Unheard-of bodyweight workouts to enhance overall strength throughout your entire physique
Personal trainer Elle Linton has shared three uncommon bodyweight exercises that can be effectively done at home. These exercises target various muscle groups and offer a full-body workout, improving strength, coordination, and mobility.
Push-up into Leg Lift
The push-up into leg lift is a variation of a regular push-up that engages the glutes and improves balance. Recommended by Elle Linton, this exercise targets the core, glutes, and improves balance. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to perform a push-up into leg lift:
- Place your hands on the floor, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, with your arms extended.
- Engage your core and glutes.
- Bend your elbows to lower your body, keeping your core braced.
- Push through your palms to return to the start, keeping your core braced.
- Lift one leg followed by the other, maintaining a steady position.
Perform 8-10 reps for best results.
Turkish Get-up
The Turkish get-up is a full-body functional exercise that targets the arms, legs, and core. It systematically engages shoulder stabilization, arm strength, leg drive, hip mobility, and core activation.
Turkish Get-up with Weights
To perform a Turkish get-up with weights, follow these steps:
- Lie on your back with one arm extended straight holding the weight directly above your shoulder. The same-side knee is bent, foot flat on the floor. The opposite arm is extended out to the side at about a 45-degree angle.
- Use the free arm to prop yourself up onto the elbow on the floor.
- Move from your elbow to your palm, pushing your torso upright.
- Press through the planted foot and supporting hand to raise your hips off the floor into a bridge position.
- Sweep the straight (non-weight side) leg underneath your body, positioning your knee behind you to come to a half-kneeling lunge stance.
- Push through the front foot to stand fully upright, maintaining the weight overhead with a stabilized arm.
- Carefully reverse the steps to return to the starting lying position.
Perform 3–5 slow, controlled reps per side, emphasizing precision and balance over speed.
Turkish Get-up without Weights (Half-Turkish Get-up)
To perform a half-Turkish get-up, follow the same step sequence but without holding any dumbbell or kettlebell overhead. This variation focuses on strengthening coordination, balance, hip mobility, and core engagement.
Bear Crawl
The bear crawl is a full-body workout that also engages the brain. To perform a bear crawl, start on all fours with hands under shoulders and knees under hips, lift knees off the floor, and move forward by lifting opposite hand and foot simultaneously. This exercise is repeated 8-10 times in both directions (forward and back).
For beginners, Elle Linton suggests starting with the half-Turkish get-up before attempting the full movement. For those who cannot do a push-up, there is a four-step plan to get the first push-up, but it was not provided in the text.
These exercises offer a challenging yet effective home workout, targeting various muscle groups and improving overall fitness. Incorporate them into your routine for a well-rounded bodyweight workout.
Yoga practice can be a complementary addition to these bodyweight exercises, focusing on flexibility and balance, helping to enhance the overall health-and-wellness benefits of this fitness-and-exercise routine.
By regularly engaging in these at-home workouts featuring the push-up into leg lift, Turkish get-up, and bear crawl, individuals can effectively improve their strength, coordination, mobility, and overall fitness level, as demonstrated by personal trainer Elle Linton.
