You want the maximum training effect with minimum effort? Then try one of the following 5 fitness exercises for which you don’t even have to get out of bed.
For many people, even getting out of bed in the morning is pure torture. Very few of them waste a thought on sport at this moment – and if they do, the only thing that comes up is a guilty conscience. For all morning grumblers who have trouble with motivation, here are 5 simple exercises that you can do right in bed.
1. The scissor kick
With the scissor kick, also called scissor kick, the entire abdominal muscle is trained. However, the focus is on the lower and transverse abdominal muscles and the hip muscles.
Here’s how it works:
Your legs are bent during the whole execution, your feet rest with your heels. Your arms are to the side of your body, your head is resting and your stomach is pulling to the ground. For a better stability you can place your hands under your bottom, avoiding a hollow back. Now lift one leg about 30 to 40 degrees, the other one hovers over the bed. The position is changed at the same time – repeat the whole procedure several times.
2. The sliding leg curl
This fitness exercise works best on the floor, but can also be done in bed. The gliding leg curl trains the leg bipeps as well as the gluteal muscles.
Here’s how it works:
Lie flat on the bed and bend your legs, heels on the surface. Arms and hands are on the sides of the body. Now raise your hips and slide forward with one or both feet. Your head and shoulders remain on the bed. In this exercise the upper body and thighs form a line. Keep the body tension high and pull the heels back towards the bottom. The exercises are repeated several times.
3. The push-up
Granted, push-ups on the bed require practice, but are not impossible. It trains your triceps, your pectoral muscles.
Here’s how it works:
In the starting position, your hands are at about chest level, your legs are stretched backwards and your feet are on tiptoe. Your legs, torso and head form a straight line. But beware: your arms should never be fully stretched out.
Lower your body so that your elbows are facing outwards, keeping tension. You should almost touch the ground with your nose, then push up again and repeat the exercise several times. All the work is done by the arms and the upper body. Don’t forget to breathe during the fitness exercise – inhale when lowering, exhale when pushing up.
4. The lateral leg lift
In this simple exercise you train your thighs and gluteal muscles.
And here’s how it works:
Lie down on your right or left side and place your upper hand in front of your body, the other hand you place under your head with your arm bent. In the starting position, the upper leg lies stretched out on the lower leg, the body forms a straight line.
Now lift your legs slowly and without swinging them into an angle of 45 degrees to the bed. Hold the leg in this position for about ten seconds and let it sink again. Hip and upper body should not move. Do this exercise about twenty times and then change sides. If you want to make it more difficult, you can attach additional weight bands or a theraband to the ankles.
5. The forearm support
The forearm support, also known as the plank, trains your core. This means that you address your back, pelvic floor and abdominal muscles. Also: triceps, shoulder and leg muscles. The Plank is therefore a real all-rounder among fitness exercises.
And this is how it works:
The classic version of the forearm support starts in the lying position on the stomach, with the upper body supported on the forearms. The elbows are at shoulder level, the forearms can run parallel to each other or even tapered so that your hands touch. The feet only touch the floor with the toes. Important: The body must remain in tension. The belly and hip area forms a line with shoulders and legs.