Atlantans spend a lot of time in cars—30.1 minutes each time we drive to work. That’s more than any other major city except New York, D.C., and Chicago. When you can’t move, use the delay to exercise. Personal trainer Carlos Jordan of Buckhead’s Ultimate Bodies by Carlos suggests trying the following exercises (but only when you’re at a complete stop!):
Commuter crunch
Tuck in your pelvis and engage your lower abdominal muscles. Then engage your upper abs and move your ribcage slightly toward your hips. Hold for 10 seconds and rest for three seconds, but keep breathing. Repeat eight to 12 times or until tired.
Oblique stomach crunch
Flex your upper and lower stomach muscles and then raise your right hip as high as it will go. Hold for three seconds, then lower and repeat on the left side. Repeat 10 times on each side or until tired.
75/85 gridlock
Grip the steering wheel at opposite ends, and try to push your hands toward each other for three seconds, as if you are crushing the wheel. Rest, then grip the wheel and try to pull your hands away from each other for three seconds. Repeat 10 times or until tired.
285 steering wheel push-ups
Place your hands at 10 o’clock and 2 o’clock on the steering wheel. Flex the entire length of your arms. Pull yourself toward the wheel for three seconds, then push yourself away from the wheel for three seconds. Resting after each repetition, repeat 10 times or until tired.
This article originally appeared in our 2015 Health issue.
