I woke up later than usual today and found that I did not want to do my usual 45 minute to an hour fat burning cardio-machine workout! By the way it is OK and even encouraged to switch up the type of exercise you perform on your body in order to get the best results. When a person sticks to the same routine for too long, their muscles become familiar with that movement and it becomes easier to do and thus less energy (ATP) is used, which means less calories are burned, which means less weight will be lost!
Instead I will do my core, leg and arm work out. This consists of 8 different core workouts that I do consecutively without more than a 10 second break, followed by 5 different leg workouts and I usually end with push ups and dips if I am at home, if I am at the gym I also add pull ups to my routine.A few of my friends have asked me about my routine so here are some pictures that I got off the net. Hope it will be helpful.
Core
1. I either do a Pilates or plank position for 45 sec to 1 minute to warm up.
Pilates: Lay on the floor making sure the lower back is touching the floor. Think belly button to floor. Lift legs about 30 degrees, raise head and shoulders and hold them there and lift arms straight up along the side of the body. Once in this position, the arms in unison, will begin to push down towards the floor, without actually touching it, a 100 times. Make sure to breath while in this position. Stay focused on Breathing and pressing those arms down and back up and back down etc...This is a great warm up! It should look like this:
Plank: Grab a stop watch and make sure that your body is, like a plank, and completely leveled. Make sure your back is not arched and your butt isnt too high up. Keep your abs tight. Look at picture below.
2. Regular Crunches. I do one or two sets of 30. You don't want to do too many at first. That will only cause you to tear muscle, which will hurt for days and will cause you to most likely not want to do this exercise again.
3. Bent legs, arm at sides or behind head:
4. Bicycle exercise: Make sure that the shoulders are off the floor. Also, make sure to do this on both sides. I usually do 1-2 sets of 30.
5. Leg lifts: Lie on your back, knees pulled up to chest and hands under your butt to support your lower back. Uncurl legs straight out, keeping them six inches from the floor. (Don't let them touch the ground!) Lift legs straight up so that they're perpendicular to the floor and add a small lift of your butt. Curl legs back into the start position. Do three sets of 10.
Read more: Best Body - Get a Better Body - Real Beauty
6. Side leg lifts: This specifically targets the outer thighs, glutes, lower abs, and obliques.Do three sets of 10 on both sides.
Read more: Best Body - Get a Better Body - Real Beauty
(For those of us with knee injuries, please be very careful with the exercising that require you to bend your knees. Listen to your body and if something doesn't feel good, Stop doing it.)
Squats: Bend through your knees until your hips come to or lower than parallel. Once your hip joint is lower than your knee joint you Squat up again. Every muscle works when you Squat: your legs move the weight, your abs & lower back stabilize it, your arms squeeze the bar, etc. The Squat is NOT just a leg exercise, it's a full body exercise. I do two sets of 10.
Lunges: Step forward with the front leg and bend both knees while keeping your core engaged and the rest of the body balanced and stable. Don't let the back knee touch the ground.You can make this exercise a bit harder once you get the hang of it, by holding a free weight in each hand. I do two sets of 10.
Side Lunge Instruction:
Side Leg lifts:
Outer Thigh:
Inner Thigh:
Push Ups: Very important in doing it correctly otherwise you can sustain injuries.Your arms are carrying all of the weight. Keep the rest of your body leveled out! Same as in plank position!
Dips: Specifically target triceps. Lower your body by leaning back on your arms and bending your knees. Lower until your buttock is below the edge you are holding on to, hold for a moment and come back into the starting, straight arm, position. Make sure you are Not moving forward, but instead moving yourself down towards the floor. Keep the core engaged.
Pull Ups: Work all the major muscles of your back, as well as your grip strength, forearm strength and biceps. In short, it works nearly all the muscles of your upper body including parts of your shoulders, chest, and triceps.
*Always attempt to check your body positioning with every exercise. It may seem tedious at first but that is the best way to check that you will be performing the exercise correctly, safely and getting the best results.
*It is also a good idea to perform stretching after a workout to lengthen all of the muscles that have been engaged in work throughout your session.
** Please understand that I am not yet a certified personal trainer. Everything that I have learned so far has been from my studies, receiving training from other personal trainers, exercise enthusiasts and exercise magazines, dvd's, etc. These exercises are not necessarily beneficial for everyone. This is my routine for the moment until my muscles become too familiar with the movements or until I get bored. It is important for you to understand how to properly perform each of the exercises to ensure that you do it safely and to get the most effective results. If you are trying some of these for the first time, I would do it in front of a mirror or with a friends. Do Not continue performing any exercise if you feel it is too difficult or are feeling pain other than the normal soreness from a workout. If you are not generally an active person, it may be a good idea to consult with a physician before performing these workouts.**
7. Full Sit ups. Doesn't matter how many you do. Its more important to do them correctly! Watch Video below.
8. Plank side leg lifts. Lie on your side with your body straight, leaning on your elbow, forearm pointing forward. Brace your core, front and sides. Raise your body off the ground so that you form a straight line, from shoulder to feet. Reach to the sky with your top arm.
Movement: Sweep the top arm down, take it under your body and reach as far back as possible, while holding your hips up.
Jorg J. Mardian Exercise Therapy, Personal Training, Nutrition has some great advice on what to pay attention to when doing core exercises.
Mistakes to avoid
Don’t pull on your neck with your hands, and don’t let momentum carry you through the set; make your abs work on each and every crunch. Also, avoid holding your breath and don’t let your lower back arch off the ground.
Crunches are also the best flat stomach exercise because there are tons of variations. There is the reverse crunch, the oblique crunch, the ball crunch, the bicycle crunch, or even the vertical leg crunch just to name a few. The abdominal crunch allows you variation to avoid boredom and to work all the abdominal muscles and create the flat stomach you’ve always wanted.
Just remember that exercise alone won’t give you a flat stomach. You also require the following:
- Cardio to burn body fat.
- Flat Stomach Exercises
- A healthy diet to show off that flat stomach.
- Consistency in working out.
Legs
Squats: Bend through your knees until your hips come to or lower than parallel. Once your hip joint is lower than your knee joint you Squat up again. Every muscle works when you Squat: your legs move the weight, your abs & lower back stabilize it, your arms squeeze the bar, etc. The Squat is NOT just a leg exercise, it's a full body exercise. I do two sets of 10.
Outer Thigh:
Arms
Push Ups: Very important in doing it correctly otherwise you can sustain injuries.Your arms are carrying all of the weight. Keep the rest of your body leveled out! Same as in plank position!
*Always attempt to check your body positioning with every exercise. It may seem tedious at first but that is the best way to check that you will be performing the exercise correctly, safely and getting the best results.
*It is also a good idea to perform stretching after a workout to lengthen all of the muscles that have been engaged in work throughout your session.
** Please understand that I am not yet a certified personal trainer. Everything that I have learned so far has been from my studies, receiving training from other personal trainers, exercise enthusiasts and exercise magazines, dvd's, etc. These exercises are not necessarily beneficial for everyone. This is my routine for the moment until my muscles become too familiar with the movements or until I get bored. It is important for you to understand how to properly perform each of the exercises to ensure that you do it safely and to get the most effective results. If you are trying some of these for the first time, I would do it in front of a mirror or with a friends. Do Not continue performing any exercise if you feel it is too difficult or are feeling pain other than the normal soreness from a workout. If you are not generally an active person, it may be a good idea to consult with a physician before performing these workouts.**
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