To start with, I feel I need to explain why I haven't had a kettlebell workout up in a week! I have strained my forearms doing pull up training - I don't think my arms like the overhand grip 🙁 So I am trying to rest them for a few more days. I hope at the weekend I will have a new KB workout up. In the mean time I have been focusing on body weight workouts.
Normally, the mark of a good workout is how much you sweat, or how high your heart rate goes up. While I do believe that these are good results from a workout I also know that slowing things down can be equally taxing. Just look at yoga and pilates! So, for a change I thought that I would put together a workout with both slow controlled exercises in one section, and then a second section for cardio and Abs (to speed things up), with an extra core blast at the end 🙂
The Workout
The first section has set reps and the aim is to complete 2 rounds of the following:
- Squats (normal pace) x 30 reps
- Slow Push Ups (4 seconds down, 4 secs up) x 15 - 20 reps
- Stability Ball Dolphin x 15 - 20 reps
- Slow Single-Leg Deadlifts (right then left) x 15 - 20 reps
- Close Push Ups (normal pace) x 15 - 20 reps
- Slow Sumo Squats x 15 - 20 reps
This section took me 16 mins 22 seconds to complete. I then set my Gymboss Interval Timer for 12 cycles of 15 seconds rest / getting into position time and 45 seconds effort. I completed 2 rounds of the 6 exercises below (my reps per exercise are beside):
- Lunge Jumps (deep) 25 - 21
- Stability Ball Jackknife 18 - 19
- Mountain Climbers 61 - 59
- Stability Ball Oblique Jackknife (not sure of proper name) 12 - 14
- Burpees 20 - 17
- Stability Ball Hand to Foot Transfer 13 - 11
To finish I completed a 60 second Plank Hold on the stability ball. Workout done!
For those of you who don't have a stability ball, you can substitute the dolphin exercise with double glute raises, the jackknife exercises with leg raises for the first one and cycle action for the oblique one, then standard V-Ups for the transfer one. Obviously for the plank hold, just perform that exercise from the ground. To advance it, have your arms further away, or lift up one foot. If you're lucky enough to have TRX, then you can do the equivalent moves on that.
I hope you enjoyed this workout today. I found each section tough in its own way. Always remember to keep your core engaged throughout each exercise, whether the pace be fast or slow. You will not only improve your form and balance, but it will give you an added burn to the core 🙂
Talk to you all soon.
Cheers
Marianne