Health and fitness feels and looks great! Of course, there are all those excuses for not having that great feeling: no space, no equipment, no time, no money. There are many machines and TV gadgets advertised to give you the convenience of more time and space. They become so tempting. After all, if you have convenience, you'd certainly do the exercises and look and feel better. If you recognize yourself in this description, why not try some exercises that are off the wall? That's right. All you need is a 2- to 3-foot length of wall or sturdy door and a few minutes of time.
Here are five exercises that will strengthen and tone different parts of the body, and all you need is a wall. The wall gives you balance and stability while you do your movements. If you have any physical or health concerns, of course, ask your doctor before beginning any new exercise program to make sure it is right for you.
Let's begin by developing strength in the arms and upper body without having to clamor to the floor. Stand about a foot away from the wall placing both palms to the wall at shoulder level and slightly wider than shoulder width apart. Keeping the body straight, lower your body toward the wall until your nose is almost to the wall, and then slowly push back to straight-arm position. Your body should slightly incline toward the wall with your feet further from the wall when you are upright. Holding and moving your own body weight with your arms, shoulders and chest muscles builds muscle tone just like doing push-ups on the floor. Begin with 10 and work your way to 50 push-ups each time.
A wall provides wonderful support and balance for working the upper leg and hip by doing leg lifts. We will begin by doing 10 with each leg in each direction – side, back and front. Then you may work your way up to 50 on each leg in each direction.
Face the wall, placing both palms at shoulder level. With your feet together about a foot from the wall, begin with the right leg. Lift the leg back for 10 lifts. Try to keep your body upright and balanced over your supporting foot. The lifting leg does not have to rise very high to feel the muscles in your buttocks working. Work to keep your lifting leg straight and your buttocks squeezing. Now support your body with your right leg, and lift the left. Both legs should lift the same number of times. So if you do 20 on one leg, do 20 on the other.
Standing with your right side to the wall, raise your right arm to shoulder level. To maintain a good balance, stand about a foot from the wall and support yourself with the right forearm resting elbow to finger tips along the wall. The left arm can remain at your side, or if you feel the need for more balance, hold it out to the side. Now lift the left leg to the side 10 times. Make sure the top of the foot, knee and hip are facing forward and not up to the ceiling. Now reverse. Turn your left side to the wall and with the left arm resting on the wall, lift the right leg.
With your back toward the wall, stand about a foot from the wall placing the palms of your hands on the wall for balance. Your hands will be level with your hips and thighs so as not to feel discomfort in your shoulders and arms. The hands on the wall give light support and are not holding up your body weight. Keeping your body balanced and upright over the supporting leg, alternate lifting your right and left legs to the front. Remember: Lift each leg the same number of times. If your supporting leg begins to feel tired, flex slightly into the knee for more support.
If you are up to 50 leg lifts in all directions, you may feel your supporting
leg(s) begin to feel tired. There are several ways to relieve this. First, shake out your legs between sets. Second, do one of the other exercises between the back lifts and side lifts and then between the side and front lifts. Alternate pointing and flexing your toe. You will feel a difference between a pointed-toe leg lift and a flexed-toe leg lift. Switch after each 10 lifts, alternating your foot position. Of course, make sure to breathe when you are doing any exercises. It seems strange, but many people have to be reminded to breathe.
Place your palms on the wall slightly below shoulder level. Standing about a foot away from the wall, stretch your right leg back so the ball of the foot is resting on the floor. Flex into the supporting left leg keeping the right leg stretched behind and straight. Now gently lower the right heel to the floor stretching the right hamstring. Slowly lift the heel supporting the leg with the ball of the foot and again lower the heel. You should feel a good stretch in the back of the right leg. Repeat 10 times and then change legs. The weight of your body should be supported over the front supporting leg. Because your supporting leg is flexed, your supporting hands will be at a lower height on the wall, yet still at shoulder level. Because this is such a good stretch for the legs, you may want to do half of your stretches at the beginning of your exercise session and half at the end to stretch out.
To strengthen ankles and calves, these ankle lifts are excellent and easy to do. Once again, place the palms of your hands on the wall about shoulder level, and stand a foot from the wall. Place your heels together and lift the heels off the floor as high as you can, then lower. The key to this exercise is keeping the heels together with the toes slightly apart for balance. The slower you lower and raise the heels, the harder your calves and ankles work. Try not to rest your heels on the floor between each lift. Begin with 10 lifts and then work up to 50 each time.
This exercise seems to be very easy, but is actually quite challenging. It is great for the thighs. Stand with your back up against the wall. You may have to lean into the wall initially to allow your foot placement to be about a foot from the wall. Now sit. That's right. Sit down so that your thighs and calves form a right angle like a tabletop or straight-backed chair. In order to stay in this position, you need to press your back and buttocks firmly into the wall. Now time yourself. How long can you sit? Begin with 30 seconds and work up to a minute. If you have strong thighs, you may want to try longer lengths of time. Remember that your feet are about a foot out from the wall and not underneath you for support.
These five exercises done with the help of a small section of wall have worked your chest, arms, shoulders, hips, buttocks, thighs, calves, hamstrings and ankles. They only take a few minutes of time, yet with consistent effort, help you feel great. Remember, one exercise session won't make a difference – except to make you sore. Consistency is the key to any exercise program. So start a program that's off the wall! Off the wall fitness is easy, inexpensive and takes very little space. Perfect!
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