Easy Exercises You Can Do When Lying Down

How you wake up in the morning can go a long way to determining how the rest of your day is going to go. Before you get your mind engaged with all that you have to do, it might help to warm up your body. That could mean doing exercises right in bed. There is no equipment needed! As an added benefit, your mattress is a kind of “unstable surface. But that’s a good thing. It’s not unlike a foam mattress or exercise ball. The result is that bed exercises can help active small stabilizing muscles while targeting the primary muscles. In other words, these exercises can be great for your core! Here is the bed exercise to try out:

Supine Leg Marches
This exercise takes aims at toning the muscles in your glutes, legs, and core. If you have ever done a “glute bridge,” then you’ll be familiar with its form:

1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the bed, hands by your side.
2. Lift your buttocks off the bed until your body is in a straight line.
3. Without straightening your leg, press into your supporting heel as you lift one leg off the bed. Bring the knee toward your chest until it’s in line with your hips.
4. Return your foot to the bed and repeat on the other side without lowering your hips.
5. Repeat for 20 repetitions.
   Reverse Crunches
   When it comes to building your six pack abs, all the abs need representation. This particular exercise targets your lower abdominals. A slow approach is better with this exercise. You want to focus on your core stability as you go through the range of motions.
6. Lie on your back with your hands by your side, palms down.
7. Keeping your legs straight, use your abs to lift your legs toward your face until your toes touch the headboard.
8. Slowly lower your legs back to the bed, engaging your abdominals. Don’t let your lower back arch up off the mattress. Feel as if you’re knitting your ribs together and pulling your bellybutton toward your spine.
9. Repeat 10 times. Complete 3 sets with a 30-second rest between sets.
10. If this is too challenging, try decreasing the load by bending your legs to 90 degrees and moving through a smaller range of motion.

Straight Leg Lifts
This exercise targets the quadriceps. Those are the muscles on the front of the thigh. You might see this exercise used in physical therapy. It is a good option for people trying to workout knee pain.

1. Lie on your back with your legs straight, feet flexed, toes toward the ceiling.
2. Lift one leg to 45 degrees, engaging the quadriceps on the front of the thigh.
3. Hold for 1 second and lower back to the bed.
4. Repeat 15 to 20 times on each leg. Complete 3 sets with a 30-second rest between sets.
   Modified Handstand Push-Ups
   Moving up from your legs and abdomen, this exercise can help you develop the muscles in your shoulders, upper back, and core. As you continue with this exercise, you might find it is helping you build up the stability to pull off full handstand holds or handstand push-ups when you get out of bed!
5. Lie on your belly with your head near the edge of the bed.
6. Slide yourself forward until your hips are on the side of the bed. Place your hands on the floor in a handstand position, shoulder-width apart.
7. Lower yourself toward the floor, bringing your head between your hands. Try to remain as upright as possible. You can change the intensity of the exercise by walking your hands out to make it easier, or bringing your hips off the bed to make it harder.
8. Repeat for 10 repetitions. Rest 30 seconds. Repeat 3 sets.
   Glute Hamstring Leg Lifts
   This exercise is to put into action to firm up your glutes and upper-hamstring area. The focus should be on engaging the buttocks muscles and keeping your core tight.
9. Lie on your belly with your feet toward the end of the bed.
10. Slide yourself back until your legs slightly hang off the bed. Your hip crease should be about 6 inches from the edge of the bed.
11. Place your hands under your head for support if needed.
12. Engage your core by pulling your bellybutton up off the mattress.
13. Put your heels together, toes apart, and lift your legs toward the ceiling without arching too much through the back. You should feel this movement primarily in your glutes.
14. Lower down halfway and repeat 20 times.
    A morning workout can get you energized and ready to take on the day!