Doing a lot of holiday cooking? The kitchen, says Kaitlin Watts, an exercise physiologist, is a convenient place to add basic exercises.
"You’re going to be baking cookies for the holidays, right? So these are good things to do," says Watts.
A cardiopulmonary rehabilitation therapist at the Baltimore Washington Medical Center, she suggests these exercises to her patients recovering from heart or lung ailments and surgery who she thinks can handle mild exercise.
Try these:
1. Do pushups agains the sink and counter. Stand up straight facing the counter, grab onto it, and without moving your feet, lean forward to the counter and push yourself back to a standing-up-straight position.
2. Lift weights. Put those 1-pound cans of cranberry sauce or bags of nuts or chocolate chips in your hands. Do bicep curls by bending your elbows. Work your triceps by doing the curls over your shoulders.
3. Mix batter by hand. That will work your arms.
4. Work those legs while peeling potatoes. Doing that standing by the sink? Alternating legs, slowly lift the heel of your foot to your butt. Sitting? Alternating legs, lift each leg from the knee down so that it it sticks straight out.
5. Waiting for the timer to buzz? Hold onto the counter and roll up onto your toes to work your calves. Use the counter for balance and do squats.
She suggests starting with one set of 8 to 15 reps, then a good stretch. You can work up to more, but don’t overdo it, Watts says. "You don’t want to be sore a day later when you’re going shopping."
Read on for more of hers, and let's hear some of your kitchen exercise ideas.
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