You don’t have to be an athlete to face daily athletic challenges. Whether lifting your luggage into an overhead compartment or squatting on the floor to play with your kids, many daily movements require a combination of strength, stability and flexibility.
And like an athlete, you have to train if you want to do these things without injury. But life is busy. If you’re short on time, consider a workout that focuses on mobility, or how strong a joint is through its entire range.
“When we think of mobility, we think about movement,” said Cedric Bryant, the president of the American Council on Exercise. This means focusing on dynamic moves, like lunges, that work groups of muscles, rather than individual ones.
It also means focusing on important joints — like the shoulders, hips and spine. Those areas are crucial for reaching, lifting and pulling, said Jessica Valant, a physical therapist and Pilates instructor in Denver. “If you can work to keep those mobile, you are going to help yourself with 90 percent of the activities that you do every day.”
These five exercises will help build full-body strength and can allow you to feel more capable and agile. To get the full benefit, combine these exercises with 30 minutes a day of other physical activity, such as walking or jogging.
Overview
Time: 10 minutes
Intensity: Low
Rounds: Do each exercise for one minute, then move to the next exercise. Complete the full sequence twice.