No Equipment Necessary: Wide Squat Steppers

It’s time to get off your tush and work it. These walking wide squats will tone your backside, but will also strengthen your quads just in time for ski season. Music: “Video” by Indie Arie For details on how to do this move, and tips on making it more difficult, read more. Begin with your feet about three feet apart, toes pointed out. Bend your knees and come into a wide squat, with your knees over your ankles, and most of your weight in your heels. Place your hands on your hips or in a fist in front of your chest for stability. Hold this squat position with your hips low. With control, take 10 steps forward, then take 10 steps back. This counts as one set. Complete five sets without stopping. For more of a challenge, hold a dumbbell in each hand above your head or rest them on your shoulders.

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No Equipment Necessary: Wide Squat Steppers

No Equipment Necessary: Tabletop Lift

Tabletop may look easy (shown in the photo on the left), but once you hold it for a while, you’ll feel your thighs, booty, and triceps burning. It’s also a great exercise that will open your shoulders and chest. Here’s a variation that will strengthen your core and increase flexibility in your lower back and hamstrings. To give it a try read more. Start off sitting on your bum, so your hands are planted eight inches behind you. Bend your knees and place your heels about a foot away from your hips. Make sure they are hips-width distance apart. Inhale and lift your hips off the ground so your torso is parallel with the floor and your arms are straight. Your hands should be directly underneath your shoulders and your ankles underneath your knees, so make small adjustments if you need to. Lower your head behind you to increase the stretch in your chest and neck. Hold for a complete breath, and then keeping your arms straight, exhale to lower your hips and straighten your legs, so your hips are hovering above the floor. Engage your abs and try keep your spine long as you balance on your heels and hands. After a complete breath, inhale and push yourself back into the first position. Do three sets of 12 to 15 reps, flowing from one to the other, pivoting on your hands and heels. To make this move more challenging, hold each position for longer. I love a full body exercise, don’t you?

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No Equipment Necessary: Tabletop Lift

Weekend Workout: 1-Legged Moves That Don’t Require Equipment

Weekends are often jam-packed with traveling, errands, spending time with friends and family, and house chores, which means you can’t always fit in a regular workout. So here are some strength training moves you can squeeze in when you have a few minutes. They don’t require any equipment so you can do them anywhere. The first move will tone your glutes and hamstrings, the second targets your upper body, and the third move is great for your thighs and abs. Complete each move in this order, and repeat for a total of three times. Reverse Elbow Plank With Leg Lifts One-Legged Dolphin Dive Side Plank Star Still itching for more? Check out these Weekend Workouts to learn how to tone other areas of your body.

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Weekend Workout: 1-Legged Moves That Don’t Require Equipment

Push-Up Variation: Crocodile Jumps

I love push-ups . They are one of the best strength training moves out there. Not only do they sculpt your upper body and back, but they also tone your core. Here’s a variation that will target your triceps more than regular push-ups since your elbows are in against your body instead of out wide. This exercise will make you stronger, and it’s also a great prep for the yoga pose called Crocodile. Music: “The Man Who Danced Too Slowly” by Baka Beyond This is a pretty difficult exercise, so if you’re up for the challenge keep reading

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Push-Up Variation: Crocodile Jumps

How to Help a Friend Onto the Path of Healthy Living

With national obesity rates growing, chances are high you know someone who is looking to lose weight. Losing weight and living a healthy lifestyle can be quite challenging, so here are a few suggestions for how you can support your friend or loved one on her weight loss journey toward healthy living. Source: Getty View Slideshow ›

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How to Help a Friend Onto the Path of Healthy Living

You Asked: Bad to Leave Yoga Class Early?

Dear Fit, I’ve been taking a yoga class for about a year with this amazing instructor. We’re always trying new poses and I’m soaked with sweat by the end from moving around so much. Plus the next day, I’m really sore so I know I’m working hard. I’ve been leaving class a little early since the last 10 minutes we just lie on the floor. The last class I went to, the instructor came up to me as I was leaving and said, “I know you’ve been practicing for a while, and you know what your body needs, but Savasana isn’t really optional.” I’m wondering what’s the point of Savasana? Am I doing my body harm by skipping out, or do you think the instructor just doesn’t like me leaving early? - Not a Fan of Savasana Sarah I teach and take a lot of yoga classes, and this is a really common question. To find out my take on Savasana read more. The last pose of class may seem like you’re just lying on the floor wasting time, but this relaxing posture is actually really important. Savasana , known as Corpse pose, is a metaphor for dying and then coming back to life. It sounds a little morbid, but think of it as a cat nap. You’ve worked your muscles hard for an hour or more, and lying down with your body still allows your breath and mind to relax and release any tension. You can meditate if you want to, or just zone out, and sometimes you can get to the point where you’re so relaxed that you feel like you’re floating. Then when the instructor slowly wakes you up, you feel an amazing combination of serenity and energy. Your teacher may want you to get as much as you can out of your yoga experience, and that’s why she encouraged you to stay. She knows you’re probably busy all day long with family, work, and life in general, and this is the one chance you have to be still and re-energize. She may also want you to stay out of respect for others who are lying in Savasana. When you leave the room, it can be really disturbing. So my advice is to think of Savasana as any other part of class - it’s of equal importance to your body and mind. Try to enjoy the stillness and reap the benefits of this relaxing pose. If you have any other yoga-related questions or stories, share them in FitSugar’s Yoga Stretch and Tell Group .

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You Asked: Bad to Leave Yoga Class Early?

Natalie Coughlin: From the Olympics to DWTS

Last season on Dancing With the Stars , we saw gold medal gymnast Shawn Johnson win gold, and this year we’re watching Olympic swimmer Natalie Coughlin compete on land. She made it through the first week, dancing a salsa with Alec Mazo. Although busy dancing and rehearsing, Natalie took time out of her day to answer a few questions on topics ranging from Pilates to her opinion on the ban on high-tech swimsuits. To learn what Natalie has to say, just read more. FitSugar : I have read that you do Pilates. How does this method of exercise help your swimming? Since it is somewhat dance-based, do you think it will help you on DWTS ? Natalie Coughlin : Pilates is an awesome cross-training exercise for any sport because it focuses on functional movement. It relies on strength along with flexibility, which is perfect for both swimming and dance. My two favorite pieces of equipment are the Balanced Body Exo Chair and Pilates Arc. I personally own both, and they make a nice addition to my home gym. FS : I loved your “I’m a runner” piece in Runner’s World . Do you still run regularly? Do you ever participate in road races? Were you able to run before your wedding ceremony? NC : My first and only road race was the H2O Audio Surf Monkey last month, which was a 5K run on a mixture of sand, cobbled rock, and pier. It was so much fun, although I had no idea how to run on sand or cobbled rock! A few days before my wedding, I got a little overzealous with my running and ended up straining my right obliques, which forced me to take a bit of a break. Oops! I still love running, but I’m currently spending five to six-plus hours dancing every day, so I’m taking a break. I don’t think it would be a good idea to add any unnecessary stress to my feet or legs.  FS :Your swimming career has spanned two Olympics, and you’re planning to compete in 2012 - how do you maintain focus in training over those four-year periods? NC : My focus is constantly evolving. I took three months off immediately following the Athens Games and returned to competition with a series of two-day meets throughout the world. The short format of the meets along with the world travel kept me motivated and interested in swimming. After Beijing, I needed a much longer break both mentally and physically because I have been competing for 21 years now!  Dancing With the Stars is providing me with an amazing competitive outlet in something so different than my sport.  FS What’s your favorite core exercise? NC : I use the TRX suspension system for strength training and I absolutely love the atomic push-up because it’s a killer exercise that works your entire core and upper body.  FS : Is your running playlist different from your swimming playlist? If so, how? NC : Nope! They’re usually the same, but it changes depending on my mood. It can be anything from pop, rock, alternative, to hip-hop . . . and H2O Audio ’s new Interval lets me listen to multiple playlists in the water or while I’m out on a run.   FS : Swimming can be hard on the skin and hair. What are your go-to beauty products postswim? NC : Oh dear! I love products . . . Pureology for my hair, Kinesys sunscreen for my face/body preswimming, Palmer’s Cocoa Butter for my body post-swimming, and Oil of Olay SPF 15 for my face.  FS : How do you feel about the ban on high-tech swimsuits ? NC : I think it’s a good idea because our sport can now get back to the swimming and eliminate the distraction of “who are you wearing?” Eliminating zippers and legs is strange because both have been a part of many of the suits for over a decade. Either way, I’m happy.  Photo copyright 2009 ABC, Inc.

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Natalie Coughlin: From the Olympics to DWTS

No Equipment Necessary: Lying T Dancer

You can increase the flexibility of your spine, abs, shoulders, and hip flexors, all in one move. I picked up this move, the lying T dancer, from American distance runner and Olympic bronze medalist Shalane Flanagan . Start slowly moving from side to side to really feel the stretch, then quicken your pace in order to get your heart rate up. If you’re curious to know how to do this move read more. Lie on your belly and extend your arms out in T position, so they are perpendicular with your body. Press the top of your left foot into the floor and lift your right leg up, bending your knee and reaching your toes toward your left hand. This takes a lot of flexibility in your spine and hip flexors, so don’t worry if your foot doesn’t come close to your hand. Then bring your right foot back to the starting position. Lift your left foot off the floor, bending your knee, and reaching your left toes to your right hand. Come back to the starting position. This completes one rep. Do three sets of 10 to 15 reps.

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No Equipment Necessary: Lying T Dancer

No Equipment Necessary: Plank Jumping Jacks

If you’re looking for a way to get your heart rate up without going for a run or hopping on a cardio machine, give this jumping-jack variation a try. This move will also work your core and upper body. “We Want the Funk” by Gerardo To learn how to do this exercise, read more. Begin in plank position (top of a push-up), with your shoulders over your wrists and your body in one straight line. Step your feet together. Keep your upper body stable and engage your abs. Now begin doing jumping jacks with your legs. Hop them wide, then hop them together. Jump as quickly as you want. Do a total of 30 jumping jacks, which counts as one set. Then complete two more sets.

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No Equipment Necessary: Plank Jumping Jacks