Combining two basic exercises for a body-weight routine can produce results from head to toe.
You don’t always have easy access to a gym. But that doesn’t have to stop you from getting a full body workout wherever you are. Below, I will lay out a routine that uses only your body weight and your own muscle power to provide the resistance you need for a complete upper and lower body workout.
Lunge to Lateral Plank:
1. Start in a basic lunge position, with your back knee 2 to 3 inches off the floor, front knee at a right angle and your back straight. Rise up but don’t go into full extension, instead keeping the knee over the ankle.
2. Drop back down into the lunge and place the hand opposite to your forward knee on the floor below the shoulder.
3. Rotate your body into a lateral plank position, with the arm straight and legs stacked.
4. Rotate back to basic plank, returning to your starting lunge position.
5. Stand up.
Repetitions: Beginners, 6-12 and Advanced 15-25
Sets: 3
This Combination exercise is perfect for those individuals who engage in sports-specific activities that require significant lateral flexibility and power. Anything from golf and tennis to snow-skiing and sand waterskiing will be improved from this routine. The primary muscles used are the quadriceps and glutes during the lunge and the obliques, rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis and lower-back muscles during the lateral plank.
Once you have mastered the above sequence, you can move on to these three advanced moves.
A. Plyo-Lunge: Introduce a jump to the top phase of the lunge, keeping both legs in the same position at takeoff and landing (and throughout). This will increase the intensity of the exercise and stress the neuromuscular coordination necessary in all sports.
B. Raised Leg Lateral Plank: During the lateral plank portion of the exercise, raise the top the top stacked leg. This challenge stabilizer muscles, mainly the obliques. To help with your balance, raise the top arm during the variation.
C. Bent Elbow Lateral Plank: During the lateral plank portion of the exercise, bend the elbow of the arm touching the ground and hold for 3 – 5 seconds. This will trigger more activation for the triceps and shoulder stability as well as challenge the lats, pecs and serratus anterior and posterior muscles.
Yesterday, we had a 10 mile run scheduled. I was nervous for most of the week because my shins have been hurting. Badly. Intensely. It hurt to walk.
Shin pain is nothing new to me. I went through it last training cycle. I managed to survive with RICE. So far during this training cycle, I haven’t had a rest week. My body finally demanded on Saturday that I take a week off.
We started the morning donning our brand new hydration belts: Amphipod Velocity Full Tilt Hydration waist pack–
First of all, friendboy and I made a mistake in failing to test drive this new hydration pack before the long run. We spent the first 2 miles of our run adjusting and situating the darn thing. Then I got completely exasperated and took it off. I lengthened the belt as far as it would go and wore it across my body–with the strap over my left shoulder and the bottle under my right arm. That worked for about a mile. Then by the time I was ready to readjust I sprinted to catch up to my boyfriend and I felt lightening travel up the front of my left leg. I had to stop. Not to adjust my strap. To do the walk of shame all the way home. There was no way I would have been able to run another step. I can barely walk even still and you can just forget about squatting. So, we haven’t yet figured the hydration belt out. I don’t know what the trick is. Wear it low on the hips? Wear it high on the waist? Is it supposed to be tight? What gives with this thing?
Once I returned home, I consulted my training calendar and realize now that I haven’t had a week off. So, this is it. I soaked my lower legs in some ice water. I need to sit in an ice bath because my hips hurt too but I am dreading that to no end. I will just try and be nice to myself and recuperate the best I can. Our 5 mile race is on Saturday so I feel like I should be good to go by then. Lord willing.
I have finally taken a pic or two of my January socks!!
My favorite socks. Well my new favorite socks. Would you believe I am still working on my February socks? It is so.
I am thinking that with all this rest, I will actually finish them before Tuesday. At least, that is what I am hoping so off I go!!
I hope the friendboy has forgotten about my ice bath.
One of the most difficult things about working out is staying motivated. You start off strong and are all excited about implementing your new lifestyle. You got the new clothes, you finally joined the gym or bought some great new workout DVD’s, and you’re into it… for about a week. Then the excuses come, and they come easier and easier as the days pass. Your enthusiasm has waned big time! So what’s a girl to do? Motivation is huge and it will help to propel you through those low times when you feel like you just can’t muster the energy needed to get yourself to workout. You put in one day at the gym this week and you think, well, at least I did that. But how do you get yourself to be excited about working out? You need to stop thinking of it as a chore and see it as a release, something you are doing for yourself because you know you’re worth it.
Here are some ways I stay motivated, because there are those days when I would rather sit on the sofa watching a marathon of Housewives of Orange County than workout!
One thing I did, and I know many people would be against this but it does help, is I took a before photo. I got down to my knickers and braved the camera. Talk about motivation! Now I have something to refer to when I know I’ve been working out hard, and I can see the results. Pictures don’t lie.
Another great motivator is to find something you truly enjoy. I started taking cardio kickboxing and love it! And spinning classes are great too. I know I’m going to walk out of those classes covered in sweat and that makes me feel great. I’ve also started playing squash with my husband. It’s definitely a difficult game but we have a great time playing with each other, so much so that it doesn’t even feel like working out.
How about setting a fitness goal for yourself, like running a 5k? Having an event to train for is a fabulous motivator and will make excuses harder to swallow. Especially if you tell your friends and family what you are doing, they will be there to support you… and you don’t want to let them down.
Rewarding yourself is a great idea too. After putting in a solid month of working out, allow yourself a facial, or a massage. Who wouldn’t want that?
Hiring a personal trainer is a definite motivator, it takes all the thinking out of working out. They are there for you, designing specialized programs and are your own personal cheerleaders, helping you every step of the way.
Training with a friend helps to make it more fun. You get to help each other out, keep each other honest and laugh while working out. You can’t lose with the buddy system!
There are so many more ways to motivate yourself, you just have to figure out what works for you and will help you to be successful. You’ve taken the first step in starting a program, now it’s all about the follow-through, and you can do it if you set your mind to it and keep the motivation flowing!
(And sorry for text heavy blog, I’m working off my sister’s PC and neither one of us knows where photos go once you download them from the internet. MAC living is so much easier!)
I BROUGHT IT today! My arms are still a little shaky and I’m lovin it. That means that tomorrow I’m going to be sore, and I welcome it with open arms. lol.
I’m noticing changes but I haven’t been bringing it the way I brought it today, so now I know what I can do and I’m gonna go for it in every workout from now on. I feel good and I got a little more motivation to bring it harder every day until day 90.
Ab Ripper X is another is another story. I pushed through the in & outs, I did the forward bicycles and did 75% of the reverse bicycles, and I even did 40 mason twists, but some of those other moves just kick my ass up and down the mat. I tried to bring it though, I really did. But I know that by the end of these 90 days, I’ll be doing every single move with a few extra reps. Bet!
I just have to make sure to keep my diet in check. I cheated a few times this week and last week. Had 3 small pancakes today, but I did get my protein in, and I realize that I can’t eat all they say I should. It’s just not possible for me to eat that much, especially if I’m not hungry. When I am hungry though, I can’t figure out what to eat, so I’m going to have to plan my meals for the week in advance. I think that’s just what it’s going to take for me to follow the diet and get the most from the program.
I didn’t do Stretch X yesterday so I’m going to do it later on today. I need the stretching and to get my flexibility back. I actually want to make more time in my schedule to hit the gym at school and get my $46/semerster’s worth of treadmill time. So that’s what I’m going to do…figure out when I can get on that treadmill and get in some extra cardio.
Invest in Yourself…
You Can Be Your Greatest Reward!
Let’s talk about investments. When you invest money in something, whether it is in a much-needed appliance, a retirement plan, or an education…you expect good results. When you make an investment of time, energy or money in something you want to accomplish, you expect a reasonable return on that investment and want to be proud of the outcome.
Many people start the New Year with resolutions with good intentions, but fail to realize the results desired. Rather than wasting time expressing resolutions, take the time to ponder and explore what investments you can make that will develop into the lifelong results you are seeking.
Do you want to lose weight and inches? Would you like to…feel and look great? Have more energy and mental clarity? Reduce joint pain and inflammation? Maintain healthy blood pressure and glucose levels? Avoid or reduce the usage of prescription medications? Improve the overall quality of your life and your family’s well-being?
The science behind long term weight loss demonstrates the best way to lose weight and keep it off is not by dieting, but by making healthy lifestyle choices. The added benefit to weight loss is improved overall health. Educating one’s self is the foundation, but making the investment to take action on the information is the catapult to achieving wellness.
It is time to break out of the trap and invest in lifelong wellness. You can begin with developing simple good habits to overcome detrimental habits that are wrecking havoc in your body.
Make a commitment to yourself to invest in a 90-day plan, one day at a time, to adopt new lifestyle choices that can radically change your life for the better.
1. Healthy Eating – Low Glycemic Impact Foods
Educate yourself on eating healthy following a low-glycemic index way of eating. This is not a diet, but new habits for life that when followed will result in loss of inches and pounds with tremendous benefits related to balancing blood glucose levels. It is encouraging to find that most people report increased energy, mental clarity, reduced pain and inflammation in joints.
2. Behavior Modification – New Healthy Habits
Learning healthy eating habits is the foundation, but taking action is most important to achieve results. Writing in a daily journal is the best way to stay focused, incorporate new habits into your lifestyle and see your progress. You will be amazed how tracking what you eat daily, your exercise and stress reduction activities and your thoughts keeps you focused on one snack, one meal, one day at a time – leading to newly developed practices and greater lifetime results.
3. Change Body Composition – Exercise & Stress Reduction
Exercising regularly is necessary for healthy living. The objective is to select an exercise regimen that meets your needs, is simple to follow and is focused on stretching, breathing and increasing muscle activity and development. If you have not been exercising regularly, a great beginning is to wear a pedometer and begin increasing the steps taken each day.
In the book, Dare to Lose, Dr. Shari Lieberman, a registered dietician and best-selling author, points out diets don’t work. If they did, people wouldn’t have to keep going on them. She dares you to stop dieting and implement simple steps to a better body by making an investment in a way of life that will make a difference for the long term. She developed the Transitions Lifestyle System clinically proven to provide twice the weight loss and three times the inches lost of Atkins, Ornish, Weight Watchers and Zone diets.
The Transitions Lifestyle System is a simple and complete approach to weight management that works by removing the emphasis on dieting and replacing it with a complete lifestyle approach. The program is delivered through a series of DVD based educational segments combined with exercise, coaching and journaling to help people either individually or in groups to take charge of their life, lose weight and inches, and realize wellness.
80% of illnesses can be prevented with lifestyle changes…
It’s time you invest in yourself and realize your gr8future!
Live Well!
Hilanne Myers
800-221.7167
Hilanne is a professionally trained wellness consultant and coach who works with people to implement healthy lifestyles to achieve optimal wellness. Four years ago, Hilanne personally focused on making lifestyle and nutritional changes and experienced success with the Transitions Lifestyle System, losing weight, dropping 3 sizes and reversing bone mineral density loss. She is an advocate for educating individuals and communities in wellness by making better lifestyle choices.
I don’t mind pulling weeds in my yard. In fact, I find it kind of mesmerizing and thought provoking.
Day dreaming and dreaming.
I am sending my information in to a production company based in New Mexico. They are wanting male and female horse riders for the movie “True Grit.”
Pulling weeds I found myself thinking about what it would be like on the set and out in the desert. I thought about the different kind of people that would be on the set, what the director and producer would be like and how many people would be there. In my thoughts I found myself meeting all sorts of fabulous, fun, interesting, humorous folks from all over the place. At one point I even found the man of my dreams…funny thing is, I don’t know what he looked like or anything about him. I just found him.
I began to wonder what my daughter dreams about when she is sitting idle or is writing in her journal. What makes that little girl tick? What excites her and makes her want to move? I know she loves music, wants to play the key board and travel.
I saw myself getting one of the horse rider positions and having to leave my home and my children behind for a short while. I saw my children on the set with me at one point during the filming so we didn’t have to be apart the whole time.
I saw myself getting more paid stand-in movie positions and giving back to charity and buying my dad his dream car. I can see myself modeling for different clothing magazines.
Hey! Other people have made bigger things happen in the mid, prime times of their life, why shouldn’t I be able to too??? I already said in one of my posts that I am a late bloomer…I can do this.
Bigger and better things are in front of me. I can feel it. I envision it. God knows what dreams He’s put in my heart. He’s put many, that’s for sure and I keep plugging away at them. They go away, they resurface, I work on them slowly and keep asking God, “What am I supposed to do next?” He keeps guiding me even when I’m feeling lost and without focus. He somehow keeps me in motion and is always by my side.
I’ll keep dreaming through the weeds. I’m going to find that lush, beautiful field blooming just for me. I’m looking forward to giving on a much larger scale like I’ve always imagined I would.
PR Log (Press Release) – Mar 01, 2010 – As Iconic Olympic videos go, Hermann Maiers crash at the Winter Olympics is up there with the best of them. The sight of Hermann Maier, a legend of Downhill skiing crashing through the barrier at the Winter Olympics had everybody fearing the worse. However, Hermann Maier made a speedy recovery and went on to win 2 gold medals at the same Olympics. Skiing Injuries
The crash involving Hermann Maier proved that even the best Skiers in the world can get injured. If you are an amateur Skier you will inevitably have a number of injuries. Lower Back Pain
Pain Control can help you recover from most injuries, especially lower back injuries. Our product range includes Lumbar Supports to aid recovery from lower back injuries. Ankle Injuries
Pain Control also stock products to aid the recovery of acute ankle pain. Pain Control currently recommends the Active Ankle Brace.
‘Falling is the easy part, getting back up, that’s the hard part’ – Herman Maier 2006 – Iconic Herman Maier Video
Herman Maier
Hermann Maier (born December 7, 1972, in Altenmarkt im Pongau) is a former Austrian alpine ski racer. Maier has won four overall World Cup titles (1998, 2000, 2001, 2004), two Olympic gold medals (both in 1998), three World Championship titles (1999: 2, and 2005) and 54 races on the World Cup circuit. He was nicknamed the “Herminator”. http://www.paincontrol.co.uk
