This past month my workouts have been more consistent. I’ve been able to better manage my time to squeeze in some at home workouts in addition to the classes that I am currently teaching. Once I started putting myself first and getting in those extra workouts my mood increased dramatically. Fitness is a HUGE part of my life and it was on the back burner for a few months because of postpartum recovery and adjusting to my busy life as a mom of 2.

Now that my workouts are part of my daily routine again I feel like I’m functioning better all around. My mood has increased, my energy, and my fitness performance is getting better. My body isn’t quite where I want it to be but I have some big goals for myself these next 6 weeks.

I also stepped up my nutrition game and cut out sugar and processed foods. It makes a BIG difference in how I feel and I’ve seen a difference in my stomach.

I know I’m starting to ramble…

Anyways my workouts lately have been quick, intense & tiring. I have been teaching a few classes a week and besides that I do a couple at home workouts. During those workouts I try to pack in as much as I can in about 20-30 minutes so that I can get back to mom duties.

I have popped in T-25 Dvds, insanity Max30 Dvds, and have created some of my own workouts involving the kids. I find that mixing it up helps me to stay motivated and pushes me on different levels. I’ve started to incorporate Ava into my at home workouts again so that she sees how important it is to be active and stay healthy. We did a mix of yoga, squats, planks, boxing and jumping jacks. It’s fun to see her in action and she’s becoming a phenomenal counter.

I want her to know that fitness/health is my passion and hopefully one day she will find something she is passionate about herself!

Here is one of the at home workout that I created on a day when both kids were napping and I needed fresh air. I headed into the backyard to get my workout in.  This workout requires a Jump Rope, stairs, and weights.

FULL BODY BACKYARD BLAST

WARM UP with 5 Minutes of Jump Rope

10 PUSHUPS

15 STEP UPS (Each leg)

20 WALKING LUNGES

30 SQUAT TO PRESS

1 MINUTE of JUMP ROPE

Repeat 3-5x or as many rounds you can.

The jump rope warm up got my heart pumping and the blood flowing for this workout. You could always do some extra squats, lunges and stretching to increase the duration of this warm up. I will definitely do this workout again for sure

On Saturday I was looking to do a quick workout before Marc’s parents came in town for his Birthday but I didn’t feel like going to the gym.

I knew I wanted to use weights and I needed the workout to be quick and effective.

I started out with a 5 minute warm-up alternating between jogging, Jumping Jacks, high knees, butt kicks. I then completed this workout:

Quick Full Body Toner

10 SQUAT TO SHOULDER PRESS

10 PUSHUPS

15 SUMO SQUAT TO UPRIGHT ROW

REPEAT 4-6 ROUNDS (4 rounds is about 20 minutes, but you can always add on 2 rounds to make it about 30 minutes) Rest 30-60 seconds between each round and cool down at the end with some light stretching.

I really loved this workout because it was challenging, quick, and effective. My heart was pumping the entire time and by the last round I needed to switch to knee pushups because I was so fatigued. My legs were sore the next day and I didn’t like lifting my arms over my head because my shoulders were wiped.

I used 12 pound dumbbells during this workout, but next time I will go for the 15 pounders!

For all you moms out there this is a great workout to do during nap time!

Do you like full body workouts?

**Please consult your Doctor or Physician before beginning a new workout program**

Equipment: Mat, Medicine Ball, Weights, agility ladder

WARM-UP 5-10 minutes: jog, jump rope, jumping jacks

45 seconds each exercise, 15 second transition (Repeat each circuit 3x)

CIRCUIT #1

Tricep Kickback

Medicine ball squat to press

Plank T Rotation

Pushups

Agility ladder side hops (see bottom note)

CIRCUIT #2

Lateral Raise

Overhead lunge with medicine ball

Bicep curls

Single leg overhead crunch

Agility ladder ski jog (see bottom note)

CIRCUIT #3

Core rotation

Squat twist press

Plank walk

Russian Twist

Reverse lunge hop

COOL DOWN with some stretching 5 minutes

*** NOTE if you do not have an agility ladder. Roll up a towel, or place a jump rope on the floor to hop over. Having an object or piece of equipment to work around will make it more fun!

Before beginning a new workout or exercise program consult your physician first!