How To Do Skaters
Skaters are a cardiovascular exercise in which you perform a lateral jump to get your heart rate up, strengthen your legs and improve stability and balance. The strengthening part of this exercise is mostly focused on quads and glutes. However, an added benefit to this move is a strengthening of your medial glute- or the outer thigh. Not only is this a great area to tone, but it also improves knee strength. The cardio part of this exercise comes from the constant movement as you switch your feet back and forth. You’ll have your heart pumping before you know it!
This two-in-one strengthening and cardio exercise is a great functional exercise to add to your routine. Learning how to do Skaters will not only benefit you by toning your lower body—making this a must-do exercise for runners—but you will also be keeping your heart healthy and your metabolism burning those unwanted calories. Cardio—especially high-impact cardio—is necessary to shed fat. Your posture will also benefit from increased core strength. There’s no way you won’t feel the burn with this exercise!
Looking for a way to incorporate skaters into a more robust routine? Try our 30-Minute Anywhere Bodyweight Workout, which includes skaters as well as a variety of other strengthening and cardio exercises. This routine requires no equipment and just a little bit of your time to reach your fitness goals!
Use the links below to quickly navigate this guide:
- How To Do Skaters
- What Muscles Do Skaters Work?
- Benefits of Skaters
- How Many Calories Do Skaters Burn?
- Other Exercises Similar To Skaters
- Incorporating Skaters Into Your Workouts
How To Do Skaters
Here are the steps to performing Skaters:
A) Start with your legs slightly wider than shoulder distance apart and arms at the sides.
B) Bring one leg behind at a slight angle into a reverse lunge. The front knee will come to a 90-degree angle.
C) Swing the arms in front of that bent knee and leap the back leg forward to switch sides in a skating motion. Arms alternate as you switch sides like a speed skater.
Watch as Chris demonstrates how to perform skaters properly!
What Muscles Do Skaters Work?
Skaters is an awesome cardio exercise that works your glutes, outer thigh and core while giving you a great cardiovascular move that gets your heart rate up anytime, anywhere.
Benefits of Skaters
There are many reasons you should incorporate skaters into your workouts. Here are just a few:
High-Intensity Interval Benefits
No matter how you look at it, skaters are going to get you breathing heavy! You will undoubtedly reach your anaerobic state meaning breathing only through your mouth and needing a break after about 20-30 seconds. This makes it perfect for high-intensity interval training! It’s a crazy-good move that accomplishes in seconds what takes other exercises several minutes!
Work Your Lower Body And Core
Your legs are moving and getting stronger with skaters. Quads, glutes, hamstrings and calves…every muscle is put to the test! You get some bonus outer thigh work as well. The key is to push off hard. Once you land be sure to land softly using your leg and core strength.
Cardio Exercise At Home
The cardio benefits of skaters are amazing, but even better is the fact that you can do this move right at home. No need to go to a gym or head into bad weather, just find some space and get moving. Some short burst of high intensity moves like this can get you an awesome workout in less than 20 minutes!
How Many Calories Do Skaters Burn?
People often ask how many calories they are burning in their workouts. Most exercises will generally burn about 100 calories for every 10 minutes you are working. Skaters are great for a high-calorie burn due to intensity. Bottom line – the harder you work, the more calories you burn.
Other Exercises Similar to Skaters
If you like the idea of getting a great cardio move right in the comfort of your own home with no equipment needed, try these too!
Incorporating Skaters Into Your Workouts
Skaters is an amazing cardio exercise all on its own! However, you could also incorporate skaters into other workouts to mix them up. Here are some ideas to make that happen.
Use Skaters In A Bodyweight-Only Cardio Workout
You don’t need to go running or ride a bike to get your cardio in. You don’t even need to be in a gym or outside. Using basic bodyweight moves you can get a complete cardio workout that is simple, easy to do anywhere, and more super effective. Try this:
10-Minute Bodyweight-Only Cardio Challenge: 1 min. jog in place to warm up. Do each of the following for 45 seconds, with 15 seconds rest in between:
Skaters
Repeat all 5
Use Skaters In Your Circuit Training
Circuits are a fun way to exercise and get your strength and cardio in all at the same time. The idea behind circuits is to go from one move, or one “station”, to the next with little or not rest in between. Check this out:
Fat Blasting Circuit Training Workout: Move directly from one exercise to the next with little to no break in between. Rest for 1 minute at the end, then repeat the sequence.
30 seconds side lunges
30 seconds high knee run
30 seconds push ups
30 seconds skaters
30 seconds plié squats
30 seconds bear crawl
30 seconds modified army crawl plank
30 seconds crab walk
Rest 1 minute. Repeat. Stretch.
Use Skaters In Your HIIT Training
High-intensity intervals are all the rage because they get the job done in record time. Go as hard as you can for 20 seconds, rest for 10 seconds and then go hard again. Here’s a super easy way to kick butt!
Hot HIIT Workout: Do each move for 20 seconds, rest 10 seconds in between moves.
Skaters
Go through this sequence 4 times
Here are 3 more workouts that incorporate skaters into your workout!
10 Minute Low Impact Cardio Workout
30-Minute Full Body At Home Workout
Targets: thighs, quads, glutes