By David Blyweiss, M.D., Advanced Natural Wellness

July 27, 2016

• Is the scorching summer heat stopping you from exercising?
• Check out my 15-minute indoor workout
• 5 heart-pumping, muscle-building exercises for summer

Down here in South Florida, it’s been a brutally hot summer so far. Other states across the U.S. are also averaging higher than normal temperatures this year.

Well, when you walk out the door and immediately break out in a sweat, it’s easy to get out of your regular exercise routine. In fact, I’m finding more and more of my patients who normally walk, sprint and ride their bikes outdoors are falling out of the habit.

It can help if you schedule your workouts in the early morning or late afternoon during these dog days of summer. But if these options are still too hot and muggy for you, why don’t you move your workouts indoors?

It’s no secret that my favorite form of exercise is high intensity interval training, or HIIT. It works for any type of activity. All it requires is repeated 30 second bursts of high intensity exercise followed by short recovery periods.

The best thing about it is that it takes very little time – as little as 15 minutes a day. Plus, you can do it anywhere, even in your living room and in areas where there is very little space.

In this case, I’ve put together a fat-burning, heart-pumping, muscle-building workout that you can do indoors. So crank down you’re A/C and get ready.

Here’s my 15-Minute Indoor Summer Workout

You can gradually build up to the full workout over a short while; it’s about making the commitment to begin something after all.

Start off with a quick five-minute warm-up. Run or march in place, do a few jumping jacks, swing your arms or do a few arm circles.

Then perform each of the exercises below for 30 seconds each, followed by a short recovery period of anywhere from 30 seconds to two minutes. After recovery, move on to the next routine.

Skater jumps. Starting position: Stand with your knees and hips slightly bent. Place your right foot behind your left and lower into a partial squat.

Push off with your left foot and jump to the right. Land on the ball of your right foot, place your left foot behind your right and lower into a partial squat. Then immediately jump to the left, pushing off with your right foot.

You can lower the intensity of this exercise by stepping to each side instead of jumping. To increase intensity, make your jumps more explosive.

Repeat for a total of 30 seconds, then spend up to two minutes recovering. (This applies to all of the exercises)

Push ups. Starting position: Lay down on the floor with your hand palm-side down at about shoulder width apart. Your elbows should be pointed toward your toes.

Raise yourself using the palms of your hands and the balls of your feet. At the top of the position your back, rear end and legs should all be lined up to form a straight line from your toes to your shoulders (“plank” position).

Lower yourself back down to the ground until your arms reach about a 90 degree angle. Then push back up.

If you can’t do a full push up, rest your lower body on your knees instead of your feet. This will give you more leverage until you gain full strength. Wall push-ups are another option.

3 More Heart-Pumping Exercises

Mountain climber. Starting position: Start off by placing yourself in a push-up position, with your hands directly under your shoulders, your arms straight and your body in a plank position.

Lift your right foot off the floor and bend your knee to bring it forward toward your chest as far as you can. Return to starting position and repeat with other leg.

You can perform this exercise as slowly (gently bringing your knees forward one at a time) or quickly (running mountain climber) as your body allows.

Boxer. Starting position: Place your feet hip-width apart and slightly bend your knees. Lean your body forward at the waist. Your upper arms and elbows should be tight to your body with forearms at a 90 degree angle.

With your body leaning forward at the waist, extend your right arm forward as if “throwing a punch” while extending the left arm backward. Return to starting position, and then repeat with opposite arm. Keep alternating punches until your 30 seconds are up. Some people like to do this slowly and give it an exotic name, but it still works as mechanical movement to maintain a range of motion for your body.

Forward jump squats. Starting position: Stand up straight with your feet hip-width apart.

Lower your body by bending at the knees. Keep your back straight and your hips pushed back as you descend.

Then explode out of the squat into a forward jump. Simply push forward with both of your feet, using your upper thighs and abdomen for strength. Land with your knees slightly bent to cushion the landing

Quickly shuffle backward to starting position and repeat until your 30 seconds is up.

(Depending on your level of fitness, you can replace this last exercise with knee bends, standard squats or conventional jump squats.)

That’s it! All you have left to do is cool down. You can do this by walking in place for about five minutes, then you’re done.

As these exercises become easier, try increasing the intensity and shortening your rest time.

And as always, make sure your doctor agrees with any changes to your normal fitness routine.