Snowed in? Turn up the heat with this leg-burning routine!

It's a Snow Day is middle GA, and I'm spending it lounging on the couch with my furry foot-warmers (aka puppies).  Don't worry, I hit play on two P90X3 workouts earlier today, so I earned this laziness with sweat.  Speaking of P90X3 - I'm less than two weeks in and loving it!  I'm going to do a detailed review of the first month when the time comes.

If you're home from work and wondering what to do with this magical, unexpected free time, I've got an awesome FREE legs routine for you to do.  It comes from the iPad/iPhone magazine Glam Today - which is as awesome free app that publishes six issues a year.  Every issue comes with multiple workout routines, tips for getting the most out of life and profiles of some very fit and awesome women.  The Jan/Feb issue includes a kick-butt routine that will shred your legs while torching major calories.

Below are screenshots from the magazine that break down the workout.  This is designed to be done in a gym, but you can modify a bit to make it home-gym friendly.  You'll need some kind of weight (dumbbells, kettleball, chubby cat), about an hour, and a little space.

Note: You can click on the pictures to make them larger.

This explanation is strange.  Basically, treat this as two separate circuits with a superset at the end.
So, Cardio then [Plie, Lunge, Deadlifts] x 4
Cardio then [Side-to-Side, Leg Press, Crunch] x 4
Cardio then [Plie, Lunge, Deadlifts, Side-to-Side, Leg Press, Crunch] x 1

If you are working out at home, try 10 minutes of jogging-in-place, jumping jacks, and some sweet dance moves.

Heavy weight here - 20 lb or two medical textbooks

You can do less weight on this one.
Double bonus if you add a torso twist to the side of the front leg to engage your abs.

Form, Form, Form!  Don't round your back.
Use enough weight - you should feel this.

High-knees, butt-kicks, fast-feet or chase your dog up and down the hallway.

To engage your adductors, focus on squeezing your legs together as you stand.

At-Home Modification - Hip lifts/Bridge:
Lay on your back, legs bent and feet on the floor by your butt.  Lift your hips high into the air.
Bonus points for doing one leg at a time with the other extended up.

Bonus if you can do this with legs extended at 45 degrees or doing the traditional bicycle.

Turn up the tunes and dance! 

Now ditch the cardio and just go through all the moves for one last super-mega-giant-gut-busting set.
Don't neglect a cool down stretch - or you'll regret it tomorrow.

This routine kills.  While not unique or innovative, these are some of the most effective moves for lower body toning - that's why you see them in so many workouts.  As you get stronger, try adding elements of instability (one-leg balancing deadlifts, reverse lunges with weight in just one hand, crunches on a exercise ball).  I didn't wear my heart rate monitor, but I imagine this'll torch around 500 calories for an hour of work, depending on how hard you push the cardio.

If you don't have an hour to spare, here's another workout from Glam Today's Jan/Feb issue:

If you have an iDevice, I highly suggest this app.  Get it here.

Stay warm - Stay safe!

bgt

NTHS 21 Day Challenge : Day 2

Happy TWOsday!
(get it...because Day 2?)

So excited to be one day down!  And what better way to celebrate the end of day 1 than with that delicious Mexi-Meatloaf.  The portions were HUGE and we still have plenty for lunch today (which I am definitely looking forward to).

Well, today started much like yesterday, with a yummy Buffalo Chicken Egg Muffin (that I topped with avocado and some extra Frank's) and a cuppa tea.  Yesterday I discovered that unsweetened coffee with whole milk is surprisingly palatable, color me impressed :)

Tuesday means Strength Training, and the hubby and I are headed to the gym for real weights BUT I didn't want to leave you hangin' so here's a No Equipment Leg Toning Routine courtesy of Self Mag.

You're going to do 3 sets of each move or go straight through the circuit 3 times.



1. Rear Reshaper: start on all fours, knees under hips, hands slightly in front of shoulders. Lift right knee to side at hip level; trace 12 large circles clockwise (as shown), then 12 the other way. Switch legs; repeat.

2. Butt Lifter: Lie face-up, knees bent, feet flat. Extend right leg toward ceiling, toes pointed. Squeeze glutes and lift hips to form a straight diagonal from left knee to shoulders (as shown). Raise hips higher, then lower to floor for 1 rep. Do 15 reps. Switch legs; repeat.

3. Calf Carver: Raise right knee to hip level, toes pointed, hands behind head. Contract abs as you lift left heel as high as you can off floor, balancing on ball of foot (as shown). Hold for 3 seconds, then lower heel for 1 rep. Do 15 reps. Switch legs; repeat.

4. Twisting Toner: Step right leg into a lunge, arms out to sides, rotating upper body to right until arms align with right thigh (as shown). Rotate to center, stepping right leg back to meet left. Repeat on opposite side for 1 rep. Do 12 reps.

5. Ass Kicker: Start on all fours, knees under hips, hands slightly in front of shoulders. Lift and extend right leg as high as you can, toes pointed (as shown). Keeping leg straight, cross right leg over left leg and tap toes to floor, then swing right leg up as high as you can and across to right, again tapping toes, for 1 rep. Do 15 reps. Switch legs; repeat.

6. Leaping Firmer: Stand with feet together, hands clasped in front of chest. Step left leg into a forward lunge. Push off floor immediately, jumping as high as you can (as shown). Land in a lunge with right leg forward for 1 rep. Do 15 reps as quickly as possible.

Good luck with the rest of your day and stay awesome!

bgt

Crossroads - Crossfit on the fly! Free and Convenient WODs!

 One fact that is most likely universally true for everyone is that life can get crazy, sometimes unpredictable, and even occasionally uncontrollable. So how do you make sure you get your crossfit WOD in when traveling, away from home, or just too busy to make it to your home box (crossfit term for gym). There are tons of options and online resources to help ensure that you get that fitness fix for the day. Some of these are also great alternatives if affording the expensive box membership is an issue. In this post I'll just talk about one of these great resources, but never fear there's more where this comes from and will continue to share soon.

            In this last year, life for me has become significantly more insane and I have often found myself away from my home box, out of state with limited free time, and out in the middle of a third world country. This past summer I went on a medical mission trip to Cambodia for three weeks and of course one of the first things to come to my mind was….”Are there crossfit boxes in Cambodia?” For those of you racking your brain over this question, the answer is NO, there are definitely no crossfit gyms in Cambodia, not where we were anyways, which was out in makeshift clinics in churches in the middle of rice patties. Panic ensued….three weeks of no crossfit, no sticking to my paleo diet, and eating rice and French baguettes with every meal. Just thinking about the deconditioning, losing all the strength I had built back up after my back injury, and of course the potential weight gain were all subjects contributing to my angst. Luckily I found the solution I was looking for…The Traveling WOD! This site is great because it has TONS of workouts posted that you can pick and choose from, making it easy to get a quick workout in when you happen find yourself somewhere with no or limited workout equipment, like at your home/apartment, at a hotel, or at a bungalow in the middle of Kampot, Cambodia. They post daily WODs if this is something that you want to follow long-term at home or for extended travel, but personally I just used their travel WOD library so that I could make my workout fit my environment each day. Of course having the most amazing boyfriend who knew and understood my concern for going three weeks with not being able to adhere to my current workout and diet regimen surprised me with my very own workout care package for my trip, which only increased my workout options even more.

            

I would highly recommend slowly (or all at once) investing in at least some of these items just because of the variety it could add to your WODs and strength building movements that can apply to your Oly (Olympic) lifts and gymnastic skills when you are able to make it to a box. Some ideas include: an abmat for sit-ups and handstand pushups, rings and straps for ring dips, ring pull ups/ring rows, ring pushups, muscle-up progressions, muscle-ups themselves, and toes to rings, a jump rope for a good cardio alternative to running, and of course resistance bands and a roller for mobility and recovery. There are obviously other accessories that could be useful for traveling by road, but all of the things I named were able to fit in my gym bag and were not too cumbersome to take with me to the other side of the planet. Where there’s a will, there’s a way so check out this link and make fitness and crossfit work for you and whatever life throws your way!   

http://www.thetravelingwod.com/p/traveling-wods.html

Rings hanging from the second story railing at the Natural Bungalows, our home for the 2 1/2 weeks we stayed in Kampot, Cambodia....they also look great hanging from rafters!  The resistance band can be used to assist in ring dips until you build enough strength to do multiple ring dips in a row.

Handstand pushups with an abmat at the resort we visited one weekend in Kep, Cambodia. Definitely had to rearrange the furniture to get the space we needed, but you do what you gotta do!

Don't forget that you can use nature, which is always free, to get a good workout. While in Kep we hiked several miles of mountainous terrain to see the temples that had been built at the top. Very awesome and obviously lots of hard work and sweat went into to this adventure. 

On Rabbit Island in Kep, Cambodia getting ready to kayak in the Gulf of Thailand. Kayaking is an awesome core and upper body workout as much as it is cardio and renting kayaks are usually fairly inexpensive.

Until next time, keep calm and crossfit! hnh

Post-Call Stretch and Strength

Mondays...

Or even worse, Post-Call Mondays...

15 hours at the hospital yesterday - about 70% of that time was spent rounding on patients and the other 30% was spent hunched over a laptop, writing a reflective essay in one of the tiny call rooms.  Overall, a stupendously horrible day for my spine.

Seriously, I intended on writing a post on Do Anywhere, No Sweat moves, but there just wasn't a spare second in the day.  Reality: we all have days that go too long to even think about exercise.  What matters is how well you take care of yourself every other day of the week.

My solution for a spine compressed by a day on the wards?  A nice lower back stretch before bed and some post-call weight room work!

I'll include the stretching video and my weights routine below, but I guess my primary message is one of balance.  Long days deserve a reward at the end - and stretching fatigued muscles is a great way to thank your body for carrying you through a tough day.  Lifting weights is a great outlet for stress and when you include moves that lengthen your spine it can be a great way to decompress (literally).

Evening Stretch (Free from Fitness Blender):



Gym Routine: (I'll come back and edit with corresponding moves you can do at home)
- 10 minute cardio warm-up
- Combine the moves below into pairs and alternate sets before moving on to the next pair of moves.
- Move as quickly as possible to each new exercise, resting when needed
- Use enough weight to keep it challenging.
1a) Bent Over Rows - 10 Reps x 3 Sets       1b) One Legged Squat - 10 Reps each leg x 3 Sets

                   

2a) Assisted Pull-Up - 10 Reps x 3 Sets         2b) Assisted Triceps Dip - 10 Reps x 3 Sets

3a) Weighted Lunge - 12 Reps each Leg x 3 Sets            3b) Single-Leg Dead Lift

                                 

4a) Hanging Abs - 3 sets of front and oblique tuck-ins to failure   4b) Back Extension - 3 Sets to failure

                   

You really want to do a cool down and stretch after a routine like this - otherwise you'll be tight and miserable the next day.  The whole shebang took me an hour - only because my cool-down was 20 minutes on the stationary bike.

I'll be back later this week with my first Fitness Program Review - I'll highlight my experience with Insanity and share advice for including some less-intimidating plyometric HIIT into your fitness routine.

Sweat on,
bgt