Your Personal Best: Exercise Snacks

When you think about snacks, you think about little mini-meals throughout the day to increase your energy or stamina. But did you know you can think about exercise the same way?

Three examples of mini exercises that take mere minutes and help regulate your blood sugar, stamina and health include:

• Punches: You can do them sitting at the edge of a chair or standing up. Bring your arms up and punch for 25 repetitions. If you want a bigger challenge, use hand-held weights.
• Abdominal contractions: Hold your abdominals in tight for 5 seconds, then relax. This strengthens your upper, middle and lower abdominals and can help improve posture.
• Knee-ups: Standing up, lift one leg with your knee bent at a 90-degree angle, and lift 20 times. Repeat on the other side.

These exercises help strengthen your body, elevate your heart rate and tone your muscles, and they’re perfect if you don’t have a solid block of time devoted to an exercise routine.