No Excuse Workout!

I know that many people feel that if they don't have an hour to workout that it is not worth it. Well again I want you working out smart not longer. Here is a workout that will take no more than 30 minutes to do and will leave those muscle quivering.

Equipment:
Download Tabata app for smart phone or tablet/ipad
Medium/Heavy resistance band or dumbbells (10-35 lbs), A Kettlebell if you have one (15-50 lbs)

Part of the workout is using the Tabata format. This is again 20 seconds of high intensity work with either 10 seconds of rest of holding. Be sure to work as hard as you can starting each 20 second boot of work and make modification if/when needed. STOPING IS NOT AN OPTION!

Warm-Up
Jog in place or forward and back for :60.

Plank Lateral Walk- Start in a plank position. Step your hand and foot out to the right bring it back in and then step the hand and foot out to the left. Repeat 4-8 times per side.
Squat Chops- Hang onto a light dumbbell (5-10lbs.)in both hands. When you are in a low squat position the dumbbell with be down between your legs. As you come to the top of the squat by straightening your legs use your core to lift your arms straight overhead. Repeat 10-12 times.

Tabatas
#1 Perform two :20 bouts of Spider Push ups followed by 2 :20 bouts of Tricep Push ups. Repeat for a total of 8 rounds.
Spider Push ups
L3-While at the bottom of your push up draw your right knee to the right elbow perform another push up and this time draw the left knee to left elbow
L2-Perform a push and at the top of the motion draw the right  knee to the right elbow perform another push up and this time draw the left knee to left elbow
L1-The push ups can be done on the knees and then draw the knee to elbow. If you are in between do the push up on the knees and pop up on the toes for the knee pull in.



Tricep Push ups
To find the correct position with your hands lie on your stomach and place your hands right on the outsides of your chest. Elbows with graze your ribs as you lift and lower. Your nose will aim right in front of your fingers.
L3- Perform a power push up by propelling yourself off the ground and landing low in the tricep push up position.
L2-Perform a regular tricep push up on the toes.
L1-Drop down to one or both of your knees. Know that moving your knees underneath you and sticking your butt up might be needed to keep your nose in front of your fingers.

#2 Perform two :20 bouts of Power Lunges followed by :20 of Lunge Jumps on your right leg, :20 of Lunge Jumps on the left leg, and then two bouts of Power Lunges.
Power Lunges
L3-Hold onto dumbbells. One in each hand down by your sides, or one at chest height. It would be even more challenging to hold one dumbbell over your head. Start in a low lunge position with your right leg forward. You are going to power your legs pushing through your right heel getting as much height as possible and landing in a low lunge position with the left leg forward. Continue switching legs as fast as possible yet adding as much intensity as you can.
L2- Perform the above exercise without weight either hands over head, on head, or moving in opposite direction as legs to help with the propulsion.
L1- Narrow your lunge so that you do not go as low or need as much power. You could also perform reverse lunge with weights if the power bothers your knees.
Lunge Jumps
L3- Weight yourself with the same options as the power lunges. Stand in a low lunge position and jump up and down not switching legs. Think about landing softly.
L2-In a low position with no weights jump up and land low back in your lunge position.
L3- Perform pulsing lunges never leaving the floor.

#3 Perform two :20 bouts of Bent Over Rows either with a band or with heavy dumbbells followed by 2 :20 bouts of reverse flies. Repeat both for a total of 8 rounds.
Bent Over Rows
Stand with hip width apart and hinge forward at the hips so that your back is flat and head in line with the spine. Hang onto the band (place the band underneath feet for anchor point) or dumbbells with knuckles forward. As you exhale draw the elbows up as high as possible without moving the body squeezing the shoulder blades together behind you. Adjust the tension/weight so that you can barely complete the :20. If your lower back is bothering you know that staggering your legs can help.
Reverse Flies
Stand with your feet wide for a nice stable base of support. Hinge over like the above exercise. Keeping your arms as straight as possible raise the dumbbells out to the sides of the body squeezing your shoulder blades.

NOTE: To up the intensity with all the exercises holding for the ten seconds between the exercises with do it!

Grand Finale
Perform Kettlebell Swings for :60 followed by small single leg jump forward and back for :30 each leg. Repeat 3 times.

For more on the kettlebell swing take a peak at this video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0jalJ-3e7U

Tabata Workout-everyone has four minutes

Many of my clients and bootcamp participants have been hearing me talk about and have participated in Tabata training the last few weeks. The reason for this excitement is the effectiveness of the style. For those not familiar with tabata it is 20 seconds of all out intensity followed by 10 seconds of recovery. This is repeated 8 times for a total of 4 minutes. There are a few different types of tabata training depending on how many exercises are chosen. The key is to push yourself to your max (90-95 % of your maximum heart rate)for the 20 seconds. STOPPING is not an option. There are many ways to modify the exercise to keep you moving.
This type of training is not for the faint of heart, but the effectiveness of it should be motivation enough to make you want to push as hard as you can. In the four minutes of work for a cardio exercise most individuals burn around 60-70 calories. The amazing part is that in the 24 hours after the exercise bout a person burns on average an extra 300 calories due to the Excess Post Exercise Consumption (EPOC). That would equate around a 3 mile run or 45 minutes on an elliptical machine. What would you rather due? Everyone has four minutes so there should be no excuses.
I am excited to have a whole Tabata Bootcamp available come January to take full advantage of this training style. In the mean time here is a great exercise for you to work with.

• Download a Tabata Timer for your IPad for phone for ease of timing.
• Jog in place for around a minute.
• Place a cone, water bottle, chair or other stationary object in front of you. This is your marker. The lower the marker the harder the exercise. Adjust your marker height depending on your fitness level.
• The exercise is star jumps. With your feet together bend over and touch your marker always leading with your backside.
• Level 1 perform a half jumping jack extending one foot while raising your arms up overhead.
• Level 2 perform a full jumping jack powering your foot out and raising your arms up overhead.
• Level 3 perform a full star jump lifting your feet out to the sides and up as high as your can simultaneously raising your arms up over head.
• With each round start with the highest level that you can muster. Even if it is only a few repetitions and then you have to work with the lower level.
• Psych yourself up for this activity. Doing it with a friend to help encourage you can make a huge difference in the level of intensity you end up doing.

Stay tuned for more great Tabata Bootcamp information!

High Intensity Workout-Crossfit style

This workout is a crossfit style of workout in the sense that you are given a series of five exercises and you complete the set number of repetitions listed as many times as possible in the master time allotted. Push yourself to move quickly, but do not sacrifice intensity and form in order to do so. Make each set challenging by adjusting weights, your arm length, type of push-up etc.

Enjoy! 

 
Warm-up: (for added challenge do this warm-up on a hill) Perform each exercise for :60

Jog

Grapevine
Bear crawl (up the hill forward and backwards going down)
Plank  (facing down hill or feet elevated on bench)

Circuit #1   work through this circuit as many times as possible in 12 minutes  (most will be able to complete 5-6 times)

Pushups                                       11

Sit-ups                                         11  (use weight for added challenge)

Mountain climbers                      50 (twenty five each leg) 

(another option if you have a hill is to sprint up and down it as fast as you can once)

Squat Jumps                                  7

 Circuit #2  work through this circuit as many times as possible in 12 minutes  (most will be able to complete 4-5 times)

Tricep Dips                                   11

Reverse lunges                             11 each leg

(Option to either weight yourself or add power with a jump landing low)

Jumping Jacks                              30 (or 15 star jumps)
Plank Walkouts with a Push Up   7

 

Circuit #3

You are going to do Pyramids with two exercises. Perform one Burpee and then one Kettlebell swing, then perform two Burpees and two kettlebell swings all the way up to 12. Use heavy weights when doing the swing (15-40 lbs) using either a dumbbell or a kettlebell. Make adjustments so that you can keep moving. Most individuals finish in 8-13 minutes depending on their fitness level. Push yourself with intensity and with speed.

 

 

Stretch: In this workout you did a lot of shoulder work so notebook(see photo below) would a great to include as well as a standing hamstring stretch.

Circuit for the Backyard

Do you have a great back yard or park nearby? Sometimes setting up a circuit can be a fun way to involve the family and friends! My back yard is fenced in so I can have my son playing on his own, the dog roaming around and everyone is happy!
Here is a routine that you will take you about 30 minutes to complete with warm-up and cool down.

Enjoy!

Workout:

Imagine a large square in the lawn about 15 feet on each side. Set up the cones on one side. Move around the square with stationary exercises at the corners for 15 repetitions while completing the exercises between the corners just once. Keep yourself moving around the circle for 20-25 minutes getting a drink where needed. Push yourself to get around the circuit 4 or more times. Always start a workout with a light warm-up and a few stretches at the end.  

Jumping Jacks (15) ----------------------------------à Burpees (15)

                                                Bear Crawl

• .                                                                  -
• .                                                                  -
• .                                                                  -
• .  Lateral steps over cones                         -   Skip
• .         (face the other directions each time)                  -
• .                                                                  -
• .                                                                  -
• .

                                           Bunny Hops

Double Crunch (15) <-------------------------------- Jump Squats (15)

Bunny Hops-Jump with both feet together as far forward as you can. Then power forward again.
Double Crunch- Lie on your back with your hands behind head. Bend your knees at a ninety-degree angle so feet are in the air. As you exhale you are going to pull your upper torso and your knees as close together as possible. On the inhale release back down and repeat.

Exercising In The Park

Scheduling out time for my own workouts is often a challenge, but being creative has assured that I still get them in. In my book being a mom has not hindered my being active. My one year old son, Drake, loves to go to the park. This has been my saving grace the last few weeks. We run to the park using the jogging stroller and I utilize the park equipment to exercise and he has a great time. I place him in the swing and while he is swinging I do an exercise, push him again, and then onto another. He loves when I count my repetitions, when I tickle him and make funny faces while doing lunges or jump squats, and also when I grunt!

 Here is a workout that all you need is a swing and a bench. Your goal is to do 15 repetitions of the first two exercises in each circuit and then the third exercise for 45 seconds. Go through each circuit twice before moving onto the next.

 Note: I have added hyperlinks to similar exercises using the TRX for a visual.

Circuit #1
Push Up with swing- Place your feet in the swing so that you are doing a declined push-up.

Single Arm Row- Grab a hold of the swing with your right hand. It is best to hang onto the part closest to you with your knuckles up. Walk your feet forward so that your body is at an angle. The farther forward your feet are the more challenging the exercise. Use your back muscles and pull your body up as your bent elbow goes wide. Slowly lower yourself back down.

Mountain Climbers- :Place your hand on the ground so that your body is in a plank position with straight arms. Draw your right knee into the chest tapping the toe and quickly extend it back out. Repeat on the other side and continue quickly alternating legs while keeping shoulders over top of hands and body in plank position. These can be done with hands on a bench to reduce intensity.

Circuit #2

Lunges with back leg in Swing- Place your right leg into the swing. Step your left leg about three feet in front of the swing. Bent your left leg and slowly lower into a lunge position. Use the front leg to do all the work with the lunge. Be sure that the knee stays over top of the heel. Repeat other leg. (another option is to place your back leg on a bench for more stability)

Knee Tucks with Swing- Start with your hands on the ground and feet in swing as you would for the push ups using the swing. Keeping your upperbody stationary pull your knees into your chest and slowly extend them back out. (this can be done with a single leg for more core challenge)

Jumping Jacks- Start with feet together and arms down by sides. Jump while extending feet out and arms up over head like a star. Jump and bring everything back to the starting position. Jumping jacks can be performed really fast by shortening your levers (arms and legs bent) or by moving slower yet strong and powerful.

Circuit #3

Tricep Dips- Find a bench to sit on. Place your hands on the edge of the bench knuckles forward. Walk your feet forward so that they are underneath your knees and hip off the bench. Slowly lower your body towards the floor while bending your elbows. Keep elbows close the body and shoulder rolled back and down. Press yourself back up using your legs as much as you need.

Hamstring Curls In Swing- Lye on the ground on your back with your feet in the swing. Heels are best so they do not slip. Press your feet into the swing and elevate your hips. Extend your legs out straight while pressing into the swing and then slowly pulling your legs back in. Keep your hips elevated and repeat.

Ski Jumps: Stand with feet together. Jump to the right several feet, keeping knees bent and landing in a squat. Jump back to the left and continue jumping from side to side (place a book or waterbottle on the ground to jump over for added challenge)

Get outside and enjoy! No excuses.....

20 Minute Workout

For an effective workout you can burn calories in a couple different ways:

1)      During a workout you burn about 10 calories per minute depending on how hard you are working.

2)      After a workout you have the after burn effect. Certain workouts like interval training increases your metabolism for 24-48 hours afterwards. So even if you are burning less calories then a long endurance run you could equate or surpass the calories due to this component.

3)      When you put on lean muscle mass your metabolism speeds up. For every pound of lean muscle you burn about 25-30 calories per day. Every pound of fat only burns 2-3.

We often times do not always have an hour or more to workout. Here is a 20 minute workout that incorporates all the three above components in a nice little package. All you need is a stability ball and a heavier resistance band. Enjoy!

Workout Guidelines:

You will work for 45 seconds, rest for 30 seconds, then move on to the next exercise. Go through the following exercises 3 times.

Power Ski
Stability Ball Pushup to Tuck
Bent over Band Row
Shuffle and Slice
Stability Ball Plank (elbows on ball)

Descriptions:

Power Ski: Imagine you are on a Nordic track. Start with your right arm and left leg forward and the opposites back behind you. Keeping arms and legs fairly straight continually switch back and forth. Think of power and quickness as you push and pull your arms and legs forward and then backward.

Stability Ball Pushup to Tuck: Find positioning of the stability ball on your legs so that you can do a full ranged push-up. After completing a push-up pull the ball in towards your stomach by bending your knees and lifting your hips for a tuck. Your shoulders will remain over top of your hands. Lower your hips back down with control and repeat.

Bent Over Band Row: Place the band underneath both of your feet. Hinge at your hips so that your torso is flat. Hold onto the band itself with both hands. Start with your arms straight yet have tension on the band. Pull the hands up towards your chest keeping your elbows close to the body. Nothing else will move except the arms as you row. Imagine squeezing my fingers between your shoulder blades.

Shuffle and Slice: Start by standing with feet hip width apart and arms out and up by the shoulders like field goal posts. Take two steps over to the left while bringing your arms in towards the chest with each step. On the last step draw the right knee and elbow towards each other and then repeat over to the right. The movement should be quick and powerful.

Stability Ball Plank: Place your elbows on top and slightly forward on the stability ball (stability ball can be placed up against the wall for more stability) and extend your legs behind you in a full plank. Be sure that there is a straight line from your head all the way to your feet (no butt in the air). Hold the plank or for more challenge alternate lifting a leg with nothing else moving as you do so.