A 15-Minute Workout You Can Do Anywhere
When you’re travelling, it can be hard to maintain a regular fitness routine — especially if you’re cooped up in your childhood home over the holidays. For 29-year-old Olympic mountain biker Emily Batty, who is constantly on the road for work, staying in shape means finding a workout that can be done literally anywhere.
When the Canadian finds herself somewhere that doesn’t have a gym — or the equipment she’s used to training with — she turns to a simple-yet-effective routine that requires zero equipment aside from a pair of gliding discs. Batty does her circuit three times, and it only takes about 15 minutes to complete. Prior to hitting the floor, Batty (who is sponsored by Red Bull) drinks a caffeinated bevvy for a pre-workout boost — and some science may back her up on that.
Chatelaine's sister magazine FLARE worked out with Batty at the Thompson Hotel when she touched down in Toronto, and we can vouch that this fast routine will make you feel energized and even stronger. So it’s official: you no longer have an excuse *not* to work out (sorry!).
15 Minute Hotel Workout With Emily Batty
Push-ups
Sit-ups
Next up is sit-ups. Use a towel as a mat and lie flat on your back with your knees bent about hip-distance apart and your feet flat on the floor. With your hands behind your head and your elbows pointing outwards, exhale and use your core to pull yourself up into a seated position. (It’s OK for your feet to lift off the ground as you sit up.) Inhale as you lower back to the ground.
Reps: 20
Bicycles
Don’t get off the floor just yet; get ready for ab-burning bicycles. Lay on your back and position yourself as if you’re about to do a sit-up. Raise your legs into a tabletop position, with your hands behind your head. As you lift upward with your core, twist to one side and extend your opposite leg straight. Alternate sides. As Batty says, “Don’t rush it. When your muscles are burning, that’s when you’re being effective.”
Reps: 20
V-ups
V-ups engage your lower abs. Lay on your back and extend your arms over your head. Hover your legs a few inches off the ground, with your feet together and your toes pointing towards the ceiling. Using your core, pull your legs and torso upward and try to touch your fingertips to your toes. Lower your body — with control — back to the floor and repeat.
Reps: 20
Forearm plank
Next is the forearm plank. Keep your hands straight and your elbows shoulder-width apart. Keep shoulders in line with your elbows. Engage your core, and keep your bum tucked in. Don’t let your lower back sink.
Hold for one minute.
Squats
If you want buns of steel, there’s nothing more effective than a classic squat. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, then sit your bum back and extend your arms straight out in front of you. (The motion should be like sitting in an invisible chair; don’t let your knees come in front of your toes.) Hold for a few counts, then stand. “When you come up, fully clench your glutes,” Batty says.
Reps: 20
Plank sliders
Batty always travels with a pair of gliding discs, which are easy to pack. (You could also slip a pair of clean socks over your hands, or on wash cloths.) She calls this move the “plank slider” — and it’s a great exercise for arms and abs. To start, place each hand on a slider about shoulder-width apart. Position your body in a plank position on your knees, with your hands under your shoulders and your knees bent with your toes curled under. Keeping your core engaged, slide your hands straight out in front of you, reaching forward. Using your core, pull your hands back to the starting position.
Reps: 10
Single leg squat extensions
Now use a glider for a single leg squat extension. Position yourself as if you’re about to squat, and put one foot on top of a glider. As you squat, extend your arms forward, and slide the foot that’s on the glider out to the side of your body, keeping your toes facing forward. For stability, “focus on keeping your arms straight,” Batty says.
Reps: 10 per leg
Tricep dips
Here’s a killer for your arms: tricep dips. Find something in your room — like a chair — that’s lower than knee-height. Position yourself away from the object, and extend your legs forward. Keeping arms shoulder-width apart, bend your arms to a 90-degree angle, using the strength of your triceps to lower your body a few inches. Hold, then push yourself back up to your starting height.
Batty says your form is more important than how low you dip, so keep your back straight and your core engaged.
Reps: 20
