10 No-Gym Exercises that Condition the Body for Higher Fitness

At its most fundamental level fitness is about getting the body and blood to move within the system. Slow and methodical movements do provide a benefit but that benefit is much lower than what can be found in a higher paced fitness plan. The speeding of the heart and allowing it to rest a few minutes conditions the body for even more rigorous activity.

Conditioning is important for sporting activities. If you enjoy sporting outside of health the overall conditioning helps to improve upon your general performance across a broad range of activities. It provides higher levels of endurance, speed and sustained movement that can push your tennis game, martial arts, or swimming to the next level. 

It is recommended that people receive at least 2.5 hours of moderate exercise a week. If you raise the quality of that exercise you may need a little less. However, the more you do the better as long as you are targeting the right areas of the body and going for maximum gain. 

A problem that many people face is finding the time and money to go to the gym. The truth is that most workouts, other than heavy muscle building, do not require a gym. The far majority of exercise can be done almost anywhere under most circumstances. Below you will find ten fitness moves that will raise your hear and condition your body. 

Walk in Place: Start in standing position. Lift your right knee as high as you can and then place the foot back down on the ground. Raise your left knee as high as you can and then place back on the ground. Repeat.

Jog in Place: Lift right knee up to 45 degree angle and place back down and lift left knee up to 45 degree angle and then place back down. Swing arms while completing the motion. This should look like a jog. 

Alternative Knee Lifts: Stand and bring one knee to chest while twisting opposite elbow to knee. Repeat on the other side. 

Inchworm: Stand and then bend over until your fingertips touch the floor. Walk forward while keeping your legs straight all the way till you reach a push up or plank position. Walk your hand back until you are in the original position. Stand up. Repeat.

Jumping Jacks: The traditional jumping jack with feet starting together and then jumping your feet outward just past shoulder width with arms swinging up in the air in a Y shape. Jump back to traditional position and repeat. 

Diver’s Push-up: Start in the downward dog yoga position making a downward V with the body. Slowly drop the stomach to the floor creating an upward dog position. Repeat. 

Side Lunge and Windmill Arms: Standing position with legs spread as though you just made a jumping jack. Bend the right knee into a side lunge while taking the left arm down to the foot. Return back to original position and repeat. 

Mountain Climber: Start with hands and knees on the floor. Bring left knee to chest and keep right leg straight. Put left knee back creating a push up position and repeat on the other side. 

Squat-Thrust: Start in standing position and squat down and place your hands on the floor next to your feet. Jump feet backwards into push-up position. Jump feet back to squat position and stand up. Repeat.

Burpee: Start in squat position with hands on floor by your feet. Jump back to push-up position and quickly jump back to squat position. Jump straight up with arms in the air till you come back down to squat position and repeat.