Has it ever felt like it takes forever to brush your teeth? If you brush them like you’re supposed to, it should take about two minutes (twice per day). It’s only four minutes a day, but that’s an important four minutes, and we’re going to show you how to get the most out of it.
Instead of just standing there, staring at yourself in the mirror or daydreaming, what if you could get in a quick “mini workout” that will get your blood flowing, and prepare you mentally and physically to tackle the day ahead?
In this article, we’re going to show you five quick, convenient workouts you can do right in front of the mirror in order to fight plaque, and hopefully shed a few pounds in the process!
1: Squats.
Just because you aren’t at the gym at a squat rack doesn’t mean that you can’t get a great squat workout. In fact, squats are one of the best total body exercises you can do, and when done correctly your body provides all the weight resistance that you need to train effectively.
To do squats while brushing your teeth, bring one of your arms in front of your body, and extend it out right in front of your face (holding the toothbrush with your other hand obviously).
With your legs a little more than shoulder width apart, squat down while keeping your back straight (making sure that your knees do not cave inward). When doing squats (or any kind of exercise for that matter), it’s important to focus on form. Performing 8-10 squats with correct form is much better than doing 30 with poor form.
2: Calf raises.
Calf raises are another great exercise you can do while brushing your teeth (just make sure your bathroom floor isn’t wet, as it is easy to slip).
All that you have to do for an effective calf raise is to keep your toes on the ground, and lift the rest of your foot in the air. You should feel a muscle contraction in your calf region when doing the exercise correctly.
For safety, we also recommend that you keep your hands on the bathroom counter at all times to stabilize yourself while performing this exercise.
3: Lunges.
Lunges are one of the most convenient, effective exercises you can do to increase strength in your thighs, hips and even your core muscles.
To do a lung, you’ll put your hand (that isn’t holding your toothbrush) on your hip, and lunge forward until your front knee is bent at a 90 degree angle, and your back knee is nearly touching the ground.
Make sure to alternate between left and right leg lunges, and always hold your lunge pose for a few seconds to feel the extra burn.
4: Pushups.
You may think pushups aren’t a great exercise for brushing your teeth, and you would be correct (unless you do them one-handed)! So, why are we including pushups in this article?
Because pushups are an excellent exercise to do after brushing your teeth while you are rinsing your mouth with a daily fluoride treatment.
After all; why should you exercise while brushing your teeth and quit during your fluoride treatment? That doesn’t make much sense now does it?
5: Jumping jacks.
Again, this exercise may not be ideal while brushing your teeth, but it’s easy to perform jumping jacks during your fluoride treatment.
Doing 15-20 jumping jacks (make sure your bathroom floor isn’t slippery) while your gargling fluoride is a great way to be just a little more productive and build a little extra exercise into your daily routine?
So does your mouth need a physical and workout plan?
At Babylon Dental Care, we see patients for a wide variety of dental issues, including routine oral exams, restorative dentistry, cosmetic services, and much more.
In addition, we educate our patients on how to take care of their teeth, as well as the rest of their body (after all, poor dental health has been linked to heart disease and diabetes).
If you are searching for a new dentist on the South Shore of Long Island in or around the West Babylon or Patchogue areas, please give our practice nearest you a call today! We have two locations (Babylon Dental Care at Great South Bay and Babylon Dental Care at Gateway Plaza) and would love to meet you and your family.
