It is a crazy time right now and seems the world is in a tail spin. With life coming to an almost complete halt, we need to not stress over the things we have no control over. We need to take some time for ourselves. This will be a blessing to many. Slowing down may be a good choice for our sanity, health, and overall stress that our fast paced life has been hitting us with. Use this time to make memories with your family, and appreciate the things you do have and can control…like exercising (or continuing to exercise). No matter where life takes you, your body will always be with you.
Summer is just around the corner. Hopefully we will have some sort of normalcy to coincide with that! Exercising indoors is my staple when it comes to lifting weights. However, we are at a point where that is not possible for most. I have gotten a ton of texts and emails on what do when I can’t be there. I have built numerous workouts for clients and athletes that have access to minimal equipment or have access to pretty elaborate garage / spare room gyms (I’m a little jealous of you). The foundation of ALL of the workouts is movement based and has to do with using your bodyweight as resistance!
With the days getting longer, the sun is shining, and the scenery is magnificent, why not take advantage and get outside for a workout either by yourself or with your kids. As a performance coach, I care about the body moving better to enhance the quality of life, and the efficiency at which it performs every day activities. Many people have sedentary jobs, and most the kids I see only get activity that is sport specific in nature (they don’t get a change to work on the basic fundamentals like squatting, hinging, pushing, and pulling). People may be commuting, in front of a computer or just quarantined restless at home most waking hours of the day. If we consider the body position, it would be flexed hips (tight hips), slouched forward with rounded shoulders, and neck protruding forward (terrible posture). If we think back to when the gym was open, the posture you see most people exercising in is the exact posture from which they just came! They are seated in a machine (tight hips), working out the front side of the body (candy muscles like chest and quads) which enhances that poor posture.
Currently, you might not suffer from any ailments associated with poor posture, but it will catch up with you, it always does! Now you are asking yourself, “what the heck does this have to do with exercise?” Using your body in a standing position and allowing it to move freely through space will not only help improve your fitness level and lose some weight, but also keep your body moving better for years to come!
I can write all day on how proper exercise can enhance movement, but lets discuss what you can do with your body and minimal equipment to enhance your movement, maintain muscle, lose fat, and maybe have a little fun while your at it!
Most people live within a few miles of a park. This is a great place to start your workout! Here are a few exercises that can be executed with your bodyweight and minimal equipment plus, cost you virtually nothing but a few calories!
Always start your workout with some movement preparation. Figure 1 gives a great example of what I program for my people.
Bodyweight Squats are a great way to get your lower body ready for work. Knock out 15 of these followed by some Step Ups on a park bench. Eight step ups on each leg is a great way to start.
Pushups are next. They are one of the most undervalued exercises on the planet. Done correctly, you will receive not only a great upper body workout, but this is also one of the greatest core exercises you can do for your mid section!
Pull-ups…don’t be scared! I think these are one of the most empowering exercises out there when accomplished. If you are a person who has not done, or attempted a pull-up since grade school, then here are a few progressions to help do them.
Try jumping up and holding your chin above the bar (soccer goal post, monkey bars at school park, etc.) for up to 10 seconds. When that goal is reached, try lowering yourself in a controlled manner. Allow yourself about five seconds before your feet touch the ground. Try five repetitions of these ECCENTRIC pull-ups. The final step is attempting a “for real” pull-up. These steps may take someone a few weeks up to a few months. Don’t give up!
Core training will involve some isometric exercises to help engage the core, strengthen the stability of the lower back, and get your glutes firing. Our first exercise is a simple Glute Bridge. Hit the dirt lying face up and knees bent to 90 degrees. Push your hands into the ground to engage the core and drive your hips up. You should be creating a nice straight line from your knees, through your hips and to your shoulders. Squeeze your butt for 5 breaths and relax back down. Repeat for 5 reps.
Our next core exercise is a Shoulder Elevated Single Leg Bridge. Put your shoulders on the park bench both feet on the ground and knees at 90 degrees. Keep back and hips parallel to the ground as you bring one foot off the ground. Hold that position for 10 seconds and switch legs. Repeat this three times.
The last core exercise is a Short Lever Side Bridge. Lying on your side, line up your shoulders, hips and knees in a single line. Push your hips up leaving your bottom elbow and knee the only parts of your body on the ground. Hold for 20 seconds on each side and don’t forget to BREATH during this exercise!
The final piece of the puzzle is conditioning OR sprinting (my favorite). My go to options for these (figure 3); interval training for conditioning (which is not sprint training). Find an interval you feel comfortable pushing yourself through. Most people pick 30 seconds of work and go 30 seconds of rest. Push yourself for that 30 seconds with a fast pace walk, jog, run, or running bleachers / stairs. Go as hard as you can for 30 seconds. Then just REST for 30 seconds. Do this pattern 10 times which is a total of 10 minutes of intervals.
Sprinting is its own skill and should be done with FULL REST after each rep (4 minutes to 10 minutes). Sprinting by definition is giving max effort and if you think about it, you can’t give 100% if you’re tired. My first workout for sprint training is to mark off 40 yards on a track or open field. Go through the movement prep then do your sprints. Keep track of your time to see how you progress. I program these workouts for my athletes with performance a main objective. However, lots of former athletes and weekend warriors like a challenge and welcome this kind of training.
Done in a circuit fashion, you can have this workout done in 30 minutes. The benefit of doing the circuit is that even after you have finished your workout, you will still be burning calories! Side-note: For those not accustomed to sprinting since high school, you will be extremely sore. Manage this with good tissue work and only hit 2 sprinting workouts / week.
Taking advantage of your environment and getting control of of your own physical activity has many benefits. Some of these include; an easy and effective way to get in shape, burn calories, reduce stress, and get your endorphins pumping! When you feel like you are ready for an upgrade, reach out for an upgrade! We have workout plans online or if the quarantine has been lifted, we could actually meet up in person for an even more individualized workout program!
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