Training on the couch - sounds like a distant dream? On the contrary, training on the couch is possible. It is dedicated to everyone, regardless of their current level of fitness. How to combine business with pleasure and without stopping watching TV, improve joints, sculpt muscles and improve circulation? Start exercising on the couch and check the effects on your own skin!

Contents:

  1. Couch exercises - examples
  2. Couch exercises - training plan
  3. Exercises on the couch - effects. How many calories do they burn?
  4. Exercising on the couch - a light form of activity

Are you lying on the couch and watching the next episode of the series? You have no strength for anything, and on the other hand, your body hurts from another hour of stillness?

Exercises that can be done without even leaving the couch come to the rescue! Imagine that you lie comfortably on your side with a pillow under your head and only lift your leg up, and this movement causes your body to not actually feel the undesirable effects of several hours of immobility.

Sounds good, doesn't it? What if such exercises, performed regularly, will result in a shapely figure devoid of excessive fat and increased physical fitness? Don't give up on relaxation, but make it a little more useful every now and then! Here are the most effective couch exercises you can do whenever and wherever you feel like it.

Couch exercises - examples

Training on the couch is dedicated to everyone. It can be successfully practiced by both experienced sandwiches and amateur athletes. Exercises are selected so that they are as safe as possible for our body, and at the same time stimulate it to work and increase the level of our fitness. Perform the most effective exercises on the couch and achieve the results you dream about!

  • Raising the leg inwards

Lie on your side and the leg that is on the outside, bend your knee and place it comfortably in front of you. Support your head with your hand or place it freely on a pillow. Extend the leg you are lying on, pinch your toes and start lifting it as high as you can. Remember to pause briefly when you are at your maximum range of motion.

  • Directing the knee outwards

Lie downon the side with bent and tucked knees. Place them slightly lower than your hips. Tighten your abdomen by bringing your ribs closer to your pelvis. Begin to lift your knee up by activating your gluteal muscles. At maximum range of motion, press down on your buttock and keep it up a little longer.

  • Hip bridges

Lie on your back and bend your legs at the knees. Place your feet hip-width apart and turn your knees outward. Slowly lift your buttocks up, tightening them tightly. Your hands should rest comfortably at the sides of your body. Go up until your buttocks form a straight line with your spine. Remember that the hip lifting movement should be preceded by a gentle tuck of the pelvis underneath you.

  • Raising hips while lying on the side

Lie on your side, bend your legs at the knees, tense your abdominal muscles and prop up on your elbow. Your shoulder should be above the elbow. Start lifting your hips up until your spine is in a straight line.

  • Raising the hips while lying on the side + leg up

Lift your hips up, lying on your side, as in exercise number 4. Once you are up, lift your bent leg towards the ceiling and hold it for a long time. Make sure your knees are approximately on the same line. Don't let go of your abs!

  • Reaching for feet

Lie on your back and bend your legs at the knees. Place your feet slightly wider than your hips. Tighten your abdominal muscles and raise your torso, reaching with your palms towards your feet. Remember not to slouch and keep your spine straight throughout the exercise.

  • Vertical scissors

Lie on your back with straight legs. Flex your abdomen, pinch your toes, and start making vertical scissors. Perform the exercise vigorously.

  • Bike

Lie on your back and lift your legs bent up at the knees. Clasp your hands behind your head and gently lift your neck. Start cycling by extending your legs at the knees and bending them alternately.

  • Triceps pumps based on the couch

This kind of push-ups will perfectly shape your triceps. Sit on the floor near the edge of the couch and support it on your hands. Then lift your hips up and begin to lower and raise your torso, alternately flexing your arms at the elbows and extending them. Take care not to push your shoulders forward and pull your shoulder blades tightly towards you. Keep your elbows as close to your torso as possible. You can do the exercises with your legs straight or bent.

  • Sitting on the couch +leg straightening

Stand close to the couch with your feet hip-width apart. Begin slowly going downstairs and once you are seated on the couch, straighten your legs and lift them up as far as you can. Do not tilt your torso backwards and work hard with your abs. Do the squat again.

  • Spine bends

Do a kneeling on the couch. Begin bending your spine upward, stretching like a cat. Direct your chin towards the sternum. Then, make a downward bend with your head firmly pointing towards the ceiling. Also, try to make several circles with your chest, one way and the other.

  • Abduction of the hand while lying on the side

Lie on your side and prop up on your elbow. Reach your arm up and quite slowly point it down towards your head, as if you are trying to pick up something off the floor. Then return the limb to the starting position. Add your chest and head to this movement, they should move in sync with your hand.

Couch exercises - training plan

Training on the couch can be done every day and at any time. It is a basic start-up that we should perform every day and it is not so intense that after the indicated exercises you need longer regeneration.

You can freely reduce the number of repetitions, adjusting the training to the individual needs of your body. Couch workouts cover one training circuit, but over time you can add more circuits to your training unit.

ExerciseNumber of repetitions / duration
Raising the leg inwards12 repetitions per page
Directing the knee outwards12 repetitions per page
Hip bridges12 repetitions
Raising the hips while lying on the side10 repetitions
Raising the hips while lying on the side + leg up5 reps per side 5 seconds up
Reaching for feet12 repetitions
Vertical scissors20 seconds
Bike20 seconds
Triceps pumps based on the couch10 repetitions
Sitting on the couch + leg straightening10 repetitions
Spine bends30 seconds
Abduction of the hand while lying on the side12 repetitions per page

Exercises on the couch - effects. How many calories do they burn?

Training on the couch againstseemingly, it can burn a lot of calories. Exercising on the couch does not seem to be very intense, but it activates the most important muscles of our body, improves circulation and oxygenates the tissues.

Thanks to regular exercise on the couch, you can completely lose unnecessary fat and sculpt your muscles without being noticed.

One workout lasting a dozen or so minutes has a chance to burn about 150-200 calories! It is really a lot, taking into account the fact that during its execution we hardly get up from the couch and we can combine business with pleasure during the exercises.

The first effects of exercising on the couch may appear after a week of regular couch training. However, we must remember that without keeping an appropriate diet, our training progress will be invisible or even invisible.

Exercising on the couch - a light form of activity

If training on the couch does not sound appealing to you, because you are too tired after work or you are lazy with a day off at home spent in a comfortable tracksuit with a remote control in your hand, then maybe you will be encouraged by … playing with movement!

Sitting or lying on the couch, you have a huge range of possibilities to move from time to time, stimulate the nervous system, refresh and oxygenate the body. You can make any movements you want and use various objects within the reach of your arms or legs. The exercises we offer are also a lot of fun and a great way to improve your well-being.

Here are some ideas for playing with movement on the couch:

  • Pillow throws

Lie on your back, grab one of the pillows and toss it up high. Try to throw the pillow in different directions, and when it falls to the floor - well, you will have to get up from the couch at most;)

  • Grasping the pillow with the feet

Lie down in any position and try to grab the pillow with your feet and lift it up and repeat the exercise. You can also try your hand while sitting - to do this, place a few pillows on the carpet and reach for them with your feet, lifting as high as possible.

  • Grabbing the pillow with your hands and moving it with your feet

Take a pillow in your hands, lift your legs up (they can be bent or straight at the knees), grab the pillow with both sides and lower your legs onto the couch. Then lift your legs up and take the pillow with your hands. Repeat until you get bored;)

  • Compressing the pillow between your thighs​​

Place a pillow between your knees and tighten it steadily. You can hold it a little longer after one repetition. For the exercise, choose the largest pillow you have at hand. Your knees behindthey will thank you!

  • Drawing circles

Lie on your back, lift your legs up, pinch your toes and make a circle with your feet. Use them to draw circles of various sizes and try to keep your balance. Be careful not to fall off the couch! ;)

  • Feet of feet!

Sit with your back straight and bend your knees. Start stamping your toes vigorously on the floor, expelling all the frustrations of today!

  • Hips rocking

Sit back and start rocking your hips making them wide circles. You can include music on it.

  • Stretching to the sides

Sit on the couch with your legs hanging on the floor. Then start stretching from side to side and then to the other. Support yourself on your elbow and remember to reach your hand far to the side. Just don't accidentally reach the bag of chips on the table!

Worth knowing

If you are not motivated to exercise on the couch by your beautiful figure and he alth, maybe your movement will be influenced by something else. Do you know how many calories you eat when you snack in front of the TV?

  • A packet of crisps - approx. 500 kcal
  • A can of peanuts - 570 calories per 100 grams
  • Pack of sticks - 420 calories per 100 grams
  • Bar - about 250 kcal on average
  • A portion of popcorn - roasted without fat, about 200 kcal, the one from the microwave - twice as much!
  • A can of cola - 100 kcal, but as much as 5 teaspoons of sugar!
  • Beer - around 250 kcal

Everything is for people and to maintain our sanity and balance, we should deviate from our daily he althy diet from time to time and allow ourselves to do something forbidden. However, if we decide on dietary sins, we should also remember about the daily portion of physical activity. Especially if a he althy diet is getting out of hand and we are increasingly replacing it with unhe althy and caloric products.

About the authorMałgorzata Kośla She is a qualified fitness instructor and certified personal trainer. Since childhood, her greatest passion was sport - she played football and basketball. Then a new love came - dance, especially dancehall. He likes to sweat at the gym and relaxes in yoga and meditation sessions. He is constantly expanding his knowledge about training and a he althy lifestyle. What besides sports? He runs a store with natural cosmetics and he althy food, writes his own blog (stylzyciadowolny.pl) and deals with copywriting.

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ABC of exercises