Blog Archives
Because You Can Never Know Too Much
The moment you think you know everything, you are in trouble.
Because you can never know everything and the second you stop learning, you will be left behind.
That is why I’m constantly looking for things to enhance my training and workout routines. I always want to be learning and growing to make my workouts better and more efficient.
I mean…Why wouldn’t you want to be better?
Why wouldn’t you want to be more efficient or find something that works and makes your life even easier?
I would!
Here are some great exercises and tips to help you continue learning and growing this week!
1. Here are 10 Suspension Trainer Exercises to work your entire body. These exercises are all core focused and many of them will strengthen your backside. So if you are having neck, shoulder, back or hip problems, you need to try these suspension trainer moves.
2.I think one of the hardest areas of our body to work when we don’t really have any equipment is our back. Here are 5 Equipment-Free Bodyweight Back Exercises. All of these are must-do moves if you sit at a desk all day and want to remain injury free!
3. The Deadlift is one of my favorite moves because it works your entire posterior chain, which, let’s face it, we all need to work because we sit way too much during the day. And the thing I love about deadlifts is there are a ton of variations to work your back and legs in different ways! Check out these deadlift variations.
4. Often when people want to work their core, they turn to crunches. And crunches can be “fun” but really, in general, they are pretty useless. This 30-Minute Core Workout, works the big muscles of your core and gets your heart beating to really burn some calories and create a strong core. It includes some of our favorite moves like the Turkish Get Up, Crawl with Pull Through and Sidewinders.
5. If you’ve upped your mileage this summer or are training for a race, you need to make sure to take care of your body so you don’t get injured. These dynamic stretches for runners will help improve your mobility so that you stay injury free. These are quick and easy to do right before your run!
6. Can you tell I’ve been very focused on upper back, shoulder and neck pain recently!?! Maybe because it is such a common problem since too many people sit hunched over a computer all day and then try to go workout without doing anything to first improve their posture (aka stretch and activate). Here are 5 great foam rolling moves you should be doing if you have a desk job.
7. And finally here are 25 Core Training Exercises. They are broken down by equipment so that you have bodyweight, slider, sandbag, and resistance band exercises.
What have you researched and learned recently to make you better? How are you constantly changing and growing?
Home Cardio Workout
I’ve said before I hate cardio…But that really isn’t completely true.
I just hate long, slow cardio. SO BORING.
And it also kind of makes me mad that everyone thinks that they either need to go for a jog or hop on a piece of cardio equipment to get their cardio in.
Because you don’t.
You can easily do a super tough and fat burning cardio workout at home with very little space!
For example you can do the towel taz….
The other day I actually did one a great at home cardio workout although I didn’t do the towel taz.
I didn’t feel like going in to the gym, but I wanted to workout. I also didn’t feel like doing a long workout since I had a lot to do.
AND on top of those things, I didn’t have a lot of space to work with and had to do it outside the kitchen since Ryan was holed up in the office doing work.
And this is what I did:
Home Cardio Workout
Stretch and roll out all tight spots (hips, calves, quads, upper back, lats were my targets)
CIRCUIT #1:
3-5 rounds:
20 seconds each exercise
20 seconds rest between rounds (beginners may need more rest take up to 1 minute between rounds)
Burpees
Sit Thrus
Super Crunch
super crunch
2-3 minutes rest between circuits
CIRCUIT #2:
3-5 rounds:
20 seconds each exercise
20 seconds rest between rounds
Skater Hops
Mt. Climbers (can use a towel or sliders if you have them)
Cherry Bombs
2-3 minutes rest between circuits
CIRCUIT #3:
3-5 rounds:
20 seconds each exercise
20 seconds rest between rounds
Split Squat Jumps
Plank Hip Dips
Circle Crawls
split squat jumps
2-3 minutes rest between circuits
Stretch and roll out anything that is tight when done.
Now this is cardio I like.
What’s your favorite home cardio workout?
Sandbag Workout
So Sarah over at Shh…Fit Happens wrote a post about working out with sandbags the other day and it got me to thinking about all the exercises that I use sandbags for.
Sandbags are a great way to add weight to any move because the weight is AWKWARD. They aren’t like barbells and dumbbells. They aren’t easy to grip and the weight can shift from side to side as you lift it. They are super functional and force your core to really engage to stabilize.
They are a great way to add variety to the same basic moves that you are already doing. Like I mentioned in my post Sunday…Mix up your resistance to make moves more challenging.
So below is a great Sandbag Workout:
WARM UP
Dynamic stretches and locomotion to get the entire body warm. Don’t forget to foam roll any tight areas!
STRENGTH:
3-5 rounds of each superset. Complete all rounds of each superset before moving on to the next one.
Reps: 5 for maximal strength (advanced lifters), 8-12 for hypertrophy (advanced and intermediate), 15-20 strength endurance (beginners, recovery week or just working on strength endurance)
1.
Squat (Do not round forward with the front loaded weight!)
Overhead Press (Do not arch your low back)
2.
Lunge with Rotation (Do not let the sandbag go back too far on each side or it will catch and do not ROUND forward. Start on one side step the back foot forward and swing the bag to the other side as you lunge back.)
Row (Nice flat back. Knees soft.)
3.
Sandbag Get Up (Will want to do 1-5 reps per side for everyone. The Get Up is doing all the steps to stand up and then following all the same steps to go back down.)
Plank with Pull Thrus (Keep hips from rotating or going up or down)
COOL DOWN
Stretch and foam roll all tight areas!
Bonus Moves:
Single Leg Deadlift (Keep the standing leg soft and your back flat)
Goodmorning (Keep a flat back)
Crawling with Sandbag Pull (Sit back into your heels and perform a hip hinge to drive the sandbag forward. Don’t just pull with your arm.)
I also want to note that I’ve only demonstrated one variation of these moves. Squats can be done with the sandbag held the long ways up and down (Bear Hug) or even on one shoulder. Loading on one shoulder forces the core to engage even more (which as I mentioned on Sunday, asymmetrical loading is a great way to keep your workouts challenging!).
Deadlifts can also be done in a “suitcase” style where you hold it on one side. This is a great way to progress the single leg move (again ASYMMETRICAL LOADING!).
Note: Sorry for the pictures. I do not “glow” or “glitter” when I workout….I SWEAT!
BONUS WORKOUT:
Man Bicep 