fitness

  Here's the deal with BBG, Tone It Up, P90X, and more. Heather Hazzan. Wardrobe Styling Nicole Chapoteau. Makeup by Ingeborg. Hair by Hide SuzukiIf your living room workouts are feeling a little stale by now, we have you covered: The best home workout programs can breathe some life into your workout routine—and even may introduce you to some new ways to exercise. At-home workouts are pretty much the way of life now, as most gyms across the country are still shuttered due to the new coronavirus pandemic. For those used to taking fitness classes at gyms or studios, at-home workouts have been a bit of an adjustment. One main reason? When you work out in a fitness class, you don’t have to give much thought to your next half hour or hour: Your body simply moves to follow your instructor’s directions. This can take a lot of pressure off you, and help you just focus on your workout at hand. But when you’re working out at home, you’re responsible for the whole plan: What exercises should...

  Show your glutes some extra love. When you think of lower-body moves, squats are probably the first that jump to mind. Forward lunges are probably next, but what about reverse lunges? This move is a great lower-body strengthener, but for some reason, it doesn’t seem to inspire as much love as its forward-facing cousin. After all, we’re conditioned to think forward: If someone tells you to take a step, chances are pretty good that you’re going to move your foot in front of you, rather than to the side or behind you. So exercises like the forward lunge tend to take precedence in our minds—and in our training routines. “If someone  lunges  at you, they’re going forward, not backward,” says Noam Tamir, C.S.C.S., founder of TS Fitness in New York City. “Just that word  lunge  makes people think they need to go forward.” And that’s not necessarily true. While forward lunges are a great exercise to build single-leg strength, if you focus...

  It’s not just about lifting more weight. When your pecs are functioning properly, though—not too tight and able to move smoothly through their full range of motion—they help your body stay upright and not pull forward, Miranda says. So both strengthening  and  stretching your pecs is important to add to your workout routine. What are the best exercises for your pectoral muscles? Try to include exercises that hit your pecs a little differently and from various angles, says Miranda. Her favorites include a chest press from a bench or the floor; a standing cable chest press, which you can also do with a resistance band—“being upright is more applicable to everyday function, because now you have to use your core and legs to stabilize,” she says—and a push-up. If you can’t get a full push-up from the ground, ACE-certified personal trainer Sivan Fagan, owner of Strong With Sivan, in Baltimore, Maryland, recommends doing a modified version with your hands elevated ...

  Building a solid foundation is key. When you first start strength training, the exercises can feel  hard —which might have you wondering how you can get stronger so your workouts can go more smoothly. After all, if every move is a struggle, it can be hard to motivate yourself to even start a workout routine, let alone give it a solid effort. But as you get stronger and more familiar with the exercises, you’ll likely find it easier to execute each move. Once that happens, you can focus more on the workout in front of you. And  that  can help you get even stronger. If you’ve ever found yourself wondering what you need to do to get stronger, we have you covered. Here’s everything you need to know to get started. What are the benefits of getting stronger? Building strength doesn’t just help you in your workouts—it has a huge carryover in everyday life too. “Resistance training, whether it’s moving your own body weight or moving external weights, is a great wa...

  They’ll seriously challenge your core too. The deadlift is a great exercise to really work the entire back of your body—including your hamstrings, butt, and back. And there are tons of deadlift variations, which makes it easy to choose the right version that works for you. Deadlifts are an example of a compound exercise, which means they use multiple groups at once. As a result, your workout becomes more efficient, since you’re working many muscles with just one exercise. Compare that to an isolation exercise like a bicep curl, where you’re really just focusing on the smaller muscles in your upper arm. Because of this, deadlifts are considered a really important move for gaining strength, Lauren Williams, trainer at Project by Equinox, tells SELF. "Your glutes, quads, and hamstrings are involved, but so are your back and traps, and even your shoulders and triceps. It’s very close to a total-body strength move, so you’re really challenging your strength through the ...