Sometimes I pop in a 21 day fix or Insanity DVD and other times I just create myself a challenging workout!

I decided to share with you a workout that I plan to put myself through today. I chose a 20 minute workout because I assume with both Marc & Ava around my time will be limited and plus 20 minute workouts are over in a jiffy!! What’s not to love?

Before completing the below bodyweight circuit make sure to warm up. I chose a 5 minute bodyweight warm-up of jumping jacks, jogging in place, skaters, butt kicks, and light stretching.

If you are looking to get in a quick workout try this QUICK N’ SWEATY NEW YEARS EVE WORKOUT:

Complete each exercise for 1 minute. Repeat circuit 2x for a 20 minute workout. If you have more time complete another round

**Please consult your doctor or physician before beginning a new workout program**

When I tell myself I am going to do something I usually stick to it… so I quickly wrote down my workout plan. I find if I put it on paper I HAVE TO DO IT!

Sunday was the perfect day to workout at home because the weather was horrible, freezing rain and black ice!! From start to finish the workout took me 30 minutes and I was dripping sweat.

I started the workout with a 6 minute Warm-up alternating between Jogging, Jumping jacks, Butt Kicks, & Jump Rope (1 min 30 seconds each)

CARDIO MAX BODYWEIGHT CIRCUIT

AGILITY LADDER- HEISMAN DRILL

BURPEES

PUSHUPS

X-JUMPS

AGILITY LADDER HOPSCOTCH

SQUAT HOPS (AGILITY LADDER)

Each exercise is 1 minute, try to complete as many repetitions in 1 minute as possible. Rest 30-45 seconds in between each exercise.

Complete circuit 2x

Here are a few videos of the some of the exercises: 

Burpees (This is a video of me doing the Burpee minus the pushup) IMG_2285

X-Jumps (During this exercise you perform a full squat with your feet close together and then Jump out into an X) IMG_2290

Pushups (Ava jumped on Marc’s back so I had to snap some pictures)

Agility Ladder Heisman

This workout took me about 20 minutes to complete. I took a little more rest after some of the more intense exercises like X-JUMPS. I was completely winded at one point so my rest was 45 seconds. At the end of the workout I did some light stretching to cool-down, I felt great!

***Consult your Doctor before beginning a new workout program***

Yesterday afternoon I completed a quick but intense workout that left me sore. I am so happy to say that I will NOT be picking up a single dumbbell or weight today.

As I have mentioned in my Postpartum Journey Posts, I would like to practice and gain strength to be able to do consecutive full range Pull-Ups. Right now I can only do 1. My goal is 4 and I am giving myself 2 months. Ever since that collarbone injury back in early February, Pull-ups have been extremely tough because they place an enormous amount of stress on my shoulder. That is why I have been slowly working up to them! The Jumping Pull-ups in this workout are a great way to target all the muscles a normal Pull-up would, without placing too much stress on the upper body.

This is Marc’s new Pull-up Bar that I got him for his birthday. It is kind of like a present to me too.

Here is the workout:

Bosu Ball at Home Workout

Warm-up 100 jumping jacks, 100 butt kicks, 100 jump rope passes

(I did both close and wide grip jumping pull-ups)

8 Bosu Burpee to Press
8 Jumping pull-ups
8 Push-ups
30 seconds Bosu side shuffle 
30 seconds Plank dips on the bosu
8 Bosu Squats

Repeat this circuit 4x.

The jumping pull-ups got me! My back is feeling it this morning

The game plan for this weekend revolves around Christmas!! Tonight I am making some Christmas Cookies with my mom! I will be sure to share the recipe if they come out good.

I will also be finishing up some shopping. I have a few stores I need to quickly get to at some point this weekend. I’m sure the stores will be a ZOO.

I hope you all have a great weekend!

I would have loved to film my workout but I didn’t have someone to help me film!!

Here is an Example of a Jumping Pull-up

Bosu Lateral Side Shuffle

What is one exercise you want to work out?

What is one muscle or area of your body that is weak? 

Whether I am teaching a boot camp class or training my clients, whenever I say the word burpee I usually hear a sigh or a complaint. My question for you is, why? This body-weight exercise gets the heart rate up and is a full-body movement. Therefore you are working so many more muscles with just ONE exercise!

There are a few different variations of a burpee. You can do a burpee with a pushup and a jump at the end, or you can do just the simple squat thrust. This movement can be altered to you based on your athletic capability.

Image 1 shows me lowering down towards the floor, image 2 demonstrates me kicking my feet back into a pushup position. You would then lower into a pushup

Image 3 shows me jumping back into a wide stance (you can also do a narrow stance with your feet on the insides of your hand)

Image 4  did not make the cut! It was too blurry, but that last step is a nice explosive jump into the air. Then you repeat with another burpee.

So.. now the workout! My Thursday challenge for you is to complete as many burpees in 1 day as possible. Whenever you have a free minute get down and do some burpees. Record how many you complete!

Please share your numbers

I am happy to let you know that last night I taught my first Group Power class since my collarbone injury. It felt awesome to workout in the group setting again! I am looking forward to gaining strength with my class in the next couple of months.

Besides teaching classes, I find that lately most of my other workouts are completed in my own home. I am sure that will change once Ava gets over this cold and the weather warms up but for now I have been enjoying some quick at home circuit workouts.

Today I have a fun Chair workout to share with you. The best part is that you can do this at home and on your own time. Depending on how much time you have, you can cram this workout into 10 minutes or stretch it out to 20 or even 30.

This workout contains 4 exercises. You will complete 20 repetitions of each exercise… set your time for however long you have, and complete AS MANY ROUNDS AS POSSIBLE!! Make sure to warm up with some jumping jacks, jump rope, or jogging in place to get those muscles warmed up.

CHAIR WORKOUT

SQUATS

TRICEP DIPS

SWING KICKS (kick your leg up and over the top of the chair)

STEP UPS

Cool Down with some light stretching! 

**always consult your Doctor or Physician before beginning a new exercise program**

Give me 10 MINUTES

do a quick warm-up of jogging in place jumping jacks and side shuffle

Complete As Many Rounds As Possible in 10 minutes The goal is to get 100 repetitions of each exercise. For beginners set your goal to 5 rounds (50 repetitions of each exercise) 

I wish I could join you on this one. I have done it many times before when I don’t have time on the weekend to get to the gym or I just feel like working out at home! It’s great. Your heart will be pumping and for sure if you are working hard you will be dripping sweat. LETS GO.

I have lots to do today so I gotta get going… I have shopping to do, presents to wrap, and a house to clean! SO my workout of choice will be some low impact walking this morning.

If you participate in the workout, please comment and let me know how many rounds you were able to complete!! 

I created a short workout for her that she could do with the baby at any time of day with no equipment. This workout is meant to be quick and she you can do it for 10, 15, or 20 minutes.  The hopes is to start out with a shorter time and then increase the time and add in a few more exercises. I thought it would be a great way to entertain the baby and at the same time my client got in a mini-workout at the convenience of her home.

Just because this is called the Mommy & Me workout doesn’t mean it can’t be done a Daddy & Me workout too.

Mommy & Me workout #1 (body weight + baby weight) Warm-up alternating between jumping jacks & high knees 30 seconds each in place for 3 minutes

perform 10 repetitions of each exercise and complete as many rounds as possible in 15 minutes

Baby Squats (holding your baby)

Sit-ups (optional: holding your baby)

Chest Press (holding your baby), or full body push-ups (your baby can lay underneath you for this one)

Hopefully once you complete the mini workout your baby is exhausted from all the workout moves and ready for a nap!

Have you ever tried a mommy & me workout before? 

There are many solutions! Yes, moms are so busy that sometimes it seems nearly impossible for them to squeeze in 10 minutes let alone 30 minutes of exercise each day. The good thing is that you don’t need to be in the gym for an hour to get a good workout.

My first rule is to Schedule it!!! This is not just for moms but anyone that wants to increase the amount of exercise they log per week even if your schedule is jam packed.  You schedule play dates, happy hour with friends, dance class, baseball practice, BBQ’s etc. so now make a commitment for yourself. If you write it down in your planner or mark it on your calendar with a specific date and time you are more likely to complete the task.

Get your kids to join in! make it a competition. Who isn’t up for a challenge  Ask them how many sit ups they can do in a minute? Record their results. Your turn! Keep track and choose different exercises: pushups, planks, jumping jacks, bear crawl, skaters, etc. It may not be your ideal workout but it could be fun for your kids to sweat too.

Ask for some help! Can your husband watch the kids for 30 minutes. Go out for a run or pop in a workout dvd in the other room. Maybe your friend is going to the gym and their husband/wife wouldn’t mind watching your kids for 30 minutes.

Here are 3 examples of 20-30 minute workouts you can do at home: Warm up before completing any workout

Workout #1 30 minute power walk with intervals (alternating speed walking with normal pace)

Workout #2 complete the following circuit performing as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes: 10 pushups, 10 sit-ups, 10 squats, 10 lunges (each leg), 10 burpees, 10 mountain climbers and again complete as many rounds as possible in 10 minutes.

Workout #3 pop in your favorite work out dvd or select a workout video on demand and try something new!

Once you are finished, cool down with some stretching!

Every fitness level is different, especially during pregnancy. I am fortunate enough to keep up with most of the workouts I was doing before becoming pregnant.  This is one of the workouts that has been a go to whenever I have 20 minutes. I have used it in both the 1st and 2nd trimesters. I listen to my body and take rest as needed and make sure not to push myself to complete exhaustion.

This workout can be challenging for anyone! To progress it, turn the squats into squat jumps… choose heavier weights on the dead-lifts, or add 10 minutes on to the allotted time. To make it easier don’t perform a deep squat, take your pushups down to your knees, choose lighter weights for the dead-lifts, and on the burpees step back with one foot at a time instead of two!!

20 minute Full Body Prenatal Workout

Put a timer on for 20 minutes, and complete as many rounds as possible of the circuit below

30 squats

20 pushups (can be modified to the knees)

15 dead-lifts 20lbs

10 burpees

1 minute rest and repeat

If you want more of a cardio challenge, see how many rounds you can complete before stopping for water and rest.