How To Do Up Up Down Down Straddles

Up Up Down Down Straddles are a basic patterning cardio drill on the step designed to get your heart rate up and improve agility. Think of it like a game: start slow to get the pattern down in your muscle memory, then go faster and faster. See how fast your brain can tell your muscles to move. If you push yourself, you will be able to increase your speed overtime. This is a great athletic exercise for sports training.

Learning how to do the Up Up Down Down straddles is a super easy and accessible way to incorporate more cardio into your routine. If you don’t have a workout step at home, don’t sweat it. You can do this exercise on your own type of low platform at home or just on the floor itself.

The CDC recommends that a healthy adult gets at least 150 hours of aerobic activity per week. But we know how mind-numbing cardio exercise can be, so always try to switch up your routines so that you don’t get bored. Add the Up Up Down Down Straddles to your existing routine for something new!

Here are the steps to performing Up Up Down Down Straddles:

1) Start with legs straddling your step.

2) Step feet up with right foot, up with left foot then down with right foot down with left returning to straddle.

Targets: glutes, hamstrings, quads