The following 3 exercises are our favorites because you can do them anywhere - house, hotel room, park, rest stop, gas station and airport - if you don't mind some funny looks! They hit the major muscles groups for an easy total body workout and will get your heart rate up. Do 3-5 rounds at the same time or split it up over the day. We like to do a set or 2 at each rest stop while road tripping. Try variations as well - we've listed a few for you. Happy exercising!
Squats: Strengthens the hamstrings, quadriceps, glutes and improves overall muscle balance and mobility. Focus on keeping the knees over the ankles and sitting as far back as you can while keeping your chest up. Add some variety: slow down the up and down movements; lower down to where it burns a bit and pulse; widen your stance into a ballet second position or sumo squat; or try the variation (video on the right) that adds more leg movement: Squat to Leg Extention
Pushups: Strengthen shoulders, arms and core. This is a great exercise for runners because it improves the upper body strength you need to maintain proper form as your lower body begin to fatigue & essential in hilly terrain to help drive your body uphill. Keep your core nice and tight throughout for a true full-body workout. There are a ton of variations as well: keep your arms close to your body for a yoga/tricep pushup, move your arms far away from your body and move one arm forward and keep the other by your shoulder. The modified version (on the right) is great and you can do those variations on your knees too. Aim for 10-15 for 1 set.
Planks:Targets your entire core. Our favorite way to do planks is in a 2 minute series: 30 sec forearm plank, 30 sec side plank, 30 sec other side and end with 30 sec forearm plank. Try the variation (video on the right) for added oblique work - Plank Knee Tucks