By Marissa Gainsburg
Kick-start your bod, your mind, your day with one chilled (but invigorating) routine.
Excuse us for being dramatic, but in the bowels of the morning – when your eyes are heavy, your brain is still in bed and the shower feels a million kays away – you need something to shake-up your ass up. That something is called an activation warm-up.
“As you sleep, your core temperature drops, your body becomes dehydrated, and connective tissues are less flexible,” says certified strength and conditioning specialist Alex Zimmerman, who created this sequence. “Flowing through slow, rhythmic movements improves blood circulation, increasing your range of motion and prepares the nervous system for what’s next.” What’s next can be a five-kay run, a Pilates class, or, you know, just getting your butt up and out for work.
Perform this progression three or four times a week first thing in the morning. Or use it before any workout at any hour to boost mobility, turn up your muscles’ power potential and reduce injury risk. Do each exercise in the order instructed; repeat the series once or twice, slowly speeding up the tempo of the final move each time.
You’ll need: floorspace. The patch next to your bed will do just fine.

1 Side-lying hip opener

Lie on your back, arms at your sides. Bend your right knee and lift your right leg over your left, then hold your right leg down with your left hand (A). Bend your left knee and grab the top of your left foot with your right hand. Inhale through your nose; lower your right shoulder toward the floor as you exhale through your mouth (B). Hold for five breaths, then return to start. Repeat on the other side.

2 Crab reach

Start in reverse tabletop position, but with your hands facing away from your body and your butt only two or three centimetres off the floor (A). Lift your hips as you reach your right hand overhead and slightly to the left (B). Lower everything to return to start. That’s one rep; do eight, then switch sides.

3 Downward dog to mountain climber

Start in a push-up position (A). Shift your hips back and up towards the ceiling (B). Glide back into a push-up position, then draw your right knee to your right elbow (C). Return to start, then draw your left knee to your left elbow. Return to start, then shift your hips back again. That’s one rep; do six to eight.

4 Lateral lunge to overhead reach

Stand with your feet together. Step your left foot out about a metre and extend your arms overhead (A), then bend your left knee to lunge left, both feet facing forward. Lean to the left, your body forming a straight line from your right foot to your right hand (B). Return to start. That’s one rep; do 10, then switch sides.