At this time of year with truckloads of coursework and revision for exams coming up, many of us feel overwhelmed and as if we simply don’t have time to exercise. It’s all too easy to remain confined to your desk for hours on end and forgetting that your body craves movement. Personally, I try to get to the gym as early in the day as I can (7am on a really good day, 10am on a bad one), get my workout crossed off my to-do list and get my metabolism fired up. However, sometimes you have so much work piling up that you need to get straight to the revision, so I have designed this work out routine which consists of 7 moves in the hope to inspire you with exercises which require nothing more than: a chair, a table and a water-bottle. It will help to improve your cognitive function as you work. You could do this work out quickly at home before heading to the library to save you the trouble of trekking to the gym, or to split up your time whilst revising at home!
As a side note, whilst you’re sitting at your desk always remember to sit off your coccyx so your back is up straight. Pull your shoulders back and put your chest up and forward. It will feel odd at first because most of us are used to hunching over. However, it’s really important as our posture will really suffer if you are spending hours working at a desk slouching.
Complete 10 reps of each move and then repeat the circuit 3 times. Whilst you’re stuck on an idea or trying to solve an equation and just want to get up and give your brain a rest, give this circuit a go. It’s great exercise, engages all major muscle groups, and when you sit back down again, the answer may just come to you ☺
Push ups
Be careful with this one, you don’t want the chair to topple over! Place your feet on the edge of the chair and lower your chest towards the floor.
Step ups
Place one foot onto the centre of the chair, and push yourself up. Then slowly lower yourself back down. 10 repetitions per leg.
Tricep Dips
Place your hands behind you on the edge of the chair. Make sure you do it on the side of the chair, as if you do it on the front the chair will probably just fall forwards! Lower your bum towards the floor, keeping your back straight. This move will quickly and effectively burn out and tone your arms.
Crunches
Lay with your back on the floor and your calves resting on the chair. Slowly lower your core up with your arms out straight in front of you, engaging your ab muscles at all times.
Squats
Stand up about a foot away from your chair. Slowly squat down so that your bum lightly touches the chair (but don’t sit down!) and then quickly rise back up, and repeat. This is one move which you could probably do in a public library without looking completely mad.
Bulgarian split squat
An amazing move for toning the bum and the backs of the thighs. Place one foot behind you on the chair, and the other one forward enough that when you squat down, your knee does NOT go over your foot. In other words, you need your front leg to be as far forward as possible to complete the move correctly.
Squat variation
Lower yourself into a squat as you did in the previous move. This time hold the squat position just hovering above the chair, and move your water bottle from one side of the table to the other. Then stand up, squat again and move the water bottle back to the other side of the table. This allows you to place extra emphasis your arms and core.
I hope you enjoy the workout and find it effective! If you are looking for other time-saving style workouts which you can easily fit in around revision time, then check out some of my previous posts.
Enjoy!