5 Easy and Effective Exercises to Do With Furniture at Home

USE YOUR COUCH!

Lie down on the floor, on your side, with your upper body and the back of your hips up against the sofa/couch. Slide your feet slightly in front of your upper body (you should be able to see your toes from the corner of your eyes.) While keeping your hips stacked and up against the side of the sofa, lift and lower the top leg without moving the upper body. Purpose of the exercise: 1. Strengthens the abductors (outside of the thighs) 2. Strengthens the glutes (buttocks) 3. Strengthens the obliques (waistline)

USE YOUR CHAIR!

Prop the chair up against the wall for safety! Come to a plank position with your feet up on the seat of the chair, toes planted down, and hands down on the floor (you should be a straight line from your head to your heels) Mind you, NO BUTTS STICKING UP IN THE AIR. Lower the entire body down, as one straight line, by bending the elbows (elbows-wide works the chest more and elbows close to your sides works the triceps more.) Remember to squeeze through the back of the legs to help stabilise. Purpose of the exercise: 1. Strengthens the entire body – chest, shoulders, triceps, abdominals, glutes, and back muscles

USE YOUR COFFEE TABLE!

Sit on the floor in front of the coffee table. Your arms must be extended out in front, with the pinkie side of the fingers on the top of the table. As the fingers reach forward, take the head, neck, and torso forward, while grounding the hips down. Your arms stay light on the top of the table and your lower back stays in the neutral position. Slowly return to your starting position by stacking the spine back up, one vertebra at a time. Purpose of the exercise: 1. Stretches the mid-back 2. Increases spinal mobility in the flexion, at the mid-back 3. Teaches you good sitting posture

USE YOUR BED!

Sit up on the bed, about 1 foot away from the edge of the bed, with your legs extended in front and zipped together. Reach your arms out, at level with your chest. Roll back slowly with control (the bottom tip of your shoulder blades should touch the edge of the bed.) Extend the upper back over the edge of the bed, while keeping your bottom ribs, lower back, and the back of your legs pressed into the bed. Arms reach up over the head. Return to your starting position by reaching out towards the feet. Let the reach of your arms help roll you back up, slowly, with control. Purpose of the exercise: 1. Strengthens abdominals and inner core muscles 2. Strengthens spinal extensors 3. Increases spinal mobility 4. Stretches the shoulders and neck

USE YOUR BAR STOOL!

Stand facing the bar stool, arms distance away. Lift the leg straight up and circle from the centre of the body, over the seat of the stool, back to the starting position (keep the upper body steady and upright.) Keep alternating the legs. Purpose of the exercise: 1. Increases hip mobility 2. Works on body balance 3. Strengthens the lower body and obliques