When you wake up in the morning, you might not be prepared for a long, intense
workout, but you can still benefit from body-weight exercises. It increases your energy,
revs up your metabolism, and can really get you in the right mindset for the day. Take a
look at these body-weight moves you can do in the morning.
Jumping Jacks
Jumping jacks are a good body-weight workout to start with since they really increase
your energy. It is sometimes hard to wake up and get enough stamina for a morning
workout, so start with at least jumping jacks to get your heart pumping. You can
eventually do intervals by doing jumping jacks, a few other body-weight exercises, then
coming back to the jumping jacks. If you need a warm-up before the jumping jacks, walk
in place for a few minutes, and do moves like arm swings and shoulder rolls.
Lunges
Lunges are recommended for anyone doing a workout at home because they are easy
to do and just require a small amount of space. If you have a hallway to move around in,
try doing walking lunges where you do a lunge as you walk down the hallway or other
space. However, you can also do standing lunges, alternating feet, but not actually
moving forward or backward. This is good when you have a small amount of space, like
your bedroom.
Squats
The morning is also a great time to do your squats. You can either do them in a
sequence with other exercise, or do them while doing other activities. For example, if
you are waiting for your coffee to brew or your omelet to finish cooking, do some squats
right there in the kitchen! You can also do squats when you are brushing your teeth or
waiting for someone else to finish in the bathroom.
Planks
For the final workout in the morning before you get ready for your day, do some planks.
A simple elbow or full plank only requires holding it for about 30 seconds. You can
eventually challenge yourself by holding it for longer or doing variations on the plank by
moving different parts of your body. Planks can also be done with minimal space and
don’t take much time. If you wake up late, spending one minute doing planks isn’t going
to affect your schedule all that much, so at least try to fit that in.