Warm up

Start walking at a moderate pace, that is, at a rate of three to four miles per hour or 15 to 20 minutes to each mile. The purpose of this prescription is to develop and maintain cardiovascular fitness, a lean body and to improve your muscle endurance.

Shuffle step

Stand with your feet close together and hands on your hips. Jump and place your feet to the sides. Jump and return to the starting position. Jump and place one foot forward and one foot backward. Jump and place the opposite foot forward and the other foot backward. Repeat 15 to 20 times.

Benefit of the exercise: Improves cardiorespiratory endurance and muscle tone of calf and thigh muscles.

Wood choppers

Stand with your legs together, hands hanging by your sides. Jump and place your feet out to the sides, swing your arms up to the sides then over your head. Keep your legs straight, swing your arms down between your legs. Bend your hips slightly as you straighten your back and return to the starting position. Jump and bring your feet back together as you swing your arms back down to your sides. Do 20 repetitions.

Benefit of the exercise: Improves abdominal muscles, hamstring muscles and lower-back muscles.

Burpees

Stand with your hands by your sides. Squat and place your hands shoulder width apart on the floor. Hop and place your feet straight behind you. Hop and bring your feet forward into the squat position. Stand up to the starting position. Repeat as many times as you can.

Benefit of the exercise: Develops cardiorespiratory fitness and endurance of muscles of the shoulder, arms and trunk.

Pom poms

Stand with your arms outstretched, to your sides, at shoulder level. Hop off your left foot as you raise your right leg straight out in front of you; keep the leg straight as you bring your hands together and clap your hands under your thigh. Swing your arms out to the sides as you hop off your right foot, swing your left foot and clap your hands under your thigh.

Repeat hopping on the the left foot then the other while raising the opposite straight leg and clap your hands under your thigh. Ex-tend your arms out to the sides between each clap.

Benefit of the exercise: Improves your cardiovascular system and the muscles of your hips, abdomen and calf muscles.

Cool-down exercises

Lie on the floor with your arms stretched out above your head and legs fully extended. Turn your body to the left from your waist up and from your waist down turn your body to your right. Stretch your body. Slowly decrease the pulse rate.

Benefit of the exercise: Promotes faster recovery from fatigue; prevents blood pooling in the legs and reduces muscle stiffness and the tendency to faint as well as dizziness. It also promotes venous return and prevents cardiac irregularities.

Dr Kenneth Gardner is an exercise physiologist at Holiday Hills Research Center; email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.