Work It Wednesday: Workouts with Autumn Calabrese

Autumn Calabrese is my go to trainer on the 21 Day Fix! So since it is "Work It Wednesday", I figured that she could be your go to trainer too! 

Here are a few of my favorites...

Work It Wednesday: My Favorite Push-Up Variations

Push-ups are amazing to help build upper body strength. And the best part is that you don't need any extra equipment to "drop & give me 20". But the repetition of traditional push-ups can get boring, especially for your muscles, which is why variations are so important. 

Here are some of my favorite variations. There are two that technically require some equipment (an exercise ball & yoga blocks), but I usually use the couch & a few phonebooks instead (I knew those would come in handy if I saved them). 

Tricep (a.k.a. Military Style) Push-Ups - Place your hands right below your shoulders & your elbows pointed back. 

Elevated Push-Ups - Place your feet on an exercise ball, couch or some other object, making sure to keep your back straight. 

Stacked Push-Ups - Place one foot on top of the other for an added core workout. 

Canyon Push-Ups - Place your hands on yoga blocks (or phonebooks like I do), for a deeper push-up. 

Spiderman Push-Ups - As you go down, lift one knee & bring it to your elbow. Extend your leg back to a traditional push-up position on your way back up. Alternate legs on each repetition. 

 
 

Work It Wednesday: Chalene Johnson's "Off The Wall" Workout

I'm always looking for new, fun ways to workout. Mostly because if I get bored with the workout, I just won't do it. (Excuses, I know. Ugh!) Of course it also helps if it's super short, that way I can do it multiple times a day whenever I have time. Well, thanks to a friend, I found one that matches all of the criteria. And actually, along with a few changes to my diet, I've seen more results doing this than any other workout I've tried recently. 

And it's all thanks to this lady...

Photo credit: A Real Change

If you don't already know this face, it's Chalene Johnson. You know, creator of Turbo Jam, TurboFire, Chalean Extreme & PiYo. 

But it's this workout that is "off the wall". Literally. 

Work It Wednesday: HIIT Workout Roundup

A HIIT workout, also known as High Intensity Interval Training, is becoming one of my favorite workouts. Actually, I did this kind of workout all the time without actually knowing it. I would always do a bout of crunches, squats, & push ups to the point of-really feeling it (oh my burning muscles!). So for a bit of "relief" in the middle of my workout, I'd throw in some yoga, planking & wall sits. Just something to give my body a bit of a break before I went back at it. So it's the bouts of short, high intensity intervals, combined with low intensity bouts that make it a HIIT workout. Which in turn is actually a better calorie burn & a lengthier time of having your metabolism elevated. 

So I figured that if I was more or less doing a HIIT workout, I might as well actually follow a few with more of a variety of exercises. 

Here's a roundup of some of my favorite HIIT workouts! 

Photo credit: Running On Real Food

Photo credit: Food, Fitness & Family Blog

Photo credit: Fitting It All In

Photo credit: Sunshine & The Bear

Photo credit: Gettin' My Healthy On

Photo credit: Treadmill Runway

Photo credit: 9 Kid Fitness

Photo credit: Foodies Find Fitness

Photo credit: Be Inspired Fitness

repeated bouts of short, high-intensity exercise intervals mixed with lower-intensity bouts

Read more : http://www.ehow.com/info_12309940_benefits-hiit-training.html

Work It Wednesday: Get to the Barre

When I was a little girl, I dreamed of becoming a ballerina. Actually, I'm pretty sure I was one for Halloween my kindergarten year. But somewhere along the line, that fantasy vanished. Until now. Of course I'll never be on stage doing pirouettes, but I can unleash my inner ballerina at home.

Photo credit: Living Lou

Don't be fooled by a barre workout, it's not all pliés & pirouettes. It's an intense low impact workout that focuses on your "seat", while helping to build your core. Toning your muscles, increasing your flexibility & improving your posture are all just the icing on the cake so to speak. 

I happened to find quite a few barre workouts on FitSugar (PopSugar's fitness site). A good one on Shape (this was actually the workout that I started with). And a killer Cardio Barre: Lower Body Shred workout that I will do - someday. 

Photo credit: BlackBird Ithaca

Work It Wednesday: Perfecting a Forearm Stand

Let me say that gravity is not my BFF. We're more like casual acquaintances now. Which is a step up from not getting along at all. 

Let me explain a bit more. I have been dead set on perfecting my forearm stands lately. And well, let's just say that lots of practice will eventually get me there. Eventually. 

Luckily for me, I came across this YouTube video that was a tremendous help. Now I know exactly how far to place my hands away from the wall (I use the wall for support until gravity becomes my BFF) & how to properly align my hips.

Namaste.

Work It Wednesday: Building Upper Body Strength

It all started with yoga. Seriously, that's about what everything starts with these days. But I never knew that yoga would take so much strength. Of course, I never knew that yoga was anything more than stretching, while blocking out the universe & finding your inner peace. Don't get me wrong, it totally is. But it's also headstands, handstands & all sorts of crazy poses. Most of which I'm absolutely terrible at because I lack in the upper body strength department. 

Ideally, one would probably go to a gym to really build up their upper body. But with 2 different school schedules & a toddler...I don't know who gym is! (Or Jim, whichever.) So I've been looking for the most effective moves that I could actually do at home. And guess what I found, Top 10 Most Effective Upper Body Exercises For Women. 

Paulin Soleyman of The Underground Bootcamp, has compiled the best & highly effective moves for women (which can all be done at home with a set of dumbbells) that LIVESTRONG has to offer. My favorite off the list, the Triceps Push Ups.

What's your favorite upper body strength workout?

Work It Wednesday: 12 Days of Fitness with Tribesports

It's time to get into the Christmas spirit!

Yes, Tribesports has done it again with a 12 Days of Fitness Challenge!

Just like the Christmas song, the 12 days of fitness is an accumulating Challenge in which you start day 1 with 1 exercise and finish on day 12 with a circuit of 12 exercises! 

I don't know about you, but I think I'll start to really feel it on day 4...

Work It Wednesday: Track Your Training with Tribesports & a Full Body Dumbbell Workout

Tribesports has a great new feature that allows you to track your training. You can even save different sessions as "workouts" & then go back to them at any time. I don't know about you, but as someone who never seems to get more than 10 minutes in at a time (if I'm lucky), being able to pick up where I left off or just a few that I really need to work on, is perfect!

And with all the talk of lifting that I've heard lately, here's a Full Body Dumbbell Workout for you that can be done at home or at the gym.

Don't forget to track your progress!

Work It Wednesday: An Upwave Workout

Guess what! I found another amazing website that I have to share with you.

Upwave focuses on 5 pillars:

Eat (food related obviously)
Move (exercise related)

Relax (enough said)

Thrive (feel good being you)

Connect (relationships with people)

So of course I had to check out "Move" to see what it had to offer. Well, how would you like legs like Rhianna's? (Didn't she have an insurance policy on those gams?!)

Yea, I know that sounds a bit far fetched. But it's not. I swear. 

I present to you...Butt-Kicking 10-Minute Lower Body Workout by Ary Nuñez.

OK, so who is Ary Nuñez? 

None other than the feisty personal trainer of Rhianna and owner of Gotham Global Fitness! Now do you see why Upwave is definitely making splashes?

So head on over, register (it's free) & see what else they have to offer. 

(If you need me, I'll be working on my kicks.) 

Work It Wednesday: Nike Training Club App

So I've been looking into a variety of fitness apps lately. Most doing nothing with. They just didn't seem to have what I was looking for. But now I can quit looking since I've downloaded the Nike Training Club app.

 "Sign up to Nike Training Club to get your own personal trainer, anytime, anywhere. Get lean, toned and strong with more than 100 custom-built workouts. Take your goal further with all-new NikeFuel and calorie data."

Start by choosing your goal, I'm going for Get Lean with a little bit of Get Focused. Then choose your level, I'm sticking to Beginner until I get a good feel for it all. Last, choose a workout. I'm a fan of Sweat & Shape, which is why I have it under my saved workouts. This 30 minute  workout requires no equipment (each workout tells you if any is needed) & I get 434 NikeFuel (yea, still figuring all of that out).

There's also 15 minute bonus workouts from amazing female athletes to download.

Not to mention even more workouts to unlock through badges. I'm on the lookout for any by Rihanna’s personal trainer Ary Nuñez! 

 "Detailed instructions and audio support are on hand to help you perfect each of Nike Training Club’s dynamic drills. Choose a workout that fits your goal. Set it to your music, share your progress, earn your rewards. And just see the results."

You can find the Nike Training Club app on iTunes & in the Google PlayStore.

Tribesports: Rugged Maniac Workout

Ever wonder if you've got what it takes to complete one of the many obstacle mud runs that seem to be popping up everywhere this time of year? You know the ones I'm talking about; Warrior Dash, Tough Mudder, Spartan Race & Rugged Maniac to name a few.

Well just in case you've been seriously debating on trying one out (or you need a quick refresher for one coming up soon), I've got something to share with you.

Head on over to Tribesports & take the challenge for the Rugged Maniac Obstacle Strength Workout. Successfully "take" this challenge & be entered into the Rugged Maniac Competition. (Don't forget to check out the TOS.)

"This workout has been put together with a specific goal in mind - to efficiently build your strength so that you can quickly and easily move your own bodyweight around the common obstacles you will encounter at these races."

As of right now, I don't have any of these runs planned this summer. But, I'm really digging the superset workout (you can find a breakdown of what each superset does here). I figure if I am able to squeeze one in somewhere this year, I should be good to go!

 Train hard - Race easy!

 

Work It Wednesday: Squat Challenge

I've seen quite a few fitness challenges lately, so I thought "why not?".

Squats, when done right, can help tone your legs & give you a great tush. And with summer looming ahead, who doesn't want a great tush?! (Hello, short shorts!)

*start small*

Day 1: 10 squats

Day 2: 15 squats

Day 3: 20 squats

Day 4: 25 squats

Day 5: 30 squats

Day 6: 35 squats

Day 7: 40 squats

Day 8: 45 squats

Day 9:  50 squats

Day 10: 55 squats

Day 11: REST

*slow & steady*

Day 12: 60 squats

Day 13: 65 squats

Day 14: 70 squats

Day 15: 75 squats

Day 16: 80 squats

Day 17: 85 squats

Day 18: 90 squats

Day 19: 95 squats

Day 20: REST

Day 21: 100 squats

*feel the burn*

 Day 22: 110 squats

Day 23: 120 squats

Day 24: 130 squats

Day 25: REST

Day 26: 140 squats

Day 27: 150 squats

Day 28: 160 squats

Day 29: REST

*finish strong*

Day 30: 180 squats

Day 31: 200 squats

Complete the month & that's over 2000 squats! (2235 to be exact.)

You can do it!