Top 10 exercises for weight loss
When you’re trying to lose weight, it’s tempting to try crazy diets or exercise for hours every day. But the truth is, there are so many ways to lose weight that don’t require drastic changes. Here are some of our favorites:
How to prevent being overweight
1. Jumping jacks
Here are the ways to do jumping jacks correctly:
1. Jump and lift your arms.
2. Jump and put down your arms.
3. Repeat this action 10 times
2. Squats
Squats are a great exercise for toning and strengthening your lower body. They’re also easy to do at home, so they’re perfect if you don’t want to join a gym.
Here’s how you’re going to do it:
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your arms at your sides.
Keeping your back straight and your abs engaged, squat down until your thighs are parallel with the floor. Then rise back up to a standing position. That’s one rep.
Do about 20 of these, then take a 30-second rest before moving on to the next set. You can repeat this three times for an excellent lower-body workout!
3. Double Crunch
Start by lying flat on your back, with your knees bent and your feet on the floor. Place your hands behind your ears.
Then, bring your knees in towards your chest and lift your shoulders off the ground.
Touch your right elbow to the left knee, then switch sides and touch the left elbow to the right knee.
4. Push-ups
As with any exercise, it’s important to know how to do push-ups correctly. To start, you should:
Get into the position: Place your hands on the ground, shoulder-width apart. Put your feet together behind you and extend your legs. Align your head with your back and make sure that your body forms a straight line from shoulders to toes.
Breathe in as you lower yourself toward the ground until your elbows form 90-degree angles. At this point, push up again while exhaling.
5. Mountain climbers
Mountain climbers are a great exercise to get your heart rate up while working on strengthening your core.
Start in a plank position, with your back straight and your arms holding you up at shoulder height.
Your hands should be directly under your shoulders and turned down so that your thumbs are facing forward.
Keep your feet together as you lift one leg at a time, bending your knee and bringing it toward your chest as far as you can.
The leg that is still extended should remain straight, with the heel lifted slightly off of the ground.
The goal is to alternate legs rapidly like you’re sprinting in place on the floor. Your speed will depend on the intensity you want to reach, but it shouldn’t be at all jerky or sloppy, so go slowly until you find a rhythm that feels good for you and allows you to keep control over what’s happening.
6. Plank
Whatever you think of when you hear the word “plank,” it’s probably wrong.
You’ve probably heard that planks are supposed to be done with your back completely straight, but here’s what everyone’s missing:
Planks aren’t just about strength in your abs. They’re also about having strong legs and a strong back—parts of your body that are important to keep in shape as you get older. The key to doing a plank is to make sure you’re engaging all three of those muscle groups: abs, legs, and back.
So how do you do it? With your hands flat on the floor and your feet together, lift your toes off the ground and try to push the heels back behind you so they’re in line with your knees.
This will engage the backs of your legs and, if you tighten up your glutes and contract your stomach, will also help engage your abs and lower back.
Once you have all those muscles working, hold it for 30 seconds or longer if you can!
7. High-knees running in place
-This is an active exercise, so you should do it when you are already moving. You can do this while walking on the treadmill, on your lunch break, or while watching TV! If you’re doing this while walking on a treadmill, start with a slow to moderate speed.
-Stand with your feet hip-width apart and lift your right knee so that your thigh comes parallel to the ground. Then lower your right leg and lift your left leg to parallel. Continue alternating legs, moving as quickly as you can without compromising form.
-Move for 30 seconds at a time for three sets.
8. Lunges
Lunges are a great functional exercise that can help you improve your balance, flexibility, and core strength. Here’s how you do them:
Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Keep your hands on your hips or the back of a chair for balance. Take a large step forward with one leg, keeping your back straight and bending both knees until the front knee is at 90 degrees and the back knee almost touches the floor.
Your front shin should be vertical, and your back knee should be directly below (not in front of) your hip. Push back to standing with both legs and repeat on the other side.
9. Side planks with hip dips
Lie on your left side, straightening your legs and supporting your torso with your left forearm.
Engage your abs, glutes, and quads. Lift your hips off the floor so that you are balancing on the outer edge of your left foot and your forearm.
Once you feel stable, lower and raise your hips about an inch for 5 seconds. Lower back down into a slanted plank position.
Repeat 20 times before switching sides.
10. Jump rope
Start with your feet together and your hands by your sides. Lift your left leg, step forward, and land on the ball of your foot (your heel will be off the ground). Then repeat with your right leg.
Bend both of your knees and lower yourself toward the floor as you bring your hands up over your head. Jump straight up and bring your arms back down to your sides.
Step forward with one foot, then step back with the other foot. Then switch, stepping back with one foot and then stepping forward with the other foot.
This time, when you step back with one foot, you’re going to jump back into a little hop. Repeat this on the other side as well.
Now it’s time to move into a squat position! Push both of your hips backward as if you’re sitting in a chair. Bend both of your knees so that they’re at 90-degree angles, keeping both feet flat on the ground about hip-width apart. Stand back up!
Now jump as high as you can!
