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An Easy Ten-Minute Workout to Start Your Day

Burn Fat and Maintain Muscle MassBetween all of your day to day responsibilities and your dreams of a social life, it may seem impossible to add a workout into your routine every day. In addition to your weight loss diet New Jersey it is important to focus on increasing your activity level. So, on days where you know the gym just isn’t going to happen, try fitting in this simple ten minute workout routine.

Stretching

Half of a ten-minute workout routine should involve stretching. This will help to increase your metabolism before breakfast and prepare your body for strength training. All it takes is a few yoga poses.

Start by standing with feet together and arms at the sides. Lift the arms out from the sides until they meet over the head. Point the fingers upward so the entire body is stretched from heel to fingers. Next, move the left leg back and bend the right knee so the left leg stretches as far back as possible. Hold this for about 20 seconds and then return to the standing pose. Next, stretch the right leg back and bend the left knee, holding for another 20 seconds. Return to the standing position, and then bend over as far as possible at the hips, grasping each elbow with the opposite hand. Stand in this relaxing pose for 30 seconds.

Lie flat facing down with hands beside the chest and arms bent. Arch the back and push until the arms are extended, thus stretching the arms and back. Hold this pose for about 20 seconds before pushing up with the arms and back with the hips so the top of the head is between the arms and pointing toward the floor, the buttocks are in the air and the legs are extended at an angle, and hold for another twenty seconds.

When you are stretching, may close attention not to pulse your muscles. This can add additional and unnecessary stress to your muscles, and put you at an increased risk for injury.

Strength

For the next five minutes it is time to focus on strength training. It is easy to keep a strength training routine simple by using your body weight to your own advantage. Lying down on the floor, start your workout with two and a half minutes of push-ups. Count to see how many you can do in that time frame! Then, finish strong with another two and a half minutes of sit-ups. As sit-ups become easier increase the intensity by stretching out your arms and legs as you crunch.