bodyweight, Exercise Info

New Body Weight Circuits and Changing Up Workouts!

Posted on by Naomi
First I want to CONGRATULATE ERICA and her HUBBY JOSH on the new addition to their family!!! I am so very happy for the two of you!

Hey Friends! happy Wednesday. For some reason this week is flying by; probably because I am just really looking forward to the weekend, for no particular reason other than that its the weekend. Life has been good, busy but good! I am going through some things right now that are keeping me super busy (in a good way!) and I am the type of person who would always rather be busy than sit around being bored.

I am so happy you all enjoyed the Glute Workout It really is a great workout, and I love pairing heavy exercises with lighter, body weight, plyo based moves. For instance one of my favorite supersets that is KILLER
1. Smith Machine Split Squats and Jump Lunges
2. Inverted leg press and Jump squats (touch the ground on the bottom)
3. Walking Lunges and Staddle jumps on riser (I go much faster than the lady does in the video)
Oh and you checked out my trip to Trader Joes? You guys, that coffee/sugar/cocoa grinder is seriously one of the best things ever invented.
You know what I’m talking about. This stuff. I acutally asked the TJ’s staff what they would recommend putting it on and both of the guys who I spoke to said its delicious on buttered toast. I may have to try this although I don’t really like butter that much; or not really ‘don’t like’ it but I just never eat butter. What I DO like this stuff on is:
-Oatmeal when its hot so it melts,
-Coffee,
-Wraps or P28 Bread with a schmear of almond butter
-Rice cakes with coconut oil
Oh Hey. Coffee picture because my blog lately is not complete without it. Neither are posts without instagram pictures, which I am obsessed with. I love this feature and it’s acutally making me very aware and in tune with photography which I really enjoy!
So in regards to my workouts this week, I have certainly needed some major body TLC. Towards the end of the week last week, I hit my workouts with intensity, and a bit more than usual. I don’t know if it was that I had a lot of extra energy, or was just feeling extremely motivated, but my body caught up to me and definately gave me some signs that it needed a break. I also went to the CSF studios on Sunday for a killer plyo workout (and posing! because show is about 8 weeks away!) which was just insane as usual. It consists of number of different fast paced body weight exercises all paired with a whole lot of sprinting! So I have been taking it easy these past few days.
I took a Bikram Yoga class yesterday in the morning and just some light walking in the afternoon. The Class was great, but taking hot yoga when it is already hot outside makes for quite a sweaty experience! I ended up at Prana Yoga which is a studio nearby that I LOVE. Do you remember my raw food dining experience at the Prana Cafe? Well the restaurant is right next to the studio!
Well, back to the plyo workouts that I love. These workouts such as the ones I go to at the CSF studios and other ones that I take part in are great and the best thing about them is that YOU can do them anywhere! Seriously! All you need is open space. If you have 12 minutes in your day you have time for an awesome High Intensity Tabata Workout!
 WARM UP FIRST WITH THESE 4 MOVES-Repeat 3x through
  • 50 jumping jacks
  • 30 seconds running in place
  • 30 seconds butt kickers
  • 30 seconds high knees
Circuit 1-Repeat 3x
  • Rapid squats with pulse at bottom (20)
  • Mountain climbers (15 each side)
  • V-up Crunches (20)
  • Push Ups (10-15)
Circuit 2-Repeat 3x
  • High Plank shoulder taps (15 each side)
  • Burpees (10)
  • Side plank dips (12 each side)
  • Box Hop over squat (can use books or anything you have at home!) (10 each side)
Circuit 3-Repeat 3x
Ways to change it up in the gym!
Stepmill: Instead of just walking on the stepmill at a normal pace, 1 stair at a time, try slowing down the speed a bit and skipping a step in between.  Skipping steps will really add to the caloric burn and also hit your booty a bit more. After you have mastered the double step, try turning to the left and climbing the stairs with your toes pointing to the left (hold onto the railings if you are a beginner!)
Treadmill: Instead of running at a boring pace…simple moves will make your treadmill workout 10 times more effective and beat boredom. Try my Treadmill “Mix it up Routine” Or this Treadmill HIIT Routine 
Some other ways to change it up!
  • Incline: 12-15, speed at 3.0-3.7…walk 1 min, bring it down to 1.0 and lunge for 1 min. Complete for a total of 20 minutes
  •  Incline: 5, speed at 7.0-8.0…run 1 min, change incline to 9 and speed to 2.0, side shuffle to the left 1 min, switch sides, shuffle to the right 1 min. Repeat (the run, side shuffle left, side shuffle right) for a total of 21 minutes. Cool down by walking for 5 minutes
  • Incline: 15, speed at 3.5..walk for 5 minutes, jump off and perform 10 jump squats, 10 mountain climbers, 10 jump lunges, get back on and repeat 4 rounds.
Add Cardio bursts into your weight training: If you are short on time this is a great way to get in some cardio while weight training, not to mention keeping your body a fat burning machine but keeping the heart rate elevated.
HOW TO?
  • Perform a set of given exercises and instead of standing and resting for 1 min, hop on a piece of cardio and bust out 2 min high intense work. (Perform a set of triceps push downs, hit the stairmaster for 2 min HIIT work, then back to your next set)
  • Right near the weight training equipment peform a cardio circuit such as 30 sec mountain climbers, 30 sec bupees, 30 sec jumping jacks, 30 second floor jacks. (Perform  your triceps push downs, then go right into that cardio burst circuit, then back for your next set of triceps push  ups)
Add Time to your Workout: Try just adding a few more minutes onto your cardio. Instead of 30 minutes, why not 35? A simple 5 minutes can really push yourself out of your comfort zone!
Multitask: Incorporate strength training movements that use multiple muscles at the same time. Some of my favorites include:
  • Step up with shoulder press at the top
  • Squat with bicep curl and shoulder press
  • Crunch with dumbbells and shoulder press at the top
  • Standing rope back row while standing in a low squat position (this one burns!)
  • Wall sit while holding a 15lb dumbbell overhead
Change the angle of the bench you are working with: Simple changes in the gym like changing the bench angle can really shock the muscle especially if your body is not used to it!
  • Instead of standing front raises, try decline front raises (set bench at 45 degree angle, face down, kneeling on the bench)
  • Instead of dumbbell chest presses, try decline dumbbell chest presses. The decline presses may seem awkward at first but they are a great shock to the chest muscles and involve more integration of the backs of the upper arms and the lower pectorals
Same body part: Good for burning out one body part. For example, you could do a triceps push down and immediately follow it a set of lying triceps french press
Try Supersets! If you aren’t using supersets and circuits in your workouts,  you must try this method to make your workout effective and efficient. You can superset in a few different ways.
  • Different body parts: This is great for more of a circuit training and cardio effect. If your goal is fat loss it’s a great idea to superset a lower body and upper body exercise such as Step ups and 1 arm DB back rows. This will really challenge your body mind and cardiovascular system! You can also superset different lower or upper body parts.
Some of my favorites
  • Hamstring Curl Superset w/ quad extension
  • Bicep cable curls supsert w/ triceps pushdown
  • Walking lunges supserset with Jump squats
  • Wide grip pull up superset with cable flys
Add isometric moves: Try adding these after a set or incorporating them into your set

  • Wallsit
  • Low squat hold (sit in your heels!)
  •  High plank hold
  • Hold weight plate at shoulder level (isometric front raise)
  • Hold weight plate above head
  •  Hold weights in a military press position (isometric shoulder press)
  • Reverse plank hold. (hips face up, knees over toes form 90 degree angle)
  • Bridge hold. (back flat on mat, hips up in bridge position and hold)
ENJOY AND HAPPY WEDNESDAY!
Questions:
What is your favorite way to “change it up” when it comes to your workouts?
Favorite healthy new product you have discovered?





Naomi
Naomi