It can be hard to stay in shape when you have a busy schedule. Sometimes there isn’t time to go to the gym for an hour every day (not to mention, it’s unnecessary). Especially, when life gets chaotic. 

It’s easy to fall into the trap of believing that you have to do fancy exercises and a boat load of ‘em. I am a big believer of sticking to the basics. Simple exercises that you can do in a short amount of time. Because the quicker and more enjoyable they are, the more likely you will stick to doing them. Consistency is key, ladies. 

What is considered being in shape?

It might be surprising, but being in shape doesn’t really have anything to do with your weight. Even if you have a few extra pounds, you can still be considered in shape. You are in shape if you can move your body easily, if you can recover from exercise fairly quickly, if you can complete daily tasks without problems, if you have good posture, and if you have good flexibility. All of these things can be achieved when you are consistently active. 

Full Body Exercises 

The power of full body exercises is unreal. Full body exercises are when you do an exercise that works most of the muscle groups in our bodies. The main muscle groups in the body are legs, chest, back, arms, shoulders, and abs. 

When we do full body exercises, we don’t have to do as many exercises because we are already working more than one muscle group. That saves us time for other things we like to do. Instead of your workout being 30 minutes, it could be cut down to 15 minutes. Make the most out of your time, because time is the most valuable thing in the world. 

Breathwork

When it comes to doing any exercise, breathing correctly is SO important. Our muscles need oxygen to properly function. It actually makes the exercise easier. You should be inhaling through your nose and exhaling through your mouth. A good rule of thumb is to inhale during the easy part of the exercise and exhale during the hard part of the exercise.

Using the bicep curl as an example, during a bicep curl, you bend your elbow and raise a weight upward and then lower it back down. The harder part of the exercise is raising it up. That is when you exhale. The easier part of the exercise is when you are lowering it. That is when you inhale. 

Breathing correctly can also help your muscles become more defined, especially your abs. You will notice more definition after breathing correctly during your ab exercises. 

Push-ups

Push-ups are by far the best full body exercise that will help you stay in shape. They are primarily an upper body exercise, but they are able to work the triceps, the chest, the shoulders, the back, and the abdominal muscles. That is almost all of the muscle groups. 

How to do:

• Start on your hands and knees on the floor.
• Place your hands on the floor, slightly wider than your shoulders.
• Straighten your arms and extend your legs straight back so that you are on your toes. 
• Make sure that your head, neck, torso, and legs are in a straight line.
• Lower your body until your elbows are bent at a 90 degree angle.
• Raise your body up and repeat. 

Remember to breathe throughout, inhaling on the way down and exhaling on the way up. This will make the push-ups easier to do. 

Push-ups are hard so if you are not ready to do a full body push-up on the ground, a good modification is to raise your push-up to a table or counter. Doing your push-ups against a table or counter will be better than doing push-ups on your knees because they will still use the same exact muscles as when you are on the floor. Doing push-ups on your knees will use slightly different muscles and it will be very hard to progress to a full body push-up. Once you get good at doing push-ups against a table/counter, lower your pushup to your coffee table or a few steps up on your staircase. Keep lowering down until you can do them on the floor. 

Reverse Plank

This has become a popular exercise recently and for good reason. If you have never heard of it, let me first explain how to do it.

How to do:

• Start sitting on the ground with your legs out straight in front of you. 
• Put your hands on the floor slightly behind you with your fingers facing towards your body.
• Raise your body up until your head, neck, torso, and legs are in a straight diagonal line.
• Look up to the ceiling to avoid neck strain. 
• Hold this position for as long as you can.

When completing this exercise, breathe normally, in through your nose, out through your mouth. 

It seems like a simple, easy exercise, however holding it for 30 seconds or more becomes a long time. I love this exercise because it works the lower back perfectly. It doesn’t seem like that important of a muscle to exercise, but when you tighten those muscles, it helps to tighten your abdominal muscles. Everything is connected. 

The reverse plank not only works the back muscles, but it also works our triceps, our abs, and our hamstrings. Add this exercise to every routine and notice your strength increase. 

Plank

The dreaded plank. Everyone hates the plank, BUT it is the best ab exercise you can do. & of course one of the best exercises to do to stay in shape. 

How to do:

• Start on your hands and knees on the floor. 
• Lower your elbows to the floor so that you are on your forearms. 
• Extend your legs straight back so that you are on your toes.
• Keep your head, neck, torso, and legs in a straight line.
• Engage your core and hold for as long as you can. 

When completing this exercise, breathe normally, in through your nose and out through your mouth. 

The plank is great because it works your core muscles (transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, and obliques), back muscles, chest muscles, biceps, triceps, shoulders, quadriceps, and hamstrings. That is basically all of the muscle groups. Just doing this exercise alone will help you stay in shape. 

My favorite part of doing a plank is that it works your obliques without making them bulky. Sometimes, ab exercises can be heavy on the obliques and can make the muscles bulge. Planks keep your abs flat and defined. 

There are also so many variations of a plank that you can do that still have the same benefits. If you get bored of the regular plank, you can do plank jacks, a plank walk, mountain climbers, or plank shoulder taps. 

Elbow bicycles

This isn’t technically a full body exercise, however it is a great ab movement that also works your legs. The normal bicycle exercise involves your hands behind your head and your elbow twisting towards your opposite knee. I am not the biggest fan of this technique because you can strain your neck and you are heavily working obliques, which can leave you looking bulky and wide. Let me explain how elbow bicycles are done. 

How to do:

• Start sitting on the floor.
• Lower your elbows to the ground slightly behind you so that you are leaning on your forearms. 
• Raise your legs so that they are bent at the knee in a 90 degree angle (or table top).
• Slowly push one leg out until it is a few inches above the floor. 
• Bring that leg back in and then slowly push the other leg out until it is a few inches above the floor.
• Repeat. 

When completing this exercise, exhale when you are pushing your leg out and inhale when you are bringing your leg back in. 

Being on your elbows during this exercise engages your upper abs, while also protecting your neck. This technique also works your obliques, but in a way where it makes them flat and strong. 

This is a great exercise to strengthen your lower abs. The lower abs are typically the place most people need to strengthen. This is a simple, but effective way to do that. 

Why should you stay in shape?

You should stay in shape so that you can be and stay healthy. This will reduce the risk of disease, improve the function of your brain, strengthen your muscles and bones so that you can complete daily tasks, and help manage your weight. 

You should stay in shape so that you can live the best life possible. You should do it for you. 

How do I motivate myself to stay in shape?

Motivation comes and goes. You can’t rely on motivation to get yourself in shape. You need to find a strong why, or a reason to stay in shape. That way, when you don’t have the motivation to exercise, you can remember why you're doing it. Make your why bigger than your excuses. 

How do I commit to exercise everyday?

Start out small. Start with 5 minutes everyday. Pick 5 exercises to do for a minute each. Anyone can find 5 minutes to exercise. Once you get used to exercising and the endorphins it gives you, you’ll want to do more. 

Conclusion

Remember, you don’t have to work out for hours on end everyday to stay in shape. Sometimes all it takes is 5 minutes. Try these 4 exercises for a minute each every night and notice how great you feel when you're climbing into bed getting ready for a great night’s sleep. 

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