Sunday, December 25, 2011

5 Muscle Toning Exercises You Can Do Anywhere, Anytime

Exercising regularly and maintaining an active lifestyle are important for permanent weight loss. Toning your muscles and staying in shape are easy ways to increase your life expectancy and improve your overall health and wellness. Weight-bearing exercises are important, especially for girls and women who want to build bone strength and prevent osteoporosis later in life.

Learning to do easy muscle toning exercises is not the problem, the challenge is finding the time to do them.

Here are five easy toning exercises that you can do anywhere and whenever you have time. At home, at the office, or on vacation, you can do these easy yet extremely effective exercises for general fitness.

1. Squats: This is probably the most common toning exercise known to everyone. They work the butt, the hamstring muscles and the quadriceps. If you not sure of the proper form, you can use a chair to assist you.

Step 1: Stand with feet shoulder width apart and feet firmly planted.

Step 2: Push your butt back as if you were preparing to sit in a chair. Keep your abs tight and your upper body straight.

Step 3: Once you reach chair level stop and hold the position for a count of two to five and release.

Step 4: At the lowest point, place all of your weight on your heels for balance and maximum toning.



2. Lunges: Lunges work the quadriceps muscles. They can be hard for people with knee problems.

Step 1: Stand with feet together and arms at your sides.

Step 2: Take one leg and move it forwards until you are in lunge position: back leg bent at a 90-degree angle and front leg extended until you are on the ball of your foot.

Step 3: From this position lower yourself down until the back knee almost touches the floor.

Step 4: Hold for a count of two and return to starting position.


3. Bridge Butt Lift: No, I’m not talking about a complicated cosmetic surgery here, instead it is an easy way to tone your buttocks.

Step 1: Lay down with feet flat on the floor, legs shoulder width apart.

Step 2: Place your hands, palm side down, on either side of your body.

Step 3: Pushing with your feet, squeeze your gluteal muscles and lift your butt off the floor.

Step 4: Hold the position for a count of five to ten and release down to the floor.


4. Push-ups: This is an evergreen toning exercise that works every part of your arms and your chest muscles.

Step 1: If you aren’t comfortable or strong enough to perform a push-up on your toes, lower your body to your knees.

Step 2: Be sure your arms are tucked into the body and your back straight as you lower and lift your body.


5. Crunches: Abdominal muscles can be worked every day to build strength and muscle tone.

Step 1: Lying on the floor in sit up position, lace your fingers behind your head.

Step 2: Squeezing your abdominal muscles, lift your upper body until your lower back is about to come off the floor.

Step 3: Hold for two to five counts and return to starting position.


These five toning exercise can be done whenever you have the time. The best part is that the effects are cumulative, even if you have only five or ten minutes to do toning exercises.

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