Strengthen Throughout the Day

 

While increasing strength and flexibility are easy goals to set, working toward these objectives on a daily basis can seem like a challenge. Here are three simple moves from the experts at barre3 in Knoxville that can be done throughout the day to help you stay on track:

Morning: Start your day with an energizing rocking horse. This posture works the thighs, calves, back and core.

1. Start by finding a steady, waist-high object like a chair or countertop you can use for balance.
2. Step one foot back so you are in a lunge position with your front knee stacked over your front ankle and your back knee under your hip. Firm in through the inner thighs and engage your core (these actions help you target and connect deeper with the muscles).
3. Push in to your front foot to stand tall, stretching back leg behind you with your toe pointed and lifted off the ground and reaching opposite arm out to form a straight line from back toe to outstretched fingertips.
4. Sink back in to your lunge posture and repeat standing action. Do 20 reps per side.

Mid-day: We recommend doing incline core work for a mid-day pick me up. This posture targets our deepest core muscles, which help you stand tall and strong.

1. Lie flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat.
2. Lift your hips and place the barre3 core ball under your pelvis and rest your hips heavy on the ball.
3. Lift your legs to a tabletop position and take a deep inhale through your nose and slow exhale through your mouth as you engage your core. It will feel like a cinching of your waist.
4. Flex your feet and move one foot one inch forward away from you and then one inch back to starting position. Alternate feet moving forward and back while you continue breathing deep and slow. Do this for 1 minute. Optional: lift your arms to the sky to add a balance challenge.

Evening: Because we sit all day it is so important to give our glutes a good workout at the end of the day. Try our standing diamond pose to work all the seat muscles, plus the core.

1. Find a steady, waist-high object like a chair or countertop to use for balance.
2. Face your waist-high surface and rest both hands on top.
3. Send one leg straight back behind you to the center of the room, bend your heel to your seat, and place the same hand as lifted leg on your hip.
4. Open the hip of your lifted leg towards the sky and ensure that your standing leg is strong and firmed in under you. Engage your core and lengthen your spine.
5. Rotate through your hip joint to move your lifted knee down one inch then up one inch. Do 20 reps and then repeat on side two.