Due to the questions I've received on how to start exercise, I thought it made sense to record an exercise video. If you are looking to get started and don't have too much time, try this calorie-burning workout for just 10 minutes. If you are feeling spicy, do it multiple times but you will be sweating buckets at the end of this anyway. Who doesn't have 10 mins? No equipment too!
When you think of a fit person, a lot of the time you procure that image of the gym goer with perfect shorts grunting to every exercise on every machine. But in reality, fitness can be anywhere especially in the age of the internet. If you have kids, live far from a gym, or don't have enough time/money to go to the gym and back consistently, working out at home is a great, less-intimidating option.
Are you one of those people who gives excuses about not doing high intensity interval training because, well, they are hard and you don't think you can jump around that much? Here's some good news: you can modify your workouts to reduce the intensity but still get some good points. An example of one of these monster exercises is the burpee. Ugh! Killer.
Regular burpee
If the motion is too much for you at this level and you'd like to work your way up to this full-body exercise, trying slowing it down and going step by step. You'll still get the same benefits, but at a lower intensity.
We all know that HIIT is effective, but sometimes finding those exercises that fit into your HIIT program can be tough. Here is one exercise that may really help you turn up the heat and burn some major calories!
Basketball players usually do these drills to train. They are called 'suicide drills'. If you have a court or some sort of open space, it simply involves running back and forth while controlling your turn. The dip you do during the turn helps you strengthen your core and your legs.
How do you do this exercise really? You start in an open space, run to one end. Once you've reached the end, turn to face the other direction, lunge, and put one hand on the floor. Then stand, run the other way, and repeat that motion.
Still confused? Let this video demonstration guide you. Try to repeat this for 5 rounds of 1 minute each and feel how much you are burning!
Looking to lose weight, but you're hitting a plateau? Then HIIT may be what you need. What is HIIT, you ask? HIIT (or High Intensity Interval Training) is a form of exercise where you alternate between intervals of very high intensity and low intensity training. It has been shown to burn more fat than doing consistent moderate exercise for long periods of time. I'm not sure you really care about why, but let's just say it works...lol.
A lot of people use the term to refer to exercises like jumping jacks, jump tucks, and the like, but you could really make any cardio exercise HIIT by speeding up and slowing down. For example, running at high and slow speeds and inclines is HIIT. Spinning classes do usually incorporate HIIT, and so on.
You can find so many HIIT videos on the web, but here is one of my favorites:
It is a 30 minute session you can do on your own, so beginners, no excuses! You should be feeling breathless by the end.
I like steppers. I can do lots of fun exercises with them. The two videos below show two HIIT cardio exercises you can do with steppers. Try each as part of your cardio routine for about a minute. With both, make sure you land on your heels and soften your knees throughout the movement!
We all love (or hate) our high intensity workouts. Burpees? Ugh! But we do them because they are so effective. Try this burpee combination today and you'll be sweating and breathing hard when you are done.
Looking to incorporate some HIIT in your routine? Jump lunges are awesome. Tons of cardio and you still really work those legs. I usually jump for 30 seconds and rest for 10.
Looking to spice up your workout? Try adding in some intensity with the Tabata workout. What is Tabata? Well, I'll tell you! Tabata is a 4-minute workout program that has you do 8 rounds of 4 exercises. Each exercise is done for 20 secs as hard as you possibly can, with a 10 second rest before the next exercise. Sounds easy? Give it a try and you'd be sweating like crazy.
I found the exercise below on Pinterest and wanted to try it out because it incorporates both Tabata and regular HIIT. It is a total of about 16 minutes so I did it 3 times. Just so you know, it wasn't easy! Which means you should definitely try it out. Download it, save it on your phone, and do it when you get home.
I thought I'd start with a question asked by about the effectiveness of HIIT. If you haven't heard of HIIT (high intensity interval training), it is a mode of exercise where you alternate between very high intensities and low or moderate intensities continuously.
This helps the body burn more fat, build more endurance, and continue with the fat burn for more hours than steady state training. You can do HIIT with the same exercises you know (like running, elliptical, body weight exercises, etc). With HIIT body weight exercises, you are actually mixing up some strength with your cardio too. So uber awesome fat burning capabilities.
Whether you are trying to lose weight or get that muscle tone to show or just get a healthier heart, cardio is very important. The general recommendation is at least 150 minutes per week. But of course, this could be more depending on your goals. Males tend to lift weights a lot, and sometimes forget that cardio is just as important. You could run, swim, use the elliptical, do HIIT exercises, or whatever. But make sure you get some in today!
You may or may not have heard of the CrossFit program, so I'll enlighten you. CrossFit is a program that has taken over a lot of the US and is slowly creeping into various countries around the world. CrossFit has both the online and class versions.
I apologize for not sharing the July challenge yesterday. I have been having some Internet trouble. So I thought I'd share both today and you can try to do both? Even 1 round of each maybe :)
So prepare yourself for the madness that is about to hit you. I found this core and arm workout on BodyRock.tv called Girl On Fire. It is part of their Hiit Workout Series. I tried it, and thought I'd share it with you. Please note that this involves standing upside down so if you get queasy or you feel you are not strong enough, do not attempt this workout. Otherwise, give it a go! You'll feel amazing after! I didn't do it for all four minutes, so just do as many as you can.
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