Effective 4 minute home workout for caregivers
Exercise is especially important for busy caregivers. Regular exercise keeps your body fit, combats the effects of stress, and boosts your energy. This 4 minute Tabata workout is great because it’s effective and you can squeeze it in anywhere, anytime!
Start slow to stay safe
Before starting any new exercise, check with your doctor to make sure it’s safe. For the first few times, work at no more than 70% of your maximum effort. After you get used to this workout style, slowly increase your effort and intensity.
Warm up and cool down
Before you start exercising, warm up your muscles and joints for at least 1 minute by walking slowly in a circle while gently swinging your arms. Do this again after you finish exercising to cool down.
DailyCaring 4 minute gentle Tabata workout
Use this free online Tabata timer to count the intervals while you exercise. This table shows the exercises, rest periods, and times on the timer. Don’t worry if this seems complicated to you at first. It’s much simpler than it sounds, just give it a try. Each exercise is explained in the next section.
| Interval # | On the Timer | Exercise |
| 1 | 0 – 20 seconds | March in place |
| 20 – 30 seconds | Rest | |
| 2 | 30 – 50 seconds | March in place |
| 50 – 60 seconds | Rest | |
| 3 | 1:00 – 1:20 minutes | Push-ups against a wall |
| 1:20 – 1:30 minutes | Rest | |
| 4 | 1:30 – 1:50 minutes | Push-ups against a wall |
| 1:50 – 2:00 minutes | Rest | |
| 5 | 2:00 – 2:20 minutes | Side crunch |
| 2:20 – 2:30 minutes | Rest | |
| 6 | 2:30 – 2:50 minutes | Side crunch |
| 2:50 – 3:00 minutes | Rest | |
| 7 | 3:00 – 3:20 minutes | Side step squat |
| 3:20 – 3:30 minutes | Rest | |
| 8 | 3:30 – 3:50 minutes | Side step squat |
| 3:50 – 4:00 minutes | Rest / The End! |
How to do each exercise
Intervals 1 & 2 – March in place
- March in place while swinging your arms with elbows bent 90 degrees.
- Focus on bringing your knees up.
Intervals 3 & 4 – Push-ups against a wall
- Stand on the balls of your feet at arms length from the wall
- Place your palms on the wall, in line with your shoulders (see left photo).
- Keeping back and legs straight, lean your body toward the wall (see right photo).
- Slowly push away with arms, going back to your starting position (see left photo).
- Repeat.
Intervals 5 & 6 – Side crunch
- Stand up straight and raise your left arm above your head (see position A).
- Rotate your left leg at the hip, turning your toes out (see position A).
- Crunch your left elbow and left knee together, pinching your waist (see position B).
- Return to regular standing position.
- Repeat steps 1-4, but this time use your right side.
- Continue, alternating sides.
Intervals 7 & 8 – Side step squat
- Stand with feet together (see left photo).
- Step your left foot out to your left side (see middle photo).
- Bring the right foot to meet the left. Now you’re standing with feet together again (see right photo).
- Repeat steps 1-3, but this time step out to your right side.
- Continue, alternating sides.
After cooling down, slowly and gently stretch your muscles. This image shows some stretches that we use often.
Pat yourself on the back!
Congrats! You’ve finished your first Tabata workout! Do this quick 4 minute workout every day and we guarantee you’ll soon be asking for more challenging exercises.
Recommended for you:
— Tabata Home Workouts Are Ideal for Caregivers
— 5 Ways Caregivers Can Care for Themselves Too
— 10 Ways Caregivers Can Take a Quick Break Right Now
By DailyCaring Editorial Team
Images: Dangerously Fit, Women’s Health, Women Fitness
