Morning Ya’ll! In doing these 6am workouts, I’m realizing how energized I feel afterwards. My mind is still a bit sluggish but my body is raring to go! On that note, I’m not going to say much today except that this workout is AWESOME. It was one of those where I was sweating and red even 10 minutes after I got out of the shower. If that’s not motivation to do this workout, I don’t know what is … Haha. Enjoy! Continue reading
People ask me every Tuesday night whether I’m going to take it easy on them or kill them with this workout. My reply is always that I’ll make you feel like you’re dying but you’ll feel amazing afterward. And it’s true!
With these types of workouts, you should be going at such an effort that your muscles stop working, your lungs are burning, and you feel an achy pain in muscles you didn’t even know you had. As long as you are not feeling sharp pain anywhere, and are focusing on correct form, you are doing it right. (If you start to experience sharp pain of any kind, especially in joints, stop that exercise immediately and consult a doc about it.)
So keep going, hard. Work through the pain. The thing that separates you and a higher level of fitness is the ability to push past your perceived threshold. You can always go faster, jump higher, and lunge lower. No excuses!
And now … the workout!
Beginner through intermediate (12 minutes)
– 20 seconds on/ 20 seconds off
– each exercise 3 times in a row
Advanced (16 minutes)
– 30 seconds on/ 10 seconds off
– each exercise 4 times in a row
Exercises:
1. high knees (hold your hands at a certain height and bring your knees to touch them)
2. tri dips (legs bent in or held straight out)
3. calf jumps (too easy? jump higher, jump faster, hold weights in your hands)
4. crunches (focus on lifting your shoulders, DO NOT pull on your neck; beginner-feet on ground, intermediate-feet at right angle, advanced-feet in air)
5. plank tick tock (beginner-knees or elbows on ground, intermediate-full plank, advanced-lift one leg and, keeping it straight, swing it out to the side, then bring it back to center and do the same with the other leg, in a pendulum-like motion)
6. speed lunges (keep feet planted and bounce upper body up and down, switch legs at half-way point)
+ Fit Minute. Choose one of the following exercises. Do it for a full minute at 100% effort. Count how many you do and record it. We’ll be doing these after every workout from now on:
I hope you get all charged up after these workouts like I do. Love and a big smile 🙂 – Ash
Happy Wednesday Ya’ll! I had a smoothie way too close to the beginning of this workout and it threatened to come up for 20 minutes after I was done. Whoops! So just make sure you have a relatively clear belly and are ready to work those muscles until they fatigue!
Beginner through intermediate (12 minutes)
– 20 seconds on/ 20 seconds off
– each exercise 3 times in a row
Advanced (16 minutes)
– 30 seconds on/ 10 seconds off
– each exercise 4 times in a row
Exercises:
1. low jacks
2. tri dips (beginner-bent legs, advanced-straight legs)
3. plie squat
4. crunches (feet on the ground, legs 90°, or legs straight in the air)
5. mountain climbers
6. pushups
+ Fit Minute. Choose one of the following exercises. Do it for a full minute at 100% effort. Count how many you do and record it. We’ll be doing these after every workout from now on:
I hope you all have wonderful Wednesdays! 🙂
The workout we did last night, in our class, was very unassuming but JEEZ it was difficult. Getting out of bed this morning was a struggle. I could barely make my legs work! While this feeling really shouldn’t be happening every time you workout, it’s good to get it every once in a while. It means that you’ve found new muscles to work. Start to recognize where you feel the most fatigue after a workout and make sure you start working those areas harder in the future. Muscle fatigue shows you where your weaknesses are.
If these workouts aren’t hard enough for you…First, have you tried them? They may be harder than you think. Second, if they’re truly not hard enough, up the ante. I’m officially in training for bike racing next season so I’ve increased my workouts a bit. I am now doing each exercise 4 times with 30 seconds on/ 10 seconds off. WOWZA. It ends up being 16 minutes long and I am dying by the end of it. Actually threw up in my mouth the last two times I did it. (< gross. But it is weird that I get an odd sense of satisfaction out of this? I am sort of proud that I pushed myself that hard).
Without further ado, here’s the workout!
– 20 seconds on/ 20 seconds off (see above for the advanced version)
– 6 exercises, 3 times each
– PUSH YOURSELF. The effectiveness of this workout depends on your effort.
1. Side-to-side Hop (beginner-step side to side, advanced-jump over an obstacle)
2. Half Burpee (beginner-step one foot back at a time, advanced-jump feet between hands)
3. Leg lift (beginner-bend one knee at a time into chest, advanced-keep legs straight)
4. Pike Pushup (beginner-only bend arms slightly, advanced-touch top of forehead to ground)
5. One-leg Squat (beginner-hold onto a chair and bend only slightly, advanced-no chair and bend deeper)
6. Sit and Pray (beginner– bend knees only slightly, advanced-quads parallel to the ground, elbows between knees)
Anyone who was in my class last night: How did you feel afterwards?
I picked it up with the workout last night. People were getting complacent and you know what that means, whicooosh!
So just like every Wednesday the workout is as follows:
– 20 seconds on, 20 seconds rest
-6 exercises, do each one 3 times (12 minutes total!)
1. low jacks
2. backward lunge (keep shoulders over hips)
3. burpees
4. crunches (feet on floor OR knees at right-angle OR legs straight in the air. lift SHOULDERS not head)
5. elbow-in push ups (on the wall OR on your knees OR on your toes in plank)
6. toe taps (tap each foot in front of you QUICKLY but stably, tap the ground, an elevated surface, or a fitness ball)
photo credit: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Ashley Life Update: It’s a weird feeling to be settling into such a hectic lifestyle. I guess routine can get you anything and everything. I’m finally figuring out how to work my 50 hours at job #1 and 5 hours at job#2 plus keeping the house clean, cooking healthy meals, and working out. This is what normal people do, plus kids!?! My respect for my parents and grandparents goes up with each year I’m alive. Anyway, regardless of the routine, I’m exhausted and SO excited for a real rest at Thanksgiving.
Also, yesterday I had 70 followers and today I have 69. Someone stopped following me! That’s kind of an odd feeling. Like someone found it worth the time and energy to stop reading my words. But I’ve done it to other blogs so I guess I can’t be sad. It just happens. Welp, that’s my life right now, learning all these weird, important lessons from all these normal, tiny things.
Anyway, I hope you’re all having wonderful days. I want to send some love out to my family right now. I’m missing you all exceptionally. Love and hugs (and weird texting pictures),
Question for YOU:
What have you been taking charge of in your life recently?
Last night I led my first workout in front of more than 5 people! It was so flipping fun. We had very fit people as well as people who haven’t worked out in a while. We had kids there (seriously, 3 year olds) as well as ladies in their fifties. And every single person was sweating. Again, it was so fun!
Here’s the workout:
– SIX exercises
– do each exercise THREE times
– do it for TWENTY seconds, then rest for TWENTY, then do it for another 20, and on…
– it’s VERY important to do as many of each exercise in 20 seconds
Exercises:
1) low jacks
2) toe taps – tap on the ground or find a stair
3) burpees – follow the image and put a push up in the middle
4) speed squats – squats, as fast as you can while keeping form
5) tricep dips
6) high knees
Best part is, the workout only takes TWELVE MINUTES!!
Who’s gonna try this? Tell me if you do!
Whatever your workout today, I hope it is wonderful! 🙂
A Happy Lass 