Best Workouts Without Weights

You’re lying in bed, you have been binge-watching Netflix all day and you want to do something different but you can’t leave the house. If this is your case, read this article and get to know the best workouts that you can do at home. Try them and change your daily Netflix-watching routine while building a stronger, leaner, and healthier body and improving your overall lifestyle. You don’t have to be an expert, you don’t need to have any equipment and it will only take away one hour of your time. 

Squats

There’s no doubt that squats are probably one of the best and more complete exercises that you can do. When performing them, you can improve your balance, burn fat, tone your muscles, activate your core and back, and better your circulation. To have a proper squat, follow the following steps: 

1. Stand up with your feet spread a bit wider than your shoulder width. Make sure you are standing up straight, with your hips above your knees and your knees above your ankles.
2. Relax your shoulders and make sure that they are as far away from your ears as possible. 
3. Extend your arms straight out from your body with your palms facing down until they are parallel to the ground.
4. Begin to go down by bending your knees, allowing your core to drop, and bring your hips and butt slightly behind you. Always have your back and chest completely upright, your head facing front, and your chin up while going down.
5. Get as low as possible. Ideally, your hips should go below your knee level, but it’s up to you and your capacity. Remember that maintaining form is key. 
6. When you reach the bottom, get back up. Keep your posture, engage your core, and make sure to push from your heels to activate those leg muscles.
7. Repeat as you desire.

Lunges

These are similar to squats, but they involve a bit more leg work. Lunges require more weight carriage since you will be moving your legs in various directions. They will target your glutes, calves, and hamstrings while also engaging your core and lower back. Since lunges work each leg individually, they will help you improve your stability and coordination and add flexibility to your hip flexors. The most important thing to take into account when performing lunges is maintaining proper form. Keep your back and chest straight, your head facing front, your chin up and your feet parallel to each other. Some variations of lunges are:

1. Basic lunge: stand up straight and step forward with one foot. Then, bring your body down until your front leg reaches a 90-degree bend. Your front knee should not go beyond your front toe to avoid injuries. Get back up and switch legs after completing the desired reps.
2. Walking lunge: it's the basic lunge going forward and backward repeatedly. Do a basic lunge and follow it with a backward lunge with the same foot. When you go down, your back knee should touch the ground before you come back up. Switch legs after completing the desired reps.
3. Lateral lunge: stand up straight and instead of moving your foot to the front move it to the side. Then, keeping your feet parallel to each other and flat on the floor, bend your knee while your hips go down. Repeat it with the other leg.

Pushups

Pushups are one of the compound exercises of the fitness world, meaning that in one movement they will engage several muscle groups. When performed correctly, a pushup will work your chest, arm, and back muscles as well as your core. Plus, it will increase your heart rate and act as a great cardiovascular exercise. Introducing pushups into your workout routine will give you better posture, add strength, and reduce back pain. These are some basic pushups that you can do anywhere:

1. Standard pushup: lay face-down on the floor with your arms fully stretched and your hands below your shoulders. Keep your body straight from head to feet, supporting your weight on your arms. Come down until your face is close to the ground and then come up. Do as many reps as you can without losing form.
2. Diamond pushup: same as the standard pushup but with different hand placement. Bring your hands together so they form a triangle between your thumbs and index fingers. Come down until your face is close to the ground and come back up. Do as many reps as you can without losing form.
3. Wide pushups: begin with the position of the standard pushup but open your arms a little bit, more than your shoulder width. Come down until your face is close to the ground and come back up. Do as many reps as you can without losing form.

Planks

Simple, effective and you can do them anywhere. Planks are probably the most complete overall core workout in the fitness world. They will help you work your abs, obliques, glutes, and back. Incorporating planks into your routine can help you improve your muscle tone and even reduce back, neck, and shoulder pain. The premise is basic: hold your body up and keep it stiff as a board for as long as you can. For beginners, it is recommended to hold for at least 20 seconds in each position and work their way up from there. These are some of the plank variations that exist:

1. High plank: position your body as if you were going to do a regular pushup: place your hands directly under your shoulders and keep your body completely straight as if you had a line drawn from your heels to your neck. Try to lock your eyes somewhere to avoid distractions and improve balance. Hold and squeeze your core.
2. Low plank: start with the same position as the high plank, but this time bend your arms at 90 degrees, supporting your weight on your forearms. Keep your forearms below your shoulders and parallel to each other. You can hold your hands together to ease any wrist pain. Hold and squeeze your core.
3. Side plank: this one is a bit different and targets your obliques. You should lie on one side with your body completely straight, supporting your weight with only one fully-stretched arm. You can bring up your other arm to increase difficulty or make it easier by crossing your legs for support. Hold and squeeze your core. Then, switch sides.