1. One arm dumbbell row (back and biceps) - 15 repetitions for each hand
Keep your back straight. Let your working arm hang down under your shoulder. Place your other hand on desk.
Pull your working elbow up and back, past your torso. Pause 2 full seconds, than slowly return to the starting position. Finish the set with that arm, than switch to the other.
2. Desk push ups (chest and triceps) -20 repetitions
Support your body with the balls of your feet and with your hands against desk. Hands are slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, placed on the corner of the desk.
Lower your torso until your chest is just a fraction of an inch off the desk. Push yourself back to the starting position.
3. Shoulder press toe stand (shoulders and calf) – 15 repetitions
Grab two dumbbells and stand straight. Hold the weights with an overhand grip above each shoulder, in line with your jaws.
Press the dumbbells straight up and simultaneously stand up on your toes. Pause, then slowly return to the starting position without letting the weights rest on your shoulders.
4. Squat with heavy ball against chair (legs – quads) - 20 repetitions
Stand straight in the front of a chair holding heavy ball in front of your head.
Slowly descend until you touch chair with your but. Don’t sit, just touch. Pause, than push back up to the starting position.
5. Ball roll over abs (abdominal) – 20 repetitions
Lie on the floor in the crunch position – knees bent, feet are on the floor. With both hands fully extended hold the Swiss ball and place it on your thighs.
Lift your body while rolling the ball just a little past your knees. Pause, than slowly return to the starting position.
Circuit training is nice, time efficient way to add some cardio exercise while improving muscle fitness and strength. By blending cardio and strength exercise, you will improve your cardiovascular fitness and strength in the same time.
For this circuit workout you will need 8 lb heavy ball, pair of 5 lb dumbbells for women and 10 Lb dumbbells for men, and resistance band. If dumbbells feel light go for heavier ones if they feel heavy go for lighter.
You can and should use heart rate monitor to monitor your heart rate. Click here to see where should your heart rate be while doing this circuit workout.
Some guidelines before you start:
1. Start your exercise with warm up. Light running or jogging for 5 minutes is a great warm up
4. When doing circuit training, your rest between exercises should be kept to a minimum to maximize cardiovascular benefits by keeping your heart rate pumping at an elevated rate
Start!
2 to 7 circles:
1. Platypus walk – 20 side steps right, 20 side steps left
Hold a heavy ball in the front of your head. Squat - keep the heels on the floor, thighs are parallel to the floor. In this low squat position, start doing little steps to the side, 20 steps right and 20 steps left, maintainin low squat position.
2. Seating rows – 20 Repetitions (R)
Sit on the floor. Wrap the resistance band evenly around your feet, so the band is tight and creates big resistance. Start performing the rows.
3. Lunge lateral dumbbell raises – 20R (10R on left leg in the front and 10R on right leg in the front)
Grasp dumbbells, bend your elbows to 90 degrees angle and assume a deep lunge position with your right leg in front, thigh parallel with the floor. Start lifting dumbbells sideways to the position when your upper arms are parallel with the floor, maintaining the lunge position. Do 10 repetitions, than switch your legs, so the left is in front and do another 10R.
4. Square jumps – 20R
Grasp dumbbells, bent your elbows to the right angle, trying to keep your feet together, start jumping to the square (front, right, back, left). Repeat 20 times.
5. Lunge shoulder press – 20R (10 R on left leg in the front and 10 R on right leg in the front)
Grasp dumbbells, bring them up over your shoulders, keeping your upper arms parallel with the floor. Assume a deep lunge position with your right leg in front, right thigh parallel with the floor. Start pressing dumbbells up to the almost fully extended elbow position, maintaining the deep lunge position. Do 10R, than switch your legs so the left one is in front and do another 10R.
6. Jumping jacks lateral dumbbell raises – 25R
Perform classic jumping jacks with dumbbells in your hands. Stand straight, legs together, arms next to your body. Jump – spread legs and arms, bring arms up, when you land arms are parallel to the floor. Jump back. Repeat 25 times.
7. Push ups on ball – 20R (10R right hand, 10R left hand)
Assume push up position. If you are a beginner or can’t perform regular push up, put your knees on the floor. Your hands are under your shoulders little wider than shoulders apart. Put right arm on the ball. Perform 10 push ups. Switch arms – put left arm on the ball and perform another 10 push ups.
8. Abs – arms and legs rises with heavy ball – 25R
Lie on the floor. Grasp ball and extend your arms and legs. Lift you arms with the ball and legs simultaneously, meeting them in the highest position. Repeat 25 times.
Congratulations! You did it. Did You know, that the fastest muscle recovery from intensive workout is in the cold water? So if you are on the nice beach and the tide is not too strong, jump in and swim a little. This is the best think you can do for your hurting body. But don’t become a part of a food chain. Survive!
I have been training Marta for 2 years now. She likes to exercise outside and she loves beach. I designed this circuit training for her.
If you like outdoors and don’t enjoy gym environment; and you are looking for challenging circuit training this workout is for you.
Circuit training is nice, time efficient way to add some cardio exercise while improving muscle fitness and strength. By blending cardio and strength exercise, you will improve your cardiovascular fitness and strength in the same time.
You will need 8 lb heavy ball and pair of 5 lb dumbbells for women and 10 Lb dumbbells for men. If the dumbbells feel light go for heavier ones if they feel heavy go for lighter.
You can and should use heart rate monitor to monitor your heart rate. Click here to see where should your heart rate be while doing this circuit workout.
Some guidelines before you start:
1. Start your exercise with warm up. Light running or jogging for 5 minutes is a great warm up
4. When doing circuit training, your rest between exercises should be kept to a minimum to maximize cardiovascular benefits by keeping your heart rate pumping at an elevated rate
Start!
2 – 7 circles:
1. High knee run with heavy ball side turns – 20 R (repetitions) of turns to each side
Grab heavy ball, and hold it in the front of your body with your hands straightened.
While running on the spot, trying to lift your knees as high as you can, turn heavy ball in your straightened hands to the sides. Repeat.
2. One leg stand dumbbell rows – 10 R each leg stand
Grab dumbbells, standing on one leg lean forward, keeping your back straight and head up. Keep your lifted leg straightened and lifted as high as you can and perform rows. Repeat on opposite leg.
3. Knee push ups on heavy ball - 10 R each side
Assume push up position keeping your knees on the floor and one arm placed on the ball. Perform push ups. Repeat push ups with a ball on opposite side.
4. Soccer drill – 30 R each leg
Stand in the front of the heavy ball. Jump from one foot to another while taping the ball on the top with your feet.
5. Lawn mover – 20 R each hand
Assume the squad position, holding dumbbells, keeping your back straight and head up. Start moving your hands alternately up and down.
6. One leg stand shoulder press – 10 R each leg stand
Grab dumbbells, stand on one leg, extend the other one as high as you can and perform shoulder presses. Than do the same on the opposite leg.
7. Squad jumps- 20 R
While holding heavy ball in the front of your head start squad jumping.
8. Jumping jacks shoulder press – 20 R
Grab dumbbells and bring them up just above your shoulders, keeping your feet together. Jump jumping jack and lift dumbbells up. Repeat.
9. Crunches with heavy ball – 25 R
Lie down and grab heavy ball. Bent your knees, straighten your arms while holding the ball. Start lifting your body up and down. Don’t go all the way up and don’t go all the way down to keep your abdominal muscles flexed at all times. You should achieve the ” ab burn” within 25 repetitions.
grip of the bar should be wider than shoulder-width
position the thighs under the pads, if necessary adjust the thigh pad and seat
lean the torso slightly backward
extend the elbows fully
Downward movement phase
pull the bar down and toward the upper chest
maintain the slight torso backward lean; do not jerk the torso for assistance
touch the bar to the chest
Upward movement phase
allow the elbows to slowly extend back to the beginning position
keep the torso in the same position
2.Chest press – 15 repetitions; primary muscles trained – pectoralis major and triceps (chest and back of your hands – triceps)
sit down and lean back to assume five-point body contact position – head, upper back, lower back and but are touching the bench, feet are down on the board
grasp handles with pronated grip
align handles with the nipples of the chest; if necessary, adjust the seat height to correctly position the handles
push the handles away from the chest to almost fully extended elbow position – keep the slightly bent
Backward movement phase
allow the handles to slowly move backward for the maximum reach
maintain the five body contact position
Forward movement phase
push the handles away from the chest to the beginning position
maintain the five body contact position
do not arch the lower back or forcefully lock out the elbows
bring your feet about one foot forward and squad so your thighs are parallel to the floor
keep your back straight and flat and heels flat on the floor
While maintaining these position start curling dumbbells up and down
4.Machine shoulder press – 15 repetitions; primary muscles trained – anterior and medial deltoids, and triceps (shoulders and back of your hands – triceps)
sit down and lean back to assume the five body contact position – head, upper back, lover back, butt, feet
grasp the handles with pronated grip
align handles with the top of the shoulders; if necessary, adjust the seat height to position the handles correctly
Upward movement
push the handles upward until the elbows are almost fully extended, do not lock your elbows
maintain the five-point body contact position
do not arch the lower back
Downward movement phase
allow the elbows to slowly flex to lower the handles to the beginning position
maintain the five-point body contact position
Stretch
Back stretch:
Chest and biceps stretch
Triceps stretch
Repeat these sequence 3 times to complete 3 sets of each exercise, and stretch after each circle. 5.Squad jumps with heavy ball – 20 repetitions; primary muscles trained – quadriceps, gluteus maximus (legs and butt)
stand with your feet hip-width apart, your arms in the front of your head are holding heavy ball
lower into a basic squad
when your thighs are almost parallel to the floor, jump off the ground
land with your knees soft, and immediately lower into the next squad and jump
repeat rhythmically
6.Hamstring curl – 15 repetitions; primary muscles trained – hamstrings (back of the legs)
lie down and align knees with the axis of the machine
hook the feet under the ankle pad
grasp the handles
flex the knees until the ankle pad nearly touches the buttocks
than allow the knees to slowly extend to the starting position and repeat
7.Lunge dumbbell shoulder press – 20 repetitions (10 repetitions on each forward bent leg); primary muscles trained – anterior and medial deltoids, trapezius, triceps, quadriceps, gluteus maximus (shoulders, back of your hands – triceps, legs and butt)
grasp dumbbells and assume lunge position – your thigh of the forward leg should be parallel with the floor
maintaining deep lunge position and start pressing alternately dumbbells up and down
maintain straight back
do 10 repetitions and switch your legs
Stretch
Quad stretch
Hamstring stretch
Repeat these sequence 3 times to complete 3 sets of each exercise, and stretch after each circle.
8.Ball roll over; primary muscle trained – rectus abdominis (abdominals)
lie down on the floor, bend your knees
grasp ball and put it on your thighs, keeping your elbows extended
curl the torso toward the thighs keeping the ball rolling over your knees
don’t rest up; start downward torso movement still in the challenging upper position
lover your torso down, keeping your shoulders up
don’t rest down; start upward torso movement still in the challenging lower position
older people looking for safe effective resistance workout that targets all major muscle groups
anybody with limited amount of time, who wants a simple effective all body weight training solution
Why is this plan so effective?
It is consisted of core, multi-joint exercises that employ more muscles in the same time, so you are exercising all major muscle groups with fever exercises.
1.Lat pulldown; major muscles involved – mainly back muscles (latissimus dorsi, teres major, midle trapesius, rhomboids) also biceps
grasp the lat plldown bar with pronated grip
grip should be wider than shoulder-width
position the thighs under the pads, if necessary adjust the thigh pad and seat
lean the torso slightly backward
extend the elbows fully
Downward movement phase
pull the bar down and toward the upper chest
maintain the slight torso backward lean; do not jerk the torso for assistance
touch the bar to the chest
Upward movement phase
allow the elbows to slowly extend back to the beginning position
keep the torso in the same position
2.Chest press; major muscle involved – mainly chest muscles(pectoralis major) also triceps
sit down and lean back to assume five-point body contact position – head, upper back, lower back and butt are touching the bench, feet are down on the board
grasp handles with pronated grip
align handles with the nipples of the chest; if necessary, adjust the seat height to correctly position the handles
push the handles away from the chest to almost fully extended elbow position – keep them slightly bent
Backward movement phase
allow the handles to slowly move backward for the maximum reach
maintain the five body contact position
Forward movement phase
push the handles away from the chest to the beginning position
maintain the five body contact position
do not arch the lower back or forcefully lock out the elbows
4.Machine shoulder press; major muscles involved – mainly shoulders muscles (anterior and medial deltoids,) also triceps
sit down and lean back to assume the five body contact position – head, upper back, lover back, butt, feet
grasp the handles with pronated grip
align handles with the top of the shoulders; if necessary, adjust the seat height to position the handles correctly
Upward movement
push the handles upward until the elbows are almost fully extended, do not lock your elbows
maintain the five-point body contact position
do not arch the lower back
Downward movement phase
allow the elbows to slowly flex to lower the handles to the beginning position
maintain the five-point body contact position
Stretch:
Back stretch
Chest and biceps stretch
Triceps stretch
Repeat phase #1, 3 times.
Phase #2
3X15
4.Leg press
5.Leg curl
6.Abdominal crunches with ball – roll over abs
Stretch
4.Leg press; major muscles involved – leg muscles (gluteus maximus – butt, hamstrings, quadriceps) also calf muscle
sit in the machine with the back, lower back and butt pressed against seat pad
place the feet flat in the middle of the platform in a hip-width position with the toes slightly pointed out
adjust seat so your knees are in 90 degrees angle
grasp the handles
Forward movement phase
extend the hips and knees to push the seat backward (note that in some machines, the seat will be fixed and the foot platform will move forward during this phase)
push to almost fully extended position while maintaining the same upper body position and the heels in contact with the platform
Backward movement phase
allow the hips and knees to slowly flex to lower the weight
keep the back flat against the back pad
keep the legs parallel to each other
continue flexing the hips and knees until the knees are in 90 degrees angle
5.Leg curl; major muscles involved – hamstrings
assume a prone position on the machine with the hips and torso in the center of their pads and the knees aligned with the axis of the machine
hook the feet under the ankle pad, adjust pad so it is almost in contact with the back of the heal
once in proper position, the knees should be hanging slightly off the bottom edge of the thigh pad
grasp the handles
Upward movement phase
flex the knees until the ankle pad nearly touches the buttocks
don’t move the torso
maintain a tight grip on the handles
Downward movement phase
allow the knees to slowly extend back to the starting position
don’t move the torso
maintain a tight grip
6.Abdominal crunches with ball – roll over abs; major muscles involved – abdominal muscles (rectus abdominis)
lie on the floor
flex the knees to bring the heels near the butt
grab the ball, extend your elbows and put the on the thighs
Upward movement phase
keeping the feet, butt on the mat, curl the torso toward the thighs rolling the ball on your legs up
keep the arms extended and keep holding the ball
Downward movement phase
allow the torso to uncurl and extend back to the starting position, keep your shoulders up and abdominal muscles flexed
keep the feet and butt on the floor in the same position
I came home kind of late today and little tired. But I decided, that I needed to do some kind of workout to do something good for my body and to feel good. I wok out pretty consistently, so even if I don’t feel great, I still do it and reward usually is – I feel great. It was dark outside and weather not very nice, little vet.
Here is what I did : I vent for a 35 minutes run : I warmed up for 10 minutes, medium intensive run than did some intervals – pyramid interval :
1 minute sprint/1 minute easy
2 minutes fast run/ 2 minutes easy
3 minutes fast run/ 2 minutes easy
2 minutes fast run/ 1 minutes easy
1 minute sprint
Than I finished the run with 10 minutes medium intensive run, gradually slowing down and stopping.
If you don’t have a time to go to gym and you have about 35 minutes time available, try this excellent, highly effective endurance workout.
