Bodyweight Squat (10 reps)
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, toes pointed slightly outward. Raise your arms straight in front of you, parallel with the ground, palms down. Now, push your butt back and bend your knees to squat until your thighs are at least parallel with the floor. Take three seconds to lower and two stand. As it so happens, bodyweight squats are one of the ways to shed ten pounds by the Fourth of July.
3
Bear Crawl (6 reps)
Get on all fours with your knees directly under your hips (but not touching the floor) and your hands directly under your shoulders. Brace your core and abs to stabilize your spine throughout the exercise. Reach forward with your right arm and knee simultaneously while shifting your weight forward over your left arm and knee. Then reach forward with your left arm and knee. That's one rep. Crawl forward three reps (if you have enough space in your bathroom), and then crawl backward three reps. By now, you should be more than ready for the upcoming high-intensity workout—which, by the way, has been proven to reverse cellular aging. Next up, let's move on from the warmup portion to the drill…
1
Mixed Pushup (10 reps)
Get into pushup position with your arms straight and hands on the floor directly under your shoulders. Your body should form a straight line between your heels and your head. Brace your core.
Do five regular pushups. Next, do five spiderman pushups: As you lower your body to the ground lift your right foot off the ground and bend your knee toward your right elbow. Straighten that knee as you push yourself up. During the next pushup, use your left foot and knee. Two pushups equals one rep.
Once you become proficient, finish with five plyometric pushups: From the down position, straighten your arms explosively to push your body up. Your hands will likely come off the ground. Immediately lower into the next pushup. It's always good to switch your pushups up; in fact, it's what Olympian judo fighters do to stay fighting fit.
2
Backward Lunge (10 reps)
Stand with feet hip-width apart. Take a big step backward with your right foot and bend both knees until your back knee is about an inch above the floor. Press back into the standing position and repeat the exercise with your left leg. That's one rep.
3
Single-Leg RDL (6 reps)
Stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart, arms at your sides. Raise one foot off the ground and extend that leg behind you about a foot. Contract your glutes and brace your abs. Now slowly lower your torso until your upper body is parallel with the floor and your arm hand straight down toward the floor. As you do, raise your back leg until it, too, is parallel with the floor. Return to the starting position and repeat with the opposite leg.
That's one rep. So yes, you'll want to recover after this workout. Consider munching on one of the 5 best high-protein snacks for men.
4
Glute Bridge (10 reps)
Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Squeeze your glutes and raise your hips until your thighs and chest form a straight line. Pause for three seconds, then lower your hips and repeat. This will blast your glutes, one of the muscles fit guys never ignore at the gym, like nothing else.
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