Those 5 or 10 minutes that get you back in shape after the Christmas addictions. Viral Challenges are going crazy on the web

di Maria Serena Patriarca

Raise your hand if you have not exceeded, during Christmas lunches and dinners, in some food addiction. The post-Christmas “ extra pounds ” effect is just around the corner: and it’s boom, especially on the web, for the tutorials that show us how to get back in shape with simple daily workouts of a few minutes. .

If you don’t have the time (or the desire) to join the gym to follow structured classes, you could try to create your own personal fitness program. Sometimes a few days are enough to dispose of momentary swelling or unnecessary pounds due to limited moments of overeating.

Now let’s try to better understand what viral challenges consist of to have model bodies. On YouTube, for example, the well-being influencer Chloe Ting is very popular, with over 22 million followers. She is the one who launches the video challenge of remise en forme small breaks to be done at home or in office work breaks. There are 10-minute sequences to get back in shape and 12-minute exercises to lose unwanted pounds, but also small 15-minute workouts to tone the muscles, arms included.

If you are not very social and you love the classic printed paper manual, you could take inspiration instead, from two books that have become real best sellers for lovers of the “screaming” body. The first is titled “The Sakuma Method”, and was conceived by the Japanese personal trainer of the VIPs Kenichi Sakuma, in fact, to lose weight and reshape the silhouette in just 4 or 5 minutes a day: also ideal for women managers or very busy professionals , who have very little time to devote to themselves and their bodies. The second book that has also become a cult is called “The Mizoguchi Method”, and is written by the Japanese trainer, former dancer, Yoko Mizoguchi. In this case, the minutes of daily training are even reduced to 3 minutes, with 5 simple exercises to strengthen the buttocks, shoulders and ankles that last about half a minute each. Exercises that, according to their creator, are also good for the “ mood ” as well as for the body, and free from anxiety, stress and insomnia if carried out regularly.

Also on YouTube, however, the trainer Penny Barnshaw, also known as Garage Fitness Girl, goes crazy, showing a sequence of classic “squats” that in 10 minutes is able to make us burn several excess calories.

Of course, before taking on a “do it yourself” fitness challenge, you should always consult your doctor, since the exercises – no matter how simple – are not necessarily suitable for anyone.

The important thing is not to overdo it, and try to calm down the extra pounds gained during the Christmas period also thanks to a balanced diet, which does not include drastic fasting, but which instead reworks the daily nutrition plan through the right amount of liquids, fruit, vegetables and legume soups, highly protein and also ideal for vegetarians or vegans.

Another icon of the “ 5 minutes remise en forme challenges ” is Caroline Jordan, who is very popular online especially by the female audience for her exercises aimed at working on the abs, shoulders, buttocks or legs. For those who are lazier, easy sequences can also be performed with the aid of a chair, which absorbs the effort of each movement: an excellent solution even for older people or for those who are overweight, for example.

The individual mini workouts for the feet are also very popular, since the “map” of our overall physical and mental wellbeing is contained in the feet, as the ancient tradition of foot reflexology has passed down. Jordan herself borrows techniques from classical ballet or Pilates to show how to strengthen the elasticity of the ankles and awaken the energy of the feet. These exercises are excellent both in the morning, as soon as you wake up, to face the day with more sprint, and in the evening, after returning home from work, to relax tired legs. In the latter case, it is excellent to finish the workout with a self-massage of the plantar arch and toes, perhaps with an aromatic oil based on sweet almonds.