Bear planks are a new exercise for me. While planks are a solid exercise to add to your workouts or stretch routine, there are multiple variations to try. These bear planks are a fun and challenging way to strengthening your core. Always use a 

 or towel to soften the landing for your knees.

How to do a bear plank.

There are many variations to what are called prison pushups. With this variation we will start standing. Squat, lay back on your back and sit up. When you are at the top of your sit up put your hands on the floor and hop back into pushup position. Complete a pushup. When you are at the top of your pushup, jump your feet back to your hands and stand up to finish the squat you started at the beginning of the exercise. That is one rep!

How to do Prison Push-Ups

Glute bridges are very similar to the elevated hip thrust. The only difference with the glute bridge is you are laying on the floor and not using a chair to elevate your feet. Lay flat on your back, a 

 can help here. Raise your hips to make your thighs and torso parallel.

How to do Glute Bridges

Hindu pushups are great for including more of your upper body into the exercise. These variations are fun and provide a great stretch as well. 

Start in standard pushup formation. Bring your feet in towards your head while keeping your legs straight. You should be forming a triangle with the floor. As you lower yourself to the floor, bend your elbows, continue to keep your legs straight. Bend your spine as you look up and feel the stretch! Slide back to pushup formation and repeat.

How to do Hindu Push-Ups 

Dynamic hip thrusts are great for your legs, core and most specifically your glutes. Lay flat on your back with your feet on a chair. Raise your hips to make your legs and torso one straight line. Return to the starting position.

How to do Elevated Dynamic Hip Thrust

Negative pushups are simply standard pushups at a different rate of speed. All you need to do for negative pushups is get in pushup formation, come down at normal speed and pushup slowly. 

How to do negative pushups

Pushups are probably the foundational bodyweight exercise, right beside squats. Check out these spiderman pushups for a change on the standard pushup. With spiderman pushups you come down normally on the upper body. As you come down bring one knee towards the corresponding side armpit. As you pushup, return your leg to the normal postition and repeat with the other side. Check out the youtube link for a visual!

How to do Spider-Man push ups

Need a good home workout ? This At home lower body workout is awesome! These exercises were put together for maximum burn in the legs and glutes. 

Bulgarian split squats - Bulgarian split squats are a great variation of the squat that targets one leg at a time more that both legs in a traditional squat. Stand a few feet away from a chair, couch or something low to the ground that you can put your foot on. Reach back with one foot and place your toes on the edge of your chair. Squat down and touch the floor with the knee (do not put weight on the knee) of the leg you have raised on the chair. Return to the top of the motion and repeat with the other leg. 

21 Squats - I did these "21 squats" or twenty ones with squats to really work your legs! Begin by placing feet about shoulder width apart. Squat to not quite seated position and repeat for a total of seven reps. Next squat to the floor and come back up to just under seated position. Repeat for a total of seven reps. Third set is seven full squats to the floor. A total of 21 reps to be completed at the same time. 

Glute Bridges - Lay flat on your super soft and thick yoga mat you purchased through my Amazon link 😁. Raise your hips to the sky and focus on squeezing those glutes at the top of your bridge. Return to the floor to complete a full rep. 

Elevated Dynamic Hip Thrust - Complicated name, easy exercise. Again, lay down on your yoga mat, this time you will want to lay your lower legs (up to your knee) in a chair. Dynamically(quick motion) thrust your hip to the sky. Keep your core tight an squeeze the glutes as you thrust. Return to the floor to complete a full rep.

At Home Lower Body Workout

This is a simple total body workout. Being able to workout at home when you are on a time crunch is excellent. Keep it different so you don't get bored!

 if you have one. Check the price on this basic one on Amazon if you need one -> 

  Yoga mats help save your knees when you are on a hard floor. 

If you need to amp up this workout, try a weighted vest. If you don't have a weihted vest, use a backpack with something for weight. Check out 

At Home Total Body Workout No Equipment

I put this At Home Upper Body Workout together with some of the best upper body exercises with no equipment. 

Here are the exercises in this upper body workout no equipment: 

Pike push ups - Get into normal push up position on the floor. Lift your hips up as to where your body forms a triangle shape with the floor. Bring your upper body down to the floor (without hitting your head) and push back up. This is a pike push up. We are looking for more shoulder engagement for this particular exercise so bring your feet a step or two closer to your hands. The closer you bring your feet to your hands before you raise your hips will determine how much engagement you receive from your shoulders. 

Hindu push ups - Get into normal push up formation on the floor. When you bring your body to the floor you will push yourself forward and arch your back looking up to the sky. Reverse movement to return back to the top of your push up. 

Supermans- Lay on your stomach on your yoga mat. Keep your legs and arms straight as you raise them off the floor as high as possible. For this alteration, when your arms are raised, bring your elbows back and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Reverse movement to go back to the beginning of the exercise. 

Spider-Man Push ups- Spider-Man pushups are one of my favorite pushup styles. Lower your body like a normal push-up, as you lower yourself to the floor bring your left knee to your elbow. Bring your leg back to starting position as you raise back up to the top of your push-up. Alternate with the other leg. 

Negative Pushups - In these negative pushups we simply lower at a normal speed and push up slowly back to the top of our push-up form. 

Pseudo Planche Pushups- Pseudo Planche pushups are a little more advanced style push up. Get in normal push-up formation and rotate your hands so your fingertips are pointing towards your feet. This will make your elbows bend towards your feet as you lower your body to the floor. These push ups are great for bicep exercise when you do not have access to a pull-up bar.



At Home Upper Body Workout

 innovative new workouts as well as tips and advice on workouts at home. Find out what you have at home that you can use for equipment. Watch for workouts with the family and for the busy parent like myself! You don't necessarily need fancy, expensive equipment to get a good workout. Do your best and live life as if you have no problems! 