A couple of weeks ago, Kara made up a great quick workout; it was a simple set of 8-10 moves that we went through just once with a set of 20 jumping jacks between each move. It was great — we got our heart rates up, maintained our muscle, and got in and out of the gym quickly. I’m definitely in that sort of mood again today — get in, and get out. I have some errands I’d like to take care of after the gym, so a big workout just ain’t happenin’ today.
Besides, Monday’s workout (also courtesy of Kara) was a doozy, and I am sore.
So here’s my version of Kara’s format. This set of 8 exercises is meant to be completed only once through, though you could certainly repeat it, if you have time. Do a set of 20 jumping jacks between each exercise.
T- pushups (x10 pushups, x10 left side planks, x10 right side planks), alternating pushups with plank, and alternating sides.
Walking side squats with resistance bands around your ankles (x10 right, x10 left)
Cobra, holding 2 or 3-lb weights (20 seconds, rest, 20 seconds more) – this is just a “superman,” but without lifting your legs. Adding the small weights makes it more challenging.
Lateral raises, two 5-lb dumbbells (x20)
Wall squat with yoga block held between your knees (1 min)
Incline bicep curls on body ball, 12 lbs (x20)
Pilates heel taps (x20) — see video below
Overhead tricep press — one arm at a time, 15 lbs (x10 right arm, x10 left arm)
T push-ups from Women’s HealthLateral raisesIncline bicep curls on body ball
It’s just Kara and I tonight — seems like it’s been forever!! But I’m looking forward to it. We’re focusing on upper body, with a couple of tweaks on our typical format. I wanted to lower the reps and increase the weight for a few of our moves today. I’m aiming to build more muscle, so it can get to work eating up my fat “reserves” (what? it’s winter.) when I’m sitting ALL DAY at my desk, yo. 😉
And at the end, instead of a third weight-lifting circuit, we’re sliding into home with an ab burner. I figure, why not? Why not mix Tabata-style cardio, with some ab moves? I couldn’t think of any good reason, so we’re gonna give that a try tonight. Maybe I’ll come up with reasons then.
Circuit 1 (repeat 4x)
Bent-over rows with 15-lb kettlebell (x10 each side)
Simple bicep curls, keep your elbows glued.to.your.waist. 15lbs (x10 each arm)
Overhead tricep press on Bosu (you can do these like the video below, with the round side up, or with the flat side up, which requires better balance), use two hands to hold one 20-lb dumbbell (x10)
Jumping jacks (x50)
Bent-over rows with kettle bell
Circuit 2 (repeat 4x)
Bench press, heavier weight. For me, that means ~65 lbs. (x10 — break up the reps if you have to, but git’er’dun)
Tabata Abs. Do each exercise (or recovery) for 30 seconds, then move immediately on to the next one. You’re done in just 7 minutes, if you don’t count the last recovery. 😉
This was a really successfully designed workout, if I do say so myself. It has the awesome qualities of (1) being short for a circuit training day (about 50 minutes), (2) containing a few blasts of cardio, and (3) making me sore enough the next day that I can feel I’ve worked hard, but not so sore that I avoid the stairs at work! Triple win! At first, I could tell that my workout buddy, Doha, didn’t like the idea of doing 4 rounds of every circuit, because usually when we do that, it takes about an hour and fifteen minutes to get through everything — it can be exhausting and daunting. But I could see she was warming up to the idea when it was clear we were going to be done much more quickly than usual. I felt the same way. More time to get home and cook some healthy dinner, right? Anyway, here’s how it all unfolded this Monday.
Circuit 1 (four times)
deadlifts, 45lb bar (x15)
leg extensions on machine, first round at 50 lbs, then 70 pounds for the next three times through (x15)
Bosu Ball bicycle situps (x10 on each side)
Bosu Ball Bicycle Situps
Circuit 2 (four times)
wall squat, 45 seconds
calf raises on a block, holding 2 12-lb dumbbells (x15)
clam diggers, resting a 10-lb dumbbell on your hip (x10 each leg)
30 jumping lunges
Clam Diggers With Dumbbell
Circuit 3 (four times)
oblique twists on incline bench, holding 8lb medicine ball (x30, so 15 each direction)
butt bridges on medicine ball (x30)
bench step-ups, with three levels under the bench, holding two 12-lb dumbbells (x10 each leg)
Butt Bridges on Medicine BallOblique Twists, demonstrated by Janetha from Meals & Moves
Let us know if you give this workout a try! Have fun!
Last week I made one of the BFs favorite weeknight meals – stuffed peppers. I like my weeknight meals in 30 minutes or less and I found an amazingly quick recipe for it a few year back in a cooks illustrated magazine. It’s been in the weeknight dinner rotation ever since!
This time I made stuffed zucchini with the stuffed peppers. I must say, the portion size of the zucchini is perfect for me.
One key trick to making this dinner classic in less time than normal is to microwave the peppers for a few minutes in the microwave before cooking in the oven.
Now.
I’m a bit of a food snob. And, I refuse to use the microwave unless absolutely necessary.
In this case, however, microwaving the peppers is brilliant because it cuts the cooking time in half. I’m always in favor of methods that get food on my plate faster during the week.
The Recipe
Ingredients
4 – 5 green, yellow or red peppers with the stems removed and insides cleaned
or
3 peppers and 2 zucchini halved, and cleaned out, like a hollow zucchini canoe
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1lb ground turkey meat
2 spicy italian sausages, chopped small
1/3 cup of dry rice, cooked as needed. I use brown, ten minute rice from Trader Joe’s
hot sauce
Cheese to top.
Cooking Instructions
Preheat the Broiler
Place the peppers or peppers and zucchini on top of a microwave safe plate and insert into the microwave. Cook on high for 3 – 4 minutes. Once complete, flip and cook again for 4 minutes. BE CAREFUL. The peppers will be hot and may have steam in them when you flip them over.
While the peppers are being nuked, place the turkey, sausage, onion and garlic into the pan and cook until the onion is soft and the turkey is cooked through. Around 10 minutes.
While the turkey mixture is cooking, cook the rice as necessary. I’ve also replaced the rice with faro from time to time and you hardly notice the difference.
When the rice is cooked, add it to the turkey mixture. Add hot sauce to taste. I like a little more than 1 Tbsp.
Spoon the meat into the peppers or zucchini and top with cheese.
Stick in the broiler for 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and browned.
The title of this post, while very generic sounding, is actually a throwback to the morning show on 89x, a Detroit radio station. I listened to that radio show every. day. on my way to school during high school. I could probably even sing you some of the jingles from the show should you desire. I know someone … out there, somewhere… is reminiscing with me 😛
A few updates –
First, the workout last night was perfect. We had Doha, Amanda, Ella and myself there and all of us were feeling the burn near the end. The total tallies for each us during the AMRAP were 5 rounds plus a little more. A fantastic job by all of us. If you do the workout, let us know how many you complete!
Second, you may have noticed the new layout. In honor of our one year anniversary, we are trying out some new designs. Most likely, the site will be updated further over the next few weeks as we settle on the final layout. Just wanted to give you all a heads up that the look will be in flux.
Tomorrow is Amanda’s 2nd 29th birthday, so it’s a cause for celebration!
We want her to be able to fully participate in any celebratory activities tomorrow, so we’re restructuring today’s workout a bit. We don’t want to repeat last week’s killer, return to gym from the holidays, workout of death that left us all sore for days afterwards and thinking twice about taking the stairs. See here for that workout if you’re looking for an intense burn. With that in mind, I made today’s workout a bit more focused on cardio in hopes that our muscles will recover faster.
AMRAP is the name of the game today. Perform each move below 10 times (… we’re TENacious, get it?) and then keep track of how many times you repeat the entire circuit during the 25 minutes. The only pieces of equipment that you are going to need are 5lb dumbbell, 5lb medicine ball and a step or a chair with a height that is a few inches below your knees.
Warm Up
5 minutes of cardio. Hit the treadmill, bike, stairmaster or elliptical
Workout
Repeat as many rounds as possible in 25 minutes
Box Jumps.
x 10. Land softly on the balls of your feet. A good tip to keep in mind is to try to not make much noise landing. Also, be sure to stand up completely at the top.
Split Lunges.
x 10. 5 each side for a total of 10. Place your back foot in the center of the step/chair.
Tricep Dips.
x 10. Place your hands on the step and your legs out in front of you. When you dip down, try to keep your legs straight and your elbows in near your torso.
Weight Slides.
x 10. In plank, place the 5lb dumbbell on the floor to the side of you just past your left hand. With your right hand, grab the weight and slide it to just past your right hand. Try to keep your shoulders square and not rotate your body. Let go of the weight and return to plank. Drop down to your elbows, right first then left, and then come back up to plank. Grab the weight with your left hand now and slide it to the left. Repeat 5 times on each side for a total of 10 slides.
Reverse Burpees
x 10. See video below for demonstration
Holy crap we were sore from last week’s Leg Day on Wednesday. But we were also awesome, because we still managed to get to the gym on Friday with a quickie designed by Kara. I was so glad we all willed ourselves to enter the gym, despite being so sore. I always feel good about starting the weekend with a workout! 100% of the credit goes to having workout buddies. It makes a big difference when you’re accountable!
Here’s the plan for today. An upper body day, focusing on a lot of back moves. I snuck a few leg things in there, but nothing crazy, since I really am still a tiny bit sore. But I can’t ignore them altogether. It is simply not in my nature. =)
Start with a 5-minute cardio warm-up. Jog? Row? Bike? Whatever you want.
Bench Press (x10-15) – I’m going to do a light weight (50-60 lbs) for 15 reps, to avoid irritating my almost-healed elbow/arm injury, but the others may do something heavier for 10 reps.
W cable pulls, 40 lbs (x15) – this, but in a static lunge position instead of sitting. Focus on your lats.
Static lunge + bicep curls, two 10-lb dumbbells (x10 each leg) – hold a lunge position while you complete the 10 reps, then reverse the position of your legs, and complete another 10 curls.
Slidey Abs with towels under feet (x10)
Slidey Abs
Stretch! Don’t forget to down some protein within 30 minutes of your workout, when your body is most happy to use it for muscle building. I have been lazy about this lately, so I’m trying to get back on the protein train. Choo choo.
After a whirlwind Christmas with my family, I wanted to share the leg day that my sister and I did (designed by her awesome trainer, Lisa) just before Christmas. I hadn’t been lifting for about a month, due to a small arm injury, and also working to train for the Santa 5K, so this was just the level of training that I needed. It was a bit easier than what Lisa usually puts together (shhhh, don’t tell her), which is good because it was still hard enough that I was VERY sore for about two days. Like, the kind of sore where you’re dreading having to sit down, because your legs and butt are screaming. Too much? Maybe. But there’s something about muscle soreness that makes me feel accomplished. Anyway, Kara, Doha, and I repeated this workout last night (we had to substitute some of Lisa’s moves, since our gym doesn’t have all of the same equipment). Check it out.
CIRCUIT 1, repeat 4x
Reverse lunge + squat (x10 each side, 10-lb dumbbells). Holding two dumbbells, from a step (with one level), do a backward lunge. Come back to the step, and do a squat on top. That’s one rep. Repeat all 10 reps on one side, then switch legs.
Body ball hamstring curls (x15). Start with your body in a straight line, then curl the ball toward you, by bending your knees. To isolate your hamstrings, allow your body to bend at the hips, but keep your hips elevated. Return to start, keeping your body lifted.
Body ball butt bridges (x15). Start with your back on the floor, and your heels dug into the very top of the ball, knees bent at 90 degrees. The ball should be about 6 inches from your butt. Lift your butt so that your torso and quads form a straight line, then come back down. For this one, you’re not moving the ball. You’re just lifting your butt up and down.
Body ball crunches (x15). Lying on your back, with your legs extended (hovering over the floor, not vertical), hold the ball between your feet/calves. Bring it forward by bending your knees up toward your face. Bring your shoulders up off the ground in a crunch to meet in the middle.
CIRCUIT 2, repeat 4x
Walking side squats with 15-lb kettlebell (x10 in each direction). We did 10 to the right, then 10 of the pop squats (below), 10 to the left, and 10 more pop squats.
Kettlebell pop squats (x20). Hold the kettlebell, letting it hang with your arms straight. Sit into a squat, and then pop up explosively, bringing your feet together. Immediately, pop your feet back out to sit back into another squat. It should look a bit like a squat jack.
Windshield Wiper Abs (x20).
Windshield Wiper Abs
CIRCUIT 3, repeat 4x
Squat + calf raise (x15). On a squat machine, load a challenging weight for squats (we added two 25-lb plates). Perform your squat — get low, baby — and at the top, go straight into a calf raise. That’s one rep.
Frog Jumps (x10-12). Try to cover the same distance every time, no matter how many reps it takes. You’ll be motivated to do the more powerful jumps, trust me. This video is a good example.
This workout took about an hour to complete. It was definitely a slap-in-the-face, welcome-back-from-vacation, you-clearly-have-lost-some-ground kind of workout. But in a good way, if that makes sense. 🙂 It was tough, and I was really dragging at the end, but we all willed our way through it, and got that ish done. I am sore today, but not as sore as the last time when I did it with my sister. So at least I can say that I’ve gotten better since then! I’m looking forward to more challenge in the upcoming weeks, and getting back to where I was in October. I know it won’t take long.
OneFitTwoFit 
