No-equipment exercises rely on your body weight only, and can be completed in 20-30 minutes. These exercises work best in a circuit, so not only are you getting toned muscle, but you are achieving some cardio exercise as well due to the speed and repetitions of the exercises.



1) Push-ups

This tried-and-true exercise works the arms and is a must for your workout. There are three variations of the push-up, and each is just as good as the other for working your arms. The traditional push-up places your whole body off the floor and uses your entire body weight. The modified push-up uses the weight of your upper body as resistance and places you with knees bent and on the floor. You can also try the wall push-up where your upper body weight is also used as resistance.

2) Squats

Squats are a popular exercise for the lower body. These are easy and work a lot of muscle groups. They can also be varied for greater intensity. For example, throw the squat-thrust in your workout - it combines the squat with a traditional push-up position. Stand legs together, squat down with your hands on either side of your feet, kick your feet back in one movement and assume the push-up position, bring feet back forward, stand up. This should be all one motion.

3) Wall sit

This exercise is also called the "phantom chair." Stand with your feet forward and lean against the wall. Slide your back down the wall until your thighs are parallel with the ground. Hold as long as you can and slide back up the wall. This exercise targets your thighs and is great to incorporate into your workout.

4) Triceps Dip

This exercise uses only a chair and targets your triceps. Sit on the edge of a chair with your hands on either side gripping the chair. Slide off the chair, leaving your hands where they are and squat to the ground until your elbows are at 90 degrees. Use your arms to lift your body back up to the edge of the chair. This is a great exercise for your workout to help tone the backs of your upper arms!

5) Crunches

This is another tried-and-true exercise that is simple and effective. Instead of going for a certain number of crunches, do fewer and try to hold the crunch for 2-3 seconds to maximize your workout.

These five exercises, done in a circuit of 10-15 repetitions, can get you started on developing your own home workout plan with no equipment. Once you get comfortable with these exercises and are ready to kick it up a notch, hold two soup cans while doing squats to add more resistance. You can also add more exercises, like lunges, jumping jacks, planks, or mountain climbers to challenge yourself! Doing things at home can require some extra motivation, so to help you, hang a sheet of exercises on your refrigerator so you see it, or allow your spouse or children to join in, too!