GET SWEATY: Partner Up at the Gym!
Photography by Shannon Bailey | Lil Bird Photography
What's better than transforming your body? Doing it with a friend! Studies show working out with a buddy can add more than just a healthy dose of quality time. Hitting the gym with a friend, coworker, or special someone can increase accountability, keep spirits high, and even spur better results. So, pair up with a pal — or even your guy — and watch the pounds melt away with our some of our favorite partner full body exercises.
LYING LEG THROW DOWN: Lay with your back on the floor, placing your head between your partner's feet. Reach back and hold your partner's ankles or calves securely with your hands. ring your legs all the way up so your partner is holding onto your ankles. Have your partner throw your legs away and down using momentum and gravity to pull them down to the floor. Resist the force of your legs as they are thrown and don't let your feet touch the ground! Have your partner throw your legs in different directions to work multiple oblique muscles.
V-SIT WITH FOOT PRESS: Still searching for your soul mate? Grab two BOSU balls and take a seat facing each other in a V-position with legs bent, back semi-reclined, and feet pressed against your partners’. Next, start marching those feet in place (without losing contact with your partners’ soles). Beginners, hold the sides of the BOSU with your hands, or get more advanced and go hands-free.
LUNGE TO CHEST PASS: A dynamic move for a dynamic duo. Grab a medicine ball and face your partner, standing about 3-5 feet apart. Keeping the chest up, lunge forward, completing the movement with a crisp (and accurate!) chest pass to your partner. They’ll then catch it and head straight into their lunge-and-pass. Repeat for 10-12 reps each, or until Butterfingers tests your patience.
BODYWEIGHT SQUAT: Stand facing your partner at arm’s length, with feet slightly wider than hip-width apart, grasping each other’s forearms. Maintaining a secure grip, squat down in sync (bonus points if “Bye, Bye, Bye” is blaring) until the thighs are about parallel to the floor. Hold, then slowly return to starting position. Repeat for 10-12 reps, maintaining good form.
PUSH-UP WITH SHOULDER TAP: Hit the mats, facing your partner in a modified push-up position (or full push-up position if you get down like that). Next, lower your bodies by bending at the arms with the abdominals engaged. Push back up to the starting position, then lift your right hand, and tap your partner on the left shoulder (while your partner does the same thing). Complete 10-12 reps, alternating hands each time.
WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE PARTNER EXERCISES? SHOW US BY USING #ESTCALIFORNIA ON YOUR SOCIAL DEVICES OR COMMENT BELOW! HAVE A GO-TO WORK OUT ROUTINE. WE'D LOVE TO HEAR IT! SUBMIT IT HERE.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lindsay Vacek has a passion for style, details and design. As a Fashion Editorial Photographer, she's worked in the Entertainment Industry for over 10 years and has a love for adventure and travel. She spends her spare time globe-trotting her way through foreign countries and loves new cultures, food, music and the arts.