Use this surprising household item to switch up your training

We've all seen the workout videos that try to encourage us to use everyday household items to help us work out. From pots and pans to the sofa, there are plenty of things you can use to complement your home workout, but here at Sundried, we've taken it one step further!

This routine amplifies your body's work using a towel, creating extra friction or tension to intensify your efforts. We also use multiple planes of motion to develop strength that improves performance not only in sport but in everyday life as we twist and turn in multiple directions without even realising it.

Training in different ways ensures you continue to progress, so challenge convention and use your towel to break a sweat, not wipe it!

Exercises using a towel

Towel Trunk Twist

Hold the towel out taut in front of you. Keeping both feet facing forward, twist from side to side as though you are looking for someone behind you.

Squat with Overhead Reach

Keeping that towel taut, squat down and reach both arms up straight above your head and as far back as your shoulders allow in one smooth motion. You're trying to warm up your shoulders through their full range of motion. We’ll be working them hard in this workout.

Squat with Towel Twist

As you squat twist your hands down towards the furthest foot and then up diagonally to the ceiling as you lift. This should look like a woodchopper motion with the towel kept taut.

Sliding Curtsey Lunges

Place your towel under one foot, this will be the one that moves. Slide back diagonally into a curtsey lunge and then drag the towel back to your start point, without it leaving the floor.

Door Pistol Squats

Wrap your towel around a door handle (make sure it's secure enough to take your weight), now take one leg out in front of you and sink down as low as you can on the other leg, this is a pistol squat. Great from improving your mobility and creating equal strength in both legs through isolation.

Reverse Plank Hamstring Curl

Come down to the floor and place your towel under your heels. Sit with your hands by your hips and then lift up into a reverse plank. Keep your body in a straight line and try not to relax your head back. Now drag your heels in towards your bum and then back out to straight. You should feel this in your abs, shoulders and hamstrings as you drag the towel.

Push Up with Arm Slide

Come into your regular push up position, with your towel underneath one hand. As you lower for a push up slide the towel hand out to your side in a straight line and drag it back in as you extend. If you need to, drop to your knees to make it easier. 

Plank Star Slide

For this you need a towel under each foot. Start in your regular plank position, here you're going to be moving the opposite hand and leg. Lift one hand and twist into a side plank as you slide the opposite leg through towards the wall, making your body look like a star. As you return your hand drag your leg back and repeat on the other side.

Sliding Pikes

Place one towel underneath both feet and return to your plank position. Slide your legs in towards your hands keeping your legs straight (without locking your knees) and lift your bum up into the air to perform a pike, pause at the top and slide to the start.

Pull Through Crunch

Sit on the floor and hold your towel taught between both hands above your head. Now bring your legs in as though you were performing a crunch, but as you do, bring the towel down towards your legs. Feed your legs through the gap between your legs and the towel and straighten them once the towel is held beneath your hamstrings. Curl your legs back up and pass the towel over your toes as you return to the start position. Tough.

Dorsal Raise vs V sits

Two for the price of one. Lying on your stomach start with your towel taut above your head. Lift your arms and legs to perform a dorsal raise, then keeping your towel tight, roll over onto your back. From this position fold in half, bringing your extended arms and legs together to meet in the middle for a v sit. Return to the mat and roll over to repeat your dorsal raise.

Cool Down

Towel Bend and Stretch

Holding you towel between both hands bend down keeping your legs straight to stretch your hamstrings and back, then rotate your shoulders and bring your taut towel behind your neck with extended arms.

Assisted Tricep Stretch

Hold the towel in one hand and extend above your head, folding at the elbow to stretch the tricep, now using the other hand grab the towel and gently tug to extend the stretch into the tricep. Repeat both sides.

Assisted Hamstring Stretch

Use your towel as a hook over your toes and gently pull the foot up towards your head to stretch your hamstring and calves. Repeat both sides.

Oblique lean

Hold the towel tight above your head and lean towards the outside of each thigh, stretching across your obliques.

Now you may need that towel to wipe your sweat and bonus, your floor gets a good polish at the same time!

To download the Tone with a Towel workout as a take home PDF as featured in BestFit magazine click here.