We have all read or had the statistics on who is considered to be overweight and by how much. Although we may not consider ourselves obese by any stretch of the imagination most of us can agree it would be nice to take a little off here and there and if we all had an hour a day that was time-blocked so we could get it done we would never have any concerns about stepping on the scale.  Unfortunately that’s not reality for any of us and sometimes the hardest part of working out is simply finding the time to do it. That said, we’ve put together some quick exercises you can do at home in minutes a day to get you on track to where you want to be. The first of a five part series begins with something you can do indoors.

Front Lunges

How to do it:

• Stand with your feet hip-width apart, hands on hips (shown).
• Keeping your chest lifted and back straight, take a large step forward (about three feet) with the right foot so the knee is bent 90 degrees and the thigh is parallel to the floor.
• Keep your knee centered over your foot. Push off the right foot to return to the starting position.

Repetitions: Do eight lunges with the right leg; repeat with the left. Start with one set of eight reps on each leg and move up to three sets of 15.

Bonus benefits: “Aside from working your rear end and thighs, the front lunge challenges your balance and coordination and firms your core a bit,” says Tom Holland, an exercise physiologist in Darien, Connecticut.

Make it harder: Add extra weight to further challenge yourself. Do the lunges while holding dumbbells or wearing a backpack containing one or two heavy books (make sure the straps fit snugly at your shoulders).