- Some of the moves in this workout are high-impact. Please feel free to modify the workout to make them low-impact if necessary.
- This workout is designed in an ON/OFF format. When you are ON, you want to give the exercise EVERYTHING you've got. When you're OFF, walk around and keep your feet moving.
- The whole workout once through is 9 minutes (4 minutes cardio, 1 minute burpees and 4 minutes strength). Start with a little warm-up (walking/jogging) to get your muscles warm. Challenge yourself and try and go for a second round!
- Be sure to stretch at the end of the workout. Check out some post-workout stretches from Health.com.
What is Tabata you ask? Just like HIIT, Tabata incorporates periods of work with periods of rest. During the period of work, you work at 100% intensity (maintaining proper form of course), then you partially recover during a short rest. The fact that you never "fully" recover is part of what makes this workout so effective. Typically the "work" period is 20 seconds and the "rest" period is only half of that or 10 seconds. This type of exercise was discovered by the Japanese researcher Izumi Tabata, who was known for his work with Olympic speedskaters. Tabata's research showed both aerobic and anaerobic benefits from this type of exercise. For HIIT workouts, you're typically doing high-impact moves that are more "cardio", but for a tabata workout, you can do strength exercises as well as cardio exercises. Due to the high intensity nature of the workout, tabata workouts are typically shorter than a traditional workout. You can use the Tabata protocol with almost any exercise, but lucky for you I put one together for you! The traditional tabata workout is designed to do the same exercise for the whole workout, but what is the fun in that? The first section is four cardio exercises, and the second section is four strength exercises, but don't worry - I squeezed some burpees in there too. Grab your stopwatch (or your favorite interval timer app) and let's go! Notes about this workout: 20 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest for each move, twice (total = 4 minutes) 45 seconds of work, 15 seoncds of rest, one time through (total = 1 minute) 20 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest for each move, twice (total = 4 minutes) Have you ever done a Tabata workout?
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When teaching a class, especially high-energy classes like my Body Blitz class, I often demonstrate low-impact options for people who may have injuries or are just beginning a workout program. While most exercises can be modified to be low impact, I recently got a request for a whole low impact workout from my friend Lauren's mom. So today, I bring you FitYaf's Fitness Friday LOW IMPACT HIIT Workout. Low impact exercise is a type of exercise where the amount of stress placed upon the joints of your knees, hips and ankles is relatively minimal. Often times this translates to never having more that one foot off the ground at a time. However, it can also refer to something like swimming, which is a great example of low impact exercise that is often chosen by athletes who have suffered a stress fracture. The athlete is still able to participate in cardiovascular exercise, without putting a large amount of weight on the injured body part. Last week I posted a high-intensity interval training or HIIT workout, and explained the benefits of combining high intensity intervals with short periods of rest for the benefit of excess post-exercise oxygen consumption. The good news? Low-impact exercises can be part of a great HIIT workout too - and that's what I have for you today! This workout plan was designed to help you push yourself to your max without doing any jumps. You don’t need equipment or a lot of space. Low Impact Exercises *from Shape.com Begin by walking or doing the elliptical for 5 minutes. Then, go through the exercises 1-8, doing each one for 50 seconds, as fast as you can while maintaining proper form, and resting for 10 seconds before continuing on to the next move. For your rest, grab a drink if you need to or march in place (just don't sit down). The 5th exercise (lunges) is a 2-for-1, since you'll have to do it once on each side! Once you're finished the 8th exercise, repeat 1-8 again two more times. Including a stretch at the end, this whole workout should take about 35 minutes. 1. Squat2. Reach-through
3. No-jump burpee
4. Plank extension5. Lunge (once through on each side)
6. No-jump tuck
7. Skaters
8. Plank extension (repeat #4) Do you prefer low-impact workouts?
In early May, I decided to try Sean T’s Insanity 60 Day Program. Let me tell you, the program is aptly named. The only way I could describe the workouts were by using the word, “Insane.” However, I survived the 60 days and can now be officially be called “Insane” (though I’ve been called that unofficially for various other reasons long before). What were your goals before starting the program? I chose Insanity to get ready for summer and to challenge myself physically. Also, I was in one of those exercise ruts where I needed a change of routine. I learned that before officially starting the Insanity workout plan, Insanity has you complete a fit test and record your results. This test will be repeated 4 more times throughout the 60 day program. You are given a minute to complete as many reps of various cardio and strength moves as you possibly can. I recall being overconfident and considering skipping the fit test and diving in. I’m happy I took the fit test because it gave me quite the reality check. My goal then became to get through the fit test without slowing down or stopping during the minute intervals. Also, the competitor in my wanted to have more reps logged than Sean T’s "teacher’s pets" that were featured on the DVD. How did you enjoy the workouts? The workouts and I had a love-hate relationship, which for me is what I need and crave. I loved feeling accomplished when I completed the challenging workouts. Then I despised how out of shape they initially made me feel. Though Sean T reminded you to go at your own pace, I felt the need to keep up with him, which was not possible for me for some exercises. The workouts would repeat throughout the weeks and the exercises that I dreaded did become easier to complete as I became conditioned to the program and what it demanded from your body. The workouts all begin with a 10 minute cardio warm-up and are followed by a 7 minute stretch before starting the circuits. In the beginning of my Insanity journey the stretching segment felt too long for me as I just wanted to keep my heart rate up and power through the program. As the DVDs got progressively harder, I looked forward to those long stretches. I really enjoyed Sean T’s different ways to work your abs. Without any crunches, he gets the job done. All in all, I enjoyed the workouts. What was the most challenging part? The most challenging part of Insanity for me personally was the push-up component and the power jumps. The push-up sets were part of plank circuits, so your arms are already screaming before you get to the push-ups. Sean T’s push-up speed was also much faster than mine so I was really pushing myself to get faster. Additionally, the power jumps were tiring but also difficult for me because I had to really focus on my form. I tend to have lower back issues and had to really remember to tighten my core and land gently.
Have you ever tried the Insanity workout program?
While I fully recommend the entire Insanity program, I've put together an "Insane" workout for you to try at home - no equipment necessary! Just turn up your music, set your interval timer & GO! Notes about this workout:
Do each exercise for 30 seconds, then without stopping, move on to the next exercise. This will take 2 minutes to do all 4 exercises in each set. When you've completed one set, take a 30 second break and repeat the same set so that you do each set a total of three times. When you've completed a set 3 times, move onto the next set. This whole workout should take about 30 minutes start to finish, including stretching at the end.
Stretch This workout has a lot of plyometrics that is going to work your legs! Be sure to give them a good stretch when you're done, making sure to target your quads, hamstrings, calves, glutes and IT band. Don't forget your upper body too! What did you think? Can you feel the afterburn? P90x 3 (coming soon)
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Sometimes it is the smallest moments in life that have the largest impacts. My fitness adventure began with one such moment… the small but powerful act of remembering a name. I was standing outside the gymnasium at the Christian Street YMCA waiting to take my second Les Mills Bodypump class. The instructor named Matt (Matt and I are now close friends) came walking up and said “Hey Alex. Great to see you back.” It was the smallest thing, but Matt remembering my name from the first class I took made the biggest deal to me. I realized in that small moment that a group exercise class could be much more than strangers working out around each other.
If you would like to know how you could begin creating life changing experiences for people, check out the following tips:
Are you a group exercise participant thinking about making the leap from participant to instructor? If you have any questions for Alex - feel free to email him!
Notes about this workout:
Warmup Do each for for one minute, as fast as you can:
Resistance Training, SET 1
Cardio, SET 1
Resistance Training, SET 2
Cardio, SET 2
Challenge Burpee pushup challenge - 8 push-up burpees, increasing the number of push-ups with every rep Core
Stretch What did you think of the workout? I love great workouts that you can do with no equipment - running outside and body-weight exercises are great examples. No matter where you are, you can do these workouts, leaving you with very few excuses for not working out. I was able to do some outside running and hotel-room exercises while I was in Austria and Germany for two weeks, but by the time I got back I realized I REALLY missed working out with other people. As you know, I'm a group-fitness fanatic, but sometimes even being in the gym with other people is enough interaction to motivate me to work harder and get STRONGER! For this reason, I bring you today's 'Gym Rat workout' for Fitness Friday! If you have this equipment in your basement, well then - you beat the system... Otherwise, get to the gym and SWEAT! Notes about this workout:
Repeat the cardio section followed by the resistance section:
How did you like this workout? How many rounds did you do?
Three months ago I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, and even though I lost most of my pregnancy weight, I still have the dreaded “10 lbs” to lose. I will be honest and say I don't go to the gym enough, but I get bored with just using the treadmill or elliptical. So when Groupon had an offer for 10 fitness classes at a local dance studio, I bought it. Why not try Zumba? I had never taken a Zumba class before, but it sounded like fun, and I like to dance, so I thought I'd give it a go. Fast forward to last Thursday. I called the dance studio beforehand to find out what I needed to bring. “A lot of water and towel. You will sweat!” (she didn't lie!). I was also told that the particular class I wanted to come to was Zumba Sentao or, as it was described to me, Zumba with chairs. I was intrigued. Walking into the class I was nervous, but the instructor obviously noticed she had a few newcomers and explained Zumba Sentao. It incorporates some Zumba dance moves and with traditional fitness moves, like squats, lunges, crunches, planks, and chair-dips. She said for a first time Zumba student (that's me!) it was a good introduction to Zumba. Okay, here we go! The music pumped loudly as she got everyone on their feet, standing in front of a chair. We started with basic dance moves, that even I, with no formal dance training, could follow. Then we moved into chair-dips. My triceps were feeling the burn! A little more dancing and then working on our core. Then some more dancing that incorporated squats and lunges. And let's not forget about the chair planks! The hour moved quickly, proving to me that even know I was working hard, I was having fun too. The overall atmosphere was relaxed and I could tell that all the women were enjoying themselves, even though they were complaining about the twenty pushups the instructor made us do at the end of clas. All in all, I really enjoyed the class and will be going back again. I agree with the instructor that it was a good introduction to Zumba. None of the dance moves were complicated, so even the most novice dancer could follow right along. I recommend Zumba Sentao to anyone who hates “working out”. It never felt like a typical workout and the combination of cardio and strength training kept it interesting. I feel like I accomplished a lot within the hour! Have you ever tried Zumba Sentao?
Well, the training was this past Monday, and the Synrgy360 is my new best friend! It was a quick training (2 hours) led by a representative from Life Fitness, so I'm definitely not ready to lead a class tomorrow, but she provided the resources we need to get started! Not only does the Synrgy have your typical cable pulls, pull up bar and medicine balls, but it also has a TRX suspension trainer, a TRX Rip trainer, a full set of kettlebells, monkey bars, rock climbing grips, battle ropes - this list just doesn't stop! The biggest take-home message for me was to vary your exercises to work all "planes of motion" when training for functional movement, posture and muscle balance. The Life Fitness trainer pointed out that most people tend to stay in the sagittal plane while exercising (up/down movements) - squats, pushups, bicep curls, etc. The Synrgy360 is a great tool to do exercises in those other planes as well! Another great take-home message was the importance of asymmetrical training, which takes the emphasis off of bilateral training (working both sides of the body together). If you're doing weighted squats with a barbell on your back, both legs are working together to push the weight back up to standing. As a result, a dominant side of the body can (and will) do more than its share of the work. Moving from a barbell to a dumbbell shifts the focus so that each muscle has to work on its own, resulting in unilateral training. When you asymmetrically load the body, your weight is now off-balance, and you'll have to engage your muscles (typically your core muscles) to correct for that. Asymmetric Training on the Synrgy360
But, that was just the beginning of the amazingness that is the Synrgy360. There is so much you can do on this piece of equipment, I'm sure we only skimmed the surface in these two hours. Have you ever used a Synrgy360? What's your favorite exercise to do on it? |
Jillian [FitYaf]fitness enthusiast. Archives
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To my readers, please note this website and blog is for educational and informational purposes only. For medical advice, dietary restrictions, and/or medical diagnosis, and before beginning any diet and/or exercise program, please consult a doctor or healthcare professional.
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