1. Squats
Objective: given that squats use almost all of the leg muscles, you will engage your thighs, glutes, and calves in a single exercise.
Exercise: Stand upright with your legs hip-width apart, breathe in and lower your buttocks while moving them backwards until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Your entire weight will then be on your heels (that must not lift off the floor). Return to your initial position while contracting your glutes.
Breathing: breathe in when in the starting position and breathe out during the extension.
Safety instructions: keep the chest as straight as possible as you go down and come back up. Contract your abs by tucking in your stomach throughout the exercise. Keep your eyes on a point far ahead of you to keep your balance.
Repetitions: 20 squats
Variant: do the exercise on your tiptoes.
2. Lunges
Objective: strengthen your quads, glutes and hamstrings.
Exercise: stand upright with one foot forward and your arms alongside the body, keeping a straight upper body posture. Breathe in and bend the legs to form a 90° angle with both legs. Breathe out as you rise up.
Breathing: breathe in as you bend down and breathe out as you come back up.
Safety instructions: Remember to keep your chest upright and contract your abs by tucking in your belly throughout the exercise. Keep your eyes on a point far ahead of you to keep your balance.
Repetitions: 15 lunges on each side.
3. The Chair (Core strength exercise)
Objective: a static exercise that mainly exercises your quads.
Exercise: ideally, lean against a wall with your legs are bent at 90° and arms alongside the body while keeping your abs contracted. The back should always remain in contact with the wall and the legs should not go any further forwards than the position of your feet on the ground. Hold the position for 30 seconds.
Breathing: breathe slowly and deeply.
Safety instructions: keep the abs contracted to protect the lower back and put your knees on the ground if the exercise is too difficult.
Repetitions: hold the position for 30 seconds, repeat the exercise twice.
4. Jump Rope
Objective: The jump rope is a complete exercise that is excellent for your muscular endurance. The repetition of the jumps on tiptoes using the flexibility of the legs, is very demanding on the calves, quads, and glutes.
Exercise: skip at a fast past using the jump rope. To increase the level of difficulty, do double-unders (2 turns of the rope) with each jump.
Breathing: breathe in during the take-off phase and breathe out during the jump.
Safety instructions: stay on the soles of your feet, do not jump on your heels.
Repetitions: as many skips as possible for 1 to 2 minutes.
Variant: if you do not have a jump rope, run on the spot with high knees.
