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Cheap Drills

Forget the expensive doodads and make your body pull its own weight

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DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES The partial co-contraction lunge works the inner muscles of the knee. DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES Personal trainer Laura Martin shows in this photograph and the next how to incorporate push-ups into "the Centipede." DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES Personal trainer Laura Martin shows in these two photographs how to incorporate push-ups into "the Centipede."

IN THE SEARCH for the right exercise gizmo, do not forget the most compact, convenient and portable one of all: your own body. It generally travels well and, if used correctly, can give you a challenging workout.

Remember the good old push-up? Some refer to it and a series of like maneuvers as bodyweight exercises. Fitness expert Alwyn Cosgrove calls his program "Your Body Is a Barbell." You can make them as hard as you wish and you will work up a sweat. Form and balance are critical to get the most out of these exercises. So focus and pay attention to your breathing.

Seattle personal trainer Laura Martin recently demonstrated part of Cosgrove's program for me. A former gymnast, Martin owns a business called the Exercise Company, which specializes in in-home consultations. Here are just a few of the moves:

The Bulgarian split squat: Start with a bench or coffee table behind you. Lay the top of one foot on the structure and put the other foot about two or three feet in front of you. With most of your weight on the front leg, bend your front knee until the trailing knee is grazing the floor.

You can hold the position for several counts and put your hands behind your head to make it harder. You should not feel a strain on your knee. The tension goes to the quads and glutes.

Video that's fit for kids


Duane Carlisle, assistant strength and conditioning coach for the San Francisco 49ers, incorporates body-weight exercises in "Home Fitness for Kids, Get Up and Move!"

The video features three 10-minute segments designed to build fitness through agility, flexibility and low-impact movements. The exercises in the video require no equipment. For more information on the video and Carlisle's philosophy, see lightningfast.homeip.net.

Partial co-contraction lunge: This is a personal favorite of Martin's. Beginning in a lunge position, lower your back leg until the knee touches the ground. Place one hand on the teardrop-shaped muscle just inside your forward knee. Place your other hand on the glute of the same leg. Raise your back knee an inch off the floor and you will feel the knee muscle — called the vastus medialis — contract. This is the starting position.

Slowly extend both legs while you pay attention to the tension in both muscles you are monitoring. When you do, pause briefly, and return to the starting position. It is important, says Cosgrove, that you stay within the range in which the two muscles are firing. Martin says this exercise strengthens the inner muscles of the knee, which are chronically weaker than the outer ones. She recommends this exercise to skiers, especially.

Centipede with push-ups: This is a good one for the upper body and core. Start in push-up position with arms, legs and body all straight. Pull the belly button toward the spine to engage the abdomen muscles. Begin to walk your feet toward your hands — as far as your flexibility allows. Then walk your hands out to the starting position and do a push-up. Repeat this 10 times.

Don't let your hips sink in the middle of the movement. Breathe in as you walk your feet in; breathe out when you do the push-up. You can also do this without the push-up.

Side plank: This builds core muscles. Lie on one side with your elbow directly under your shoulder and the rest of your body in line with the shoulder. Legs can be straight or bent at the knees depending on your strength. Press up from the hips to lift your body into a straight position while the hand on the other arm rests on the upper hip or the head. Hold for anywhere between 10 seconds and a minute; repeat on the other side.

The exercise, says Martin (www.lauramartintraining.com), is effective in working the oblique muscles and the lower back. Keep your body and shoulders in line with each other. And again, don't hold your breath.

Many of these exercises can incorporate the use of stability balls or other balancing devices. Performing push-ups while your hands or your legs are on a stability ball activates core and other muscles critical to performing both sports and everyday activities. If you can't master the regular push-up on a ball, consider holding the ball off a wall and performing the push-up off it while standing.

The beauty of these simple weight-bearing exercises — other than the fact that they require no spendy gadgets — is that they can challenge the advanced or intermediate athlete but include the beginning, rehabbing or challenged athlete.

Richard Seven is a Pacific Northwest magazine staff writer. He can be reached at rseven@seattletimes.com. Dean Rutz is a Seattle Times staff photographer.