How To Do Perfect Home Workouts Using Stair Steppers and Fitness Sliders

Fitness Sliders

These are synthetic discs that you can use under either your feet or your hands. They’re designed for exercise buffs who’ve mastered the basics and are ready for something more challenging.

Fitness sliders force you to use your core muscles to keep your feet and hands underneath your body as you slide around on the floor.

Fitness sliders are pretty inexpensive anyway (under ten dollars) but if you want to save even more money, you can just use a couple of small dish towels – just don’t use them to dry the dishes later!

Here are some fairly simple exercises that will challenge your dexterity and really work your core.

We’ll start with the “plank position.” That’s when it looks as if you’ve just completed a push-up. You’re positioned on your hands and toes with your legs and arms straight. Your weight should be on your toes and on your hands. Your back should be straight.

Keep your hands slightly wider than your shoulders and look down and just a bit in front of your hands so your head’s straight too. Squeeze your abs and keep your back straight.

Knee Tucks – Start in a plank position with both feet on sliders. Squeeze your abs to curl your body forward, bending at the knees until your knees touch your chest.

Focus on keeping that core tight. Don’t let your hips get too high. Slide your feet back into plank position for one repetition. Aim for twelve to fifteen reps repeated up to three times.

Mountain Climber – Start in exactly the same position as for knee tucks. Slide your right knee forward until it touches your chest. Keep your abs and core tight and your back straight.

Push your knee back into plank position and repeat the movement with your left leg. This is one repetition. Aim for twelve to fifteen reps repeated up to three times.

Pike – Start in plank position with both feet on sliders. Squeeze your abs and shove your hips toward the ceiling, which will pull your feet in towards your hands.

Make sure to keep your hand and shoulders in the same place. Use your hips to move your legs. Return to starting position for one repetition. Aim for twelve to fifteen reps repeated up to three times.

Plank Jack – Start in plank position with both feet on sliders. Push feet apart to at least hip-width, then pull back together. That’s one repetition. Aim for twelve to fifteen fast reps repeated up to three times.

Side Knee Tuck – Start in plank position with both feet on sliders. Squeeze your abs and pull your knees in toward your chest. Slide both feet towards the right, making sure you can feel your oblique muscles working in your abdomen. Finish with both feet outside of your right hand.

Keep your hands and arms steady. Return to plank position and repeat the move to the left side. This is one repetition. Aim for twelve to fifteen reps repeated up to three times.

Stair Climber

One of the most effective ways to work your entire body is with a stair climber (otherwise called a stair stepper). You may be ask yourself: why not save even more money and just jof up and down my own steps? There are a couple of reasons you don’t want to do that.

First, using wooden or cement stairs is high-impact and hard on your knees and ankles. Whereas a stair-stepper won’t put that much strain on your joints. Second, you’ll wear out your steps and carpeting if you do a lot of repetitive movement.

And finally, just going up and down your own stairs gets really boring and tedious! With a stair climber or stepper however, you can set up in front of the television and exercise while you binge that latest Netflix show. ☺

Another common question is: why even buy a stair stepper? Why not just take a brisk walk, either in the neighborhood or on a treadmill? Climbing stairs improves your endurance and stamina. It’s a low-impact workout that still gives you a good cardio session. You’ll burn calories, lose weight, and tone your muscles, all at the same time.

You’ll also improve your balance and stability. If you purchase a machine, you can set it up anywhere in your home and it doesn’t take up very much space. If you add some resistance bands to your workout, you can even tone your upper body at the same time!

When buying a stair stepper, make sure the one you buy is one of the higher quality machines with good reviews. It’s usually better to pay a bit more for a better machine instead of getting something cheap that wears out before you can get any use out of it.

When choosing your machine, there are three basic types of stepper.

First is your basic stair stepper machine. Pros for this include sturdiness, stability and durability. These steppers are great for the heavier person, so if you need to lose a number of pounds, you should think along these lines. They come in manual and motorized, and most have railings. Motorized machines are usually a bit larger than other steppers and will need more space. They’re also noisier than the manual versions. These stair steppers cost more than the mini steppers and aren’t very portable.

Mini steppers are just as the name suggests – smaller versions of the basic machine. They’re lightweight and more portable. Most models don’t have rails, though. Mini steppers do offer a more varied workout, especially if you add resistance bands. Some offer twisting or side-stepping options as well.

They’re also compact and less expensive. However, many are of a lower quality than the basic machines. They’re not as sturdy and some are actually too lightweight – they’ll move during your workout. They may not be as durable, and they’re not built for heavier people.

The “kings” of the stepping machine, of course, is the Stairmaster. Some have two foot plates you operate in turn, while others look more like an escalator. You’ll probably get the best workout from a Stairmaster – if you can afford the price.

They also require a lot of floor and ceiling space, and they’re not at all portable. But if you’re got the money and the room, you can’t beat this machine.

The purpose of this article is to educate, and there are no guarantees of results implied. The author can, therefore, not be held accountable for any injuries from utilizing these workouts or poor results you may attain when implementing the techniques or when following any guidelines set out for you in this article.

Our Recommendations are below:

Recommended Fitness Sliders

InnerFit Core Sliders for Working Out - Set of 2 Dual Sided Exercise Sliders Fitness Discs - Durable Strength Slides Suitable for Carpets and Hardwood Floors (Black & Grey) by InnerFit $9.99

XTDGN Pack of 2 Sliding Gliding Fitness Discs, Dual Sided Core Sliders for Core Exercise, Enhancing Coordination Whole, Fits Home, Gym, 6.80.5 in, 5 Colors,Gray by XTDGN $17.11

Elite Sportz Exercise Sliders are Double Sided and Work Smoothly on Any Surface. Wide Variety of Low Impact Exercise’s You Can Do. Full Body Workout, Compact for Travel or Home - Purple by Elite sportz equipment $9.97

PERFECT PEACH ATHLETICS Core Sliders: Gym Fitness Gliding Disc Sliders - Strength Slides for Ab, Core, Lunge Workout - Dual Sided Exercise Sliding Gliders for Carpet, Hard Floor - 2 Pink Slider Discs by Perfect Peach Athletics $19.98

Recommended Basic Steppers

Stamina 40-0069 SpaceMate Folding Stepper by Stamina $162.00

Body Power 2-in-1 Elliptical Stepper Trainer with Curve-Crank Technology by Body Power $399.99

Bowflex M3 Max Trainer, Black by Bowflex $999.00

Recommended Mini Steppers

Sunny Health & Fitness Mini Stepper with Resistance Bands by Sunny Health & Fitness $52.74

BalanceFrom Adjustable Stepper Stepping Machine with Resistance Bands, Gray by BalanceFrom $49.99

Sunny Health & Fitness Twist Stepper Step Machine w/Handle Bar and LCD Monitor - NO. 059 by Sunny Health & Fitness $75.27

Sunny Health & Fitness Twist Stepper - NO. 045 by Sunny Health & Fitness $79.00

Recommended Stairmasters

StairMaster SM3 StepMill by StairMaster $4,299.00

StairMaster 10G Gauntlet 10 Series Stepmill with Overdrive Training w/LCD by StairMaster $9,999.00

StairMaster SM5 StepMill with 2 Window LCD Console by StairMaster $3,899.00

StairMaster 7000 PT Stepmill by StairMaster $3,699.00

StairMaster 8-FreeClimber with LCD by StairMaster $4,899.00