‘I did wall sits every day for 30 days, here’s everything I learned’
Wall sits have never been my favourite. In fact, bar the times my PT would make me do them years ago, I could count on one hand how many times I’ve done them, but it turns out they tick all my boxes right now.
Last year, I was diagnosed with nerve damage on my left foot and a weak ankle after a grade 2 sprain on my right foot. I was left unable to walk or stand for longer than 20 minutes which made my favourite workouts – spinning and running – near impossible, so up until recently, I hadn’t exercised for almost a year.
Being so sedentary for near on 12 months means I have gained a lot of weight and struggled with my mental health, so I knew I needed to get moving again as soon as my foot allowed it. The road to recovery started with a series of rehab exercises from my physio, including low-impact strength exercises to build up my muscles and ward off future injuries, all while getting my heart pumping, which PT and co-founder of OMNI Wellness, Aimee Victoria Long, says helps ‘your body to get more oxygen to your muscles, which optimises fat burning and lowers cholesterol.’
But getting started has been challenging – especially if, like me, you struggle with body confidence. This is where wall sits come in. They’re tough enough to improve my strength, but don’t require leaving the house and going to the gym on days that I feel particularly self-conscious or unmotivated. What's more, new research shows that isometric exercises - any static moves, like wall sits and planks - could be twice as effective for reducing your blood pressure than other exercise, so what better challenge to take on than a wall sit challenge?
For the last 30 days, I have committed to a wall sit every single day – here’s everything you need to know, including what they are, how to do them, everything I learned, and my results.
What is a wall sit?
As the name suggests, wall sits involve ‘sitting’ against a wall. All that’s required is to lean against a sturdy flat surface with your feet firmly planted to the floor and your knees bent at a 90-degree angle. ‘Defined as an isometric exercise (i.e., an exercise where the working muscle doesn’t change length during the exercise and the joint doesn’t move), wall sits are super safe to perform, and put very little stress on the spine,’ says Long.
Predominantly working the quadriceps - four muscles found at the front of the thigh that help with knee stability, and everyday functionality like walking, getting up from a seated position, and climbing stairs, wall sits can also help to increase your endurance, balance, core strength and lower back strength.
However, Long caveats that despite the benefits, ‘this exercise alone isn’t an effective way to build full-body strength,’ adding that it should be incorporated into a workout programme made up of a range of strength-based exercises, incorporating upper- and lower-body and core moves.
How can I do a wall sit?
Make sure you’re leaning against a stable wall or flat surface, then engage your core as you slide down into a squat position, keeping your back firmly against the wall, and ensuring your spine makes contact from the bottom of your neck all the way down to your pelvis.
‘Walk your feet out until you achieve a 90-degree angle in your knees and hold. Arms can be out to the side, left to rest on the thighs or for more of a challenge they can be extended out at chest height,’ Long instructs.
My wall sit challenge
I decided I’d challenge myself to perform wall sits daily for 30 days, and consulted Long for advice on how best to go about it.
‘The amount of time you do a wall sit for is completely dependent on fitness and strength levels,’ she tells me. ‘For my clients, I start them off on 3 sets of 30-second sits. Gradually, I build them up to 3 sets of 60 second sits. Once they’re able to hold it for 1 minute, I like to increase load by adding a plate or a dumbbell to their lap to make the exercise even harder,’ she adds.
My plan was to follow Long’s lead and start with 3 sets of 30 second wall sits for the first week. Then from the second week, increase to 3 sets of 45 seconds, then graduating to a minute in the third week and adding weight in the fourth week. Here’s a breakdown:
Week one: 3 sets of 30-second wall sits every day
Week two: 3 sets of 45-second wall sits every day
Week three: 3 sets of 60-second wall sits every day
Week four: 3 sets of 60-second wall sits + weight every day
To ensure I felt comfortable, I started my challenge at home, then headed to my local David Lloyd gym on week four, in order to make use of the weights. Long also recommends carving out time for stretching. ‘Your quads are being stressed in this exercise so make sure you’re doing plenty of lower body mobility to help reduce muscle soreness,’ she explains.
5 things I learnt from a 30-day wall sit challenge
1. Get comfortable being uncomfortable
This exercise certainly isn’t easy, but even after not training regularly for a whole year, I was able to start on 45 seconds and increase my time from there. TBH, I probably could have held my wall sits for even longer from the start, but I gave into that uncomfortable ‘burn’ too quickly.
It quickly became clear that wall sits are as much of a mental challenge for me as a physical one. Over time, the benefits of pushing myself harder gave me confidence in other areas of my life, too. My overall confidence grew, and I started to push myself to take more risks and get comfortable being uncomfortable.
2. Find a distraction
Full transparency here: wall sits are boring. I found I’d start thinking about work, or what I would eat for my next meal, until the burn set in, then all I was thinking about was how my thighs were on fire.
Long likes to distract her clients by talking to them, but since I trained alone, I’d watch videos on YouTube, an episode of one of the TV series’ I’m currently watching, or play some upbeat music to hype me up. Works a treat.
3. Body size and fitness levels are not synonymous
My bodyweight has always fluctuated, and whilst I know it’s not true, I’ve previously fallen victim to the belief that fit = slim. In the past, I’d almost always get paired up with a beginner at any group workout classes, because the trainer assumed my size (usually larger than others) meant I would be unfit. I’d leave feeling frustrated and embarrassed.
I know how strong I am, but those beliefs are apparently ingrained in me, as I was still nervous to take on this challenge. I’m heavier than I ever have been right now, so I assumed I would find this harder than ever, but my results (read on for more) are proof that size means nada. Consistency is all that’s needed to improve.
4. Stretching is vital
Long wasn’t lying about the importance of stretching. On busy work days during week one, I’d take a quick break to get my wall sits done, then rush back to my desk, vowing to stretch later – never actually getting round to it. Needless to say, I learnt the hard way. My quads wound up super tight; I could barely sit down, and subsequent wall sits felt even harder.
5. Wall sits don’t have to be boring
The static nature of wall sits means they’re not the most thrilling of exercises, but Long has a few variations to try. ‘Add in lateral arm raises with dumbbells, weighted bicep curls, or overhead presses to make it a full-body exercise,’ she recommends. ‘Alternatively, try squeezing a soft medicine ball or Pilates ball between your knees to engage your abductors. Or try single-leg wall sits; raise one leg for half the time, then switch to the other for the rest of the exercise,’ explains Long.
My results
For me, this was about mind over matter. Faith in myself and what my body can handle was required to push through to the 1-minute mark and beyond. How do I feel now? Stronger both physically – I’m certain my thighs look more defined – and mentally – I’m genuinely more confident in myself both in and outside of the gym.
I’ll admit I won’t be doing wall sits every day going forward (as Long recommends, they should be part of a well-rounded strength training routine), but it was an eye-opening challenge for me, and one that has given me the courage to try other exercises and workouts. That said, I do plan to incorporate wall sits into my full-body strength training sessions.
Read now: How to practise self-compassion and become more confident
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