42 One-Minute Better Body Tricks
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9. Tone during commercials.
Try this one-minute butt booster from The Commercial Break Workout Book by Linda J. Buch and Seth Anne Snider-Copley (Prima, 2002). Lie on the floor with your left knee bent and foot flat; keep right leg straight, six to eight inches off the floor. Inhale and push down through the heel of your left foot until your butt and lower back come off the floor. Exhale and squeeze your glutes for about 15 seconds. Repeat four times, alternating legs.
10. Work your calves on the stairs.
For every three steps you take, stop and do five calf raises (coming up onto the balls of your feet and then lowering heels to just below step height).
11. Do "office push-ups."
"These will work your chest, get the blood pumping and give your brain a mini refresher," says Neporent. Stand up, lean over, and place your palms on the edge of your desk (make sure it's sturdy). Keep your body straight as you lower and press up. Push-ups on an incline are slightly easier than on the floor, so you can do more in one minute without compromising your form.
12. Challenge your balance.
At the end of your workout, stand on a balance board or disk for 60 seconds. "It'll force you to recruit more muscles, especially in your core, legs and hips," says Stephen Holt, 2003 American Council on Exercise Personal Trainer of the Year. "Your body has to work up to 30 percent harder on a wobbly surface than it does on a stable one." Once you feel comfortable balancing, try doing lunges with your front foot on the board.
13. Squeeze a medicine ball.
To work your legs, glutes and inner thighs, lean against a wall and squat. "Make sure your thighs are parallel to the floor," says Brooke Siler, owner of re:AB studio in New York City.
14. Stand on one leg during upper-body exercises.
"You'll work your arms and also target your abs and the quadriceps and hamstrings of the standing leg," says Reebok master trainer Annette Lang. "To stay balanced, tighten your core and contract the muscles of the leg you’re standing on."
15. Triple up on weight moves.
"Hold a dumbbell in each hand and do a biceps curl as you squat," suggests Lang. "When you stand up, press the dumbbells straight overhead to work your shoulders and back." You can do one set of 15 in one minute.
16. Add squat thrusts to your routine.
"Incorporating 60 seconds of these between weight sets will target several large muscle groups and burn 140 additional calories during a 30-minute workout,"; says FITNESS advisory board member Joe Dowdell, owner of Peak Performance in New York City. Squat down with palms on floor. In one motion, hop both feet behind you so that legs are extended in push-up position. Jump knees back underneath you and stand -- or jump -- up.
