S3x might make you sweat, but it isn’t the only way to raise your heart rate and strengthen your bond. These intimate exercises, designed and demoed by real-life couples, will literally bring you closer — and give you a real workout while you’re at it.
You may also like: Is she a gold digger? 5 things she’ll do!
Grab your partner and pick a handful of these moves to perform consecutively. Do as many reps as you can in 30 to 60 seconds. For exercises that assign different movements to each partner, switch roles or sides and repeat for 30 to 60 more seconds.
Touch-Feely Push-Ups
Facing your partner, get into plank position so your heads are about one arm’s length apart. At the same time, you’ll both perform a push-up. At the top of the push-up, engage your core and keep your hips square to the ground as you lift your right palm off the ground and gently caress your partner’s face. Replace the hand and perform another push-up, this time caressing with the left hand. Continue to alternate sides.
Medicine Ball Pass
Hold a 7- to 10-pound medicine ball and sit back-to-back about a foot away from your partner with knees bent, heels on the ground, and toes facing upward. Turn to your right and pass the ball to your partner, as he turns to his left to receive it. He then twists to his right to pass it back to you, and you turn to your left to receive it. Continue passing in this direction, switching directions halfway through.
Squat and Hold + Triceps Dips
Stand with your feet about shoulders-width apart and sit back into a deep squat with both arms extended overhead. Hold this position while your partner stands in front of you, facing away. Have him place one hand on each of your thighs with his fingers facing outward, then walk his feet forward until his elbows are above your knees. Have him bend his elbows, driving them directly backward, lowering his hips toward the ground, then extend the elbows to complete one rep.
Back-to-Back Chair Squats
Stand back-to-back with your partner and link arms. Leaning against each other’s upper backs for balance, walk your feet out enough to separate your butts and give you both room to sit back into a deep squat without your knees coming over your toes. Next, you’ll both bend your knees until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Press through your heels and literally lean on your partner to stand back up and complete one rep.
Linked Arm Pistol Squat
Face your partner and grasp each other’s opposite wrists so your arms are crossed between you. Raise both of your left feet and simultaneously bend your right knees to sit back into one-legged squat. Press into your standing heel and engage your butt and thighs to come back to standing position. That’s one rep. Continue without dropping the elevated leg.
Bicycle-Built-for-Two Crunches
Sit facing your partner with about one leg’s length between your butts. Then press the sole of your left foot to the sole of her right foot, and the sole of your right foot to the sole of her left foot. Lie back with your hands behind your head, elbows out to the sides, and have your partner do the same. Next, you’ll both bring your left knees in toward the chest and extend your right legs. As the knee comes into the chest, lift the head, neck, and shoulders up off the ground and twist to reach the opposite elbow to the bent knee. Continue to alternate sides, keeping the head, neck, and shoulders off the ground the entire time.
Pucker-Up Plank Pikes
Face your partner, and get into a forearm plank position with your elbows directly beneath your shoulders and palms together. Have your partner mirror you so you’re head-to-head with your hands nearly touching hers. From this position, simultaneously lift your hips straight up to the ceiling, lengthening the spine to maximize the space between the top of your head and your hips. Next, carefully come back to starting position (communicate to avoid a head collision) then lean in for a kiss, both tilting toward the right. That’s one rep.
Plank + Sit-Up and Smooch
Have your partner lie on his back with knees bent and soles pressed against the floor. Kneel near his feet and place your hands on top of them, then step backward into a hands plank. Hold while your partner performs a sit-up with his hands crossed over his chest or behind his head. At the top of his sit-up, lean in for a kiss.
