Happy New Year, everyone!
I wish you all a year of prosperity, health, and overall wellness into achieving your goals!
In the spirit of the New Year, let’s rev it up a bit, shall we? For this how-to, we will focus on a warmup exercise meant to get your heart rate up, elevated, and sustained. As the title of this blog post implies, let’s keep it up with some high knees?
But what are high knees? High knees are a form of cardio-intensive exercises performed at a quick pace and often incorporated into a wide array of workout routines. This engages not only from the legs, but it also gauges and stabilizes your core muscles while staying in place. I also acknowledge that some high knee exercises encourage movement down and back. The best thing about this type of exercise is that there is no gym membership required…at all! So, they’re relatively easy to do and knock out whenever you need to get up and get your blood flowing. For instance, since most of us have remained at home in light of the amended stay-at-home orders on account of the COVID-19 pandemic–and most likely sitting down the majority of the day on a couch or at a computer desk–take a couple of minutes to get up and get active!
In order to perform high knees, especially if you are a total beginner, I got you!
First: Stand in a neutral position, feet about hip-width apart.
Second: Lift one knee (doesn’t matter which) as high as you can, past your hip. If you have limited mobility issues, then aim for lifting your knee to a 90-degree angle. While lifting up your leg, lift the arm opposite of the knee you lifted. For instance, if you lifted the left leg first, then raise your right arm. Keep your elbow bent at a 90-degree angle, if you can.
Third: Switch to the other knee and opposite arm while remaining in position, pumping those arms in the process. Continue the movement at a jogging, sprinting, or running pace, depending on your fitness level. For beginners, I would recommend marching in place with a slowed tempo to nail down the form. This would also serve as a modification option for those who are unable to perform the high knees in quick succession. As noted above, for the more advanced fitness enthusiasts, once the basics are solid, jog forward. Again, pumping your arms and keeping them at a 90-degree angle stabilizes you as you move forward. For an added challenge, try jogging in reverse while keeping pace with the high knees.