The Squat Destruction Workout

The Squat Destruction Workout

WARM UP
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Hamstrings
Groin
Hips/Glutes
Back

WORKOUT

For each circuit, complete the hold then the reps of the weighted move and then the bodyweight movement. Rest 60 to 90 seconds between rounds. You will be rested but not fully rested when you go. Do not shorten the rest time especially if it means you can’t maintain what you did the round before. Rest 2-3 minutes between circuits.

CIRCUIT #1:
30 seconds Wall Sit
10-15 reps Dumbbell Squat to Press
15-20 reps Squat Jacks

CIRCUIT #2:
30 seconds Sumo Stance Squat Hold
10-15 reps (KB) Sumo Squat
15-20 reps Toe Squat

COOL DOWN
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Hamstrings
Groin
Hips/Glutes
Back

NOTES:

Before the workout, in your Warm Up, it would be good to really loosen up your hips and also really activate your glutes. Include maybe some Bridges and even some Fire Hydrants to get your glutes working and your hips open before you squat. If your inner thighs are also tight, make sure to loosen them up before the Sumo Squats!

Do the most challenging variation of each move that you can, but try not to rest between moves. Only really rest between rounds, which may mean your quads feel extremely burned out by the end of the round. You may have to start with light weights as well!

EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS:

Wall Sit – To do the Wall Sit, you will sit against the wall. Stand with your back to a wall and your feet about hip-width apart. Then sink down into a squat and press your back into the wall behind you. When you sink into the squat, try to get your quads parallel to the ground and make sure your ankles are aligned under your knees. Hold there and drive your back into the wall. You can also do this with a narrow or wide stance if you want to mix it up. If you start to feel this in your low back, try engaging your core with a pelvic tilt. Press your low back toward the wall. To make this move easier, don’t sink as low in the squat or move your feet out just a bit from the wall. Do not let your ankles get too far out in front of your knees though. To make this move harder, hold a weight or even try a Single Leg Wall Sit.

wall-sit
Dumbbell Squat to Press – To do the Dumbbell Squat to Press, grab a dumbbell in each hand and bring the weights up to your shoulders. You can hold the weights with your palms facing forward or with your palms facing in toward each other. Holding the weights at your shoulders, squat down sinking as low as you can. Then drive back up to standing and press the weights straight up overhead. Make sure you don’t go forward as you squat down. Also make sure to press the weights straight up. Do not let your arms go out wide or all over the place. The more you use your legs to press, the easier it should be on your upper body to press the weights. If you want to do a stricter press, squat then stand up and press once you are fully standing.

dumbbell-squat-to-press
Squat Jacks – To do Squat Jacks, start standing with your feet together. Reach your hands up overhead and then sink into a little squat. Make sure to sit your butt back. This position should look like Chair Pose. Staying low in the squat, jump your feet out wide, about shoulder-width apart. As you jump out, also bring your hands down and in between your legs to reach for the ground. Do not stand up out of the squat as you jump your feet out wide. Try to touch your hands to the ground as you keep your butt down in the squat and chest up. Even try to squat lower as you jump your feet out wide. Then jump your feet back together and bring your hands back overhead. Stay low in the squat the entire time and move quickly. Try not to stand up as you jump your feet back in. However, beginners may need to stand up as they bring their feet together and only squat as they jump their feet out.

jumping-jack-variation
Sumo Stance Squat Hold – To do the Sumo Stance Squat Hold, set up with your feet wider than shoulder-width and your toes turned out. Then sit your butt down and back and hold with your quads about parallel to the ground. Keep your chest up and butt down as you hold. Do not let your heels come up or your knees cave in.
(KB) Sumo Squat – To do the Sumo Squat with a kettlebell, hold a kettlebell in both hands and set your feet wider than shoulder-width apart. Turn your toes out slightly as you stand in a wide stance with the kettlebell hanging down in front of you. Squat down, sitting your butt down and back. Do not let your knees cave in as you squat. Drop the kettlebell to the ground but do not round forward. Then drive back up to standing and squeeze your glutes at the top.

sumo-squat
Toe Squat – To do the Toe Squat, set up with your feet wider than shoulder-width and toes slightly turned out. Then press up as high as you can onto your toes. Keeping your chest up and heels up off the ground, squat down as low as you can. Sit your butt down and back while staying balanced and then come back up to standing. Try not to touch your heels down between reps. Sink as low as you can and move in a slow and controlled fashion.

toe-squat

The Upper Body Bodyweight Workout

The Upper Body Bodyweight Workout

WARM UP
Stretch and Roll Out:
Wrists/Forearms
Chest/Back
Shoulders/Traps
Hips/Glutes

WORKOUT

Complete 3-5 rounds of each circuit. Try not to rest between exercises, but rest up to 1 minute between rounds. Rest 1-2 minutes between circuits.

CIRCUIT #1:
30 seconds Handstand Hold
10 reps Fly to Push Up
10-15 reps per side Sprinter Sit Ups

CIRCUIT #2:
30 seconds Scapular Wall Hold
15 reps Inverted Rows or Scapular Wall Rows
10-15 reps Superman

COOL DOWN
Stretch and Roll Out:
Wrists/Forearms
Chest/Back
Shoulders/Traps
Hips/Glutes

NOTES:
Complete the hold then move right into the next two exercises. Rest only between rounds.

EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS:

Handstand Hold – The most basic Handstand Hold is very similar to the downward dog. Start on your hands and knees. Then push back and up, raising your hips up toward the ceiling as you straighten your arms and press your chest back toward your legs. Focus on getting your back flat and a nice straight line from the heels of your hands up to your tailbone. You want your arms to be in line with your torso (aka biceps by the ears). Push your butt back and up. Do not worry about keeping your legs straight like in downward dog. Also, do not walk your feet in toward your hands. Push your butt up and create a nice straight line with your back. To advance that basic hold, place your feet up on a table. Walk your hands in toward the table and press your butt up in the air. You want to straighten your arms so your head is hanging down between your hands straight down toward the ground. Create a nice straight line from your palms up to your tailbone. Do not worry about straightening your legs. The higher the box, the harder the move. To do a Full Assisted Handstand, you can walk your feet up a wall. The closer to the wall you get, the harder the move will be. From there, you can move into a full handstand. No matter which variation you are currently able to do, you are going to create stability and strength throughout your core by doing Handstand Holds!
handstand holds
Fly to Push Up – To do the Beginner Fly to Push Up, set up in a push up position with one hand on a Valslide and the other hand on the ground. You can do this from your knees to make it easier or from your toes to make it harder. Then slide the hand on the slider out to the side and perform a push up. As you push up, slide the hand on the slider back in toward your hand on the ground. Repeat, completing all reps on one side before switching.
slider-fly-to-push-up
If the single slider Fly to Push Up is too much, this move can be done by just stepping the hand out to the side on the ground or even on an incline. To advance the Fly to Push Up, you will use two sliders. Again this variation can be done from your knees (easier) or toes (harder). Start at the top of a push up and then slide one hand out to the side and perform a push up. Push up and slide the hand back into the starting position. Even though this is a wider push up, don’t let your elbows flare way out by your ears. Slide the other hand out on the slider and perform a push up. Keep alternating sides until all reps are complete.
slider-fly-to-push-up
You can advance the movement further by sliding both hands out to the side as you lower into the push up and then pull them back in as you come back up out of the push up. You will perform the fly as you perform the push up instead of sliding out, doing a push up and sliding back in. With all the different variations, do not let your butt go up in the air or your hips sag toward the ground as you do the push up. Also make sure not to shrug or let your elbows flare up by your ears. You want to create more of an arrow position (->) with your arms and upper body than a “T” as you do the push up.
fly-push-up
Sprinter Sit Ups – Lie on your back and raise both legs straight out off the ground. Beginners may keep one leg on the ground. Crunch your upper body up so that you are sitting on your sit bones and then bring one knee into your chest. Lie back down and straighten both legs back out. Then bring the other knee into the chest as you crunch back up. Keep alternating, trying to keep both legs off the ground when you straighten back out. Do not let your chest cave when you crunch up. Keep your back flat as you crunch up and bring one knee in.
sprinter-sit-up
Scapular Wall Hold –To do the Scapular Wall Hold, stand about six inches from the wall. With your back to the wall and your elbows bent in by your side, drive your chest out and your elbows back. Then lean back against the wall on your elbows. Only your elbows should touch as you lean back. Draw your shoulder blades down and back and make sure to drive your chest out and open toward the ceiling. Do not shrug your shoulders and keep your body in a nice straight line as if holding a plank. Keep your head in line with your spine and do not tuck your chin. Walk your feet back toward the wall to make the move easier or walk them away to make the move harder. Make sure to drive the chest out and draw your shoulder blades down and together as you hold.
bat-wing
Inverted Row/Scapular Wall Row/Corner Row – Stand in a corner with your back relaxing against the walls and your feet about six inches from the corner. (You can also do this just off the wall like demonstrated above if you don’t have a useable corner.) Place an elbow against each wall with your elbows bent. With your body in a nice straight line, drive off the wall with your elbows, pressing your chest out and pinching your shoulder blades down and back. Relax back into the corner, keeping your body in a nice straight line from your head to your heels. Do not arch your low back as you press out. Also, make sure not to shrug your shoulders. The further from the corner that you walk your feet out, the harder the Corner Row will be. If you have a suspension trainer, you can do Inverted Rows instead.
corner-row back exercise
Superman – Lie face down on the ground with your arms out straight overhead on the ground and your legs out straight behind you. Everything should be relaxed and your neck should be in a neutral position. Then squeeze your glutes, back and shoulders to raise your chest and legs up off the ground. Try to get your chest up as high as possible as well as your quads. Keep your neck in a neutral position. Hold up off the ground for a second then lower back down and repeat the lift. Keep your arms and legs straight as you lift but do not lock them out. Do not bend your knees to try to get your quads higher up off the ground. Make sure to really squeeze your glutes as you lift so your low back doesn’t do all the work. And also make sure not to shrug as you lift your upper body up.
superman-exercise

The Unilateral Booty Burner Workout

The Unilateral Booty Burner Workout

WARM UP
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Hamstrings
Hips/Glutes

WORKOUT

Complete 2-4 rounds of each superset. Do not rest between exercises. Do both on one side then switch sides. Each side will rest while the other completes both moves. Then rest 1-2 minutes between supersets. Make sure you push so that the moves burn and your flutes are pumped.

SUPERSET #1:
15 reps per side each way Side Balance Circles FWD/BWD
20 reps per side Side Balance Leg Lifts

SUPERSET #2:
20 reps per side Straight Leg Kickbacks
15 reps per side 3-Way Leg Circles

COOL DOWN
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Hamstrings
Hips/Glutes

NOTES:

It’s very important that you push through the burn and complete both moves back to back. It is better to rest longer between rounds than to rest between the exercises although you get the best pump if you can push a little through the burn.

Make sure to complete a full range of motion and not rush too much as you fatigue.

This burner can also be shortened into a Warm Up or even a “Burn Out” after a leg day. Although it is a great in-between heavy leg lifts workout as well if you really want to build your butt!

EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS:

Side Balance Circles FWD/BWD – Start on one knee with your other leg straight out to the side. Then place your hand down to the outside of your knee so you are a side balance position almost like a Side Plank. Then lift the straight leg up to about parallel to the ground and begin to circle the leg from the hip. Make as big of circles as possible. Complete all circles forward then go backward. Make sure to keep the leg up and feel the outside of your glute and hip working.

side balance hip circles
Side Balance Leg Lifts – Set up in the Side Balance position. Then lift your straight leg up to parallel to the ground and lower back down. Complete all reps on one side before switching.

side balance leg lifts flute activation
Straight Leg Kickbacks – 
To do the Straight Leg Kickback, set up on your hands and knees with your hands under your shoulders and your knees under your hips. Flex your feet. Then kick one leg back, driving your heel straight back into the wall behind you. Squeeze the glute as you lift the leg and drive the heel toward the wall behind you. Make sure to keep your arms straight as you kick back and your abs engaged. Don’t arch your low back just to try to kick your leg back higher. Try to get your quad to about parallel to the ground. Also make sure to keep your hips square to the ground. Do not rotate open as you kick back. The height of the kickback doesn’t matter as long as you feel your hips extend and your glutes engage. You do not want to feel this move in your low back. Hold for a second or two at the top and really contract your glutes before lowering back down. Don’t rush the movement. The slower you go and the longer you hold, the harder the move will be. Complete all reps on one side before switching.

straight-leg-kickback
3-Way Leg Circles – Start on your hands and knees like with the Fire Hydrant. Flex your feet. You will then kick one leg back like with the Donkey Kick. Hold here for a second. Make sure to keep your arms straight and squeeze your glutes. Then, without lowering the leg day, bring the leg up to the side into the Fire Hydrant position. Keep your foot flexed and knee bent to 90 degrees. Without touching the knee down, drive the knee forward towards your elbow. Feel your abs engage as you hold. Lower yourself back down and repeat on the same side starting with the Donkey Kick.

glute activation hip circles

The Mud Run Workout

The Mud Run Workout

WARM UP Stretch and Roll Out: Calves Hamstrings Quads Groin Hips/Glutes Back/Chest Shoulders/Arms Traps WORKOUT Set a timer for 30 seconds of work, 15 seconds of active rest to transition to the next move. Perform 1 minute of active rest between rounds. Complete 5-8 rounds. CIRCUIT: 30 seconds Rope Climb Variation 15 seconds High Knees (in place) 30 seconds Table Top Crawl Forward/Backward 15 seconds Jumping Jacks 30 seconds Hop Over 15 seconds Agility Ladder 30 seconds Rope Pull Up/Jumping Rope Pull Up 15 seconds Sit Thrus 30 seconds Jump Over Climb Under 15 seconds Monkey Bars 30 seconds Explosive Step Ups 1 minute Jog in place COOL DOWN Stretch and Roll Out: Calves Hamstrings Quads Groin Hips/Glutes Back/Chest Shoulders/Arms Traps NOTES: Active rest means you do the exercise but at an easier pace so your heart rate comes down, but you continue to move. It is in a way mimicking the ups and downs of a mud run where you do an obstacle or two but then have to jog for awhile between. The active rest are still challenging moves, but just focus on cruising through them during the 15 seconds. Beginners may need to walk instead of jog for the minute and complete fewer rounds. EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS: Rope Climb Variation and Rope Pull Up/Jumping Rope Pull Up – For the Rope Climb Variations, you can do the Horizontal Climbs, Foot Assisted Climbs or Upper Body Climbs Only depending on your level. See this post for demos of each move as well as the Pull Up Variations. If you don’t have a rope, you can do Inverted Rows and Pull Ups Variations. how-to-climb-a-rope-using-your-feet High Knees (in place) – Bring your knees up forward as high as you can as you jog in place. You also can move around if you have room. Table Top Crawl Forward/Backward – (You can also include any crawling variation in this post) To do the Table Top Crawl, set up on your hands and knees with your knees under your hips and your hands under your shoulders. Flex your feet and lift up onto your toes/the balls of your feet. Then take a step forward with your left foot and right hand, keeping your knees close to the ground and your back flat. Make sure to brace your core so that your hips don’t wiggle a lot side to side as you crawl forward. Then step forward with your right foot and left hand. Keep crawling forward, moving the opposite arm and opposite leg together. Take small steps forward so that you don’t get too spread out. You don’t want your hips to start to wiggle and your butt to go up in the air. Also, keep your knees as close to the ground as possible. You can also do the Table Top Crawl backward. Backward may be a bit more challenging and harder on the shoulders. Make sure to keep your steps small, especially when starting out, so that you don’t overload your shoulders and can keep up the contralateral movement. To do the Table Top Crawl backward, step back with the opposite arm and leg. Make sure you don’t get too spread out as you crawl backward. If you reach too far back with your feet and get too stretched out, your going to put a lot of pressure on your shoulders and then you wont’ be able to move fluidly. Keep you steps nice and short and compact to start with and your knees close to the ground. Make sure to brace your core and keep your butt down. basic crawl Hop Over – To do the Hop Over, you need a box, bench, punching bag or any other object you can place your hands on and jump over. Stand to one side of the bag or bench with your feet together. Place your hands down on the bag, and putting weight on your hands, jump your feet over the bag to the other side. Keep your feet together as you jump. As soon as you land, jump your feet back over the bag. Continue to do quick hops back and forth over the bag using the support of your hands. Move as quickly as possible, hopping back and forth. Beginners may need to jump one foot over at a time or even have their hands up on something, but not actually jump over anything so that they don’t have to jump more than an inch or two off the ground. bench-hop-over Agility Ladder – Here are 30 Agility Ladder Drills you can play around with. agility-ladder-drills Sit Thrus – To do the Sit Thru, start on your hands and knees with your hands under your shoulders and your knees under your hips. Flex your feet and press up onto your hands and toes. Rotate open toward the right and kick your left leg under and through toward where your right hand is. As you bring your left leg forward and through, lift your right hand. You want to rotate all the way through with your left leg out straight so that you are almost sitting with your left hand down to support you. You want to “sit through.” Then bring the left leg back through so you are back in the starting position. Next rotate to the left and kick your right leg through and forward as you lift your left hand. Move as quickly as you can back and forth. Beginners may need to move slowly or even start in a more spread out position with their legs out straight instead of their knees under their hips. sit-thrus Jump Over Climb Under – You can do this with a partner or using a bench. With a partner, one partner will set up in a pike/downward dog position. They should have their butt up in the air so that their partner has plenty of room to crawl under them. Their partner will start standing to their side facing them. They will then move down to the ground and crawl under the partner holding the pike position. When crawling under, try not to touch your knees to the ground. Crawling with your knees on the ground will make the move easier. Crawl all the way under and through to the other side of your partner holding the pike. After the partner crawls all the way through, the partner in the pike will drop and hold at the bottom of a push up with their body in a nice straight line. Holding at the bottom of a push up is challenging. To make the move easier, just rest on the ground. Make sure if you do hold in the push up, your body is in a nice straight line. The partner that crawled under will then hop over the partner at the bottom of the push up. Try to hop with both feet together, however, you can make the move easier by hopping over one foot at a time. Once the partner has jumped over, they will then drop to the ground and set up in the pike position so that the partner on the ground can crawl under and then jump over. Keep alternating who crawls under and who holds the pike. If you don’t have a partner, you could use a bench. Jump over the bench then crawl under the bench and repeat. Each round you could start to a different side of the bench. partner-exercises Monkey Bars – You can play around with any of these Monkey Bar Variations. monkey-bars Explosive Step Ups – To do Explosive Step Ups, pick a step, chair or park bench that you can explode up off of that isn’t too high. Beginners should use a lower box while advanced exercisers will want to use a higher box but something they can still easily perform a Step Up on. To start, place one foot on top of the box (or whatever you are using). Driving up off the foot on top of the box, jump up in the air off the box. In the air, switch and land with the other foot on top of the box. Touch the other foot to the ground and then explode back up, pushing mainly off the foot on the box. Jump up as high as possible, driving off the foot on the box to switch and land with the other leg on top of the box. Keep alternating until all reps are complete. Don’t jump to simply tap your toe on the box. Your weight shouldn’t be back so you can tap your feet on the box. Truly explode up off the box. Use your arms to help propel you up as you jump. When you land swing your arms back and as you jump swing your arms up overhead. power-step-ups
WARM UP Stretch and Roll Out: Calves Hamstrings Quads Groin Hips/Glutes Back/Chest Shoulders/Arms Traps WORKOUT Set a timer for 30 seconds of work, 15 seconds of active rest to transition to the next move. Perform 1 minute of active rest between rounds. Complete 5-8 rounds. CIRCUIT: 30 seconds Rope Climb Variation 15 seconds High Knees (in place) 30 seconds Table Top Crawl Forward/Backward 15 seconds Jumping Jacks 30 seconds Hop Over 15 seconds Agility Ladder 30 seconds Rope Pull Up/Jumping Rope Pull Up 15 seconds Sit Thrus 30 seconds Jump Over Climb Under 15 seconds Monkey Bars 30 seconds Explosive Step Ups 1 minute Jog in place COOL DOWN Stretch and Roll Out: Calves Hamstrings Quads Groin Hips/Glutes Back/Chest Shoulders/Arms Traps NOTES: Active rest means you do the exercise but at an easier pace so your heart rate comes down, but you continue to move. It is in a way mimicking the ups and downs of a mud run where you do an obstacle or two but then have to jog for awhile between. The active rest are still challenging moves, but just focus on cruising through them during the 15 seconds. Beginners may need to walk instead of jog for the minute and complete fewer rounds. EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS: Rope Climb Variation and Rope Pull Up/Jumping Rope Pull Up – For the Rope Climb Variations, you can do the Horizontal Climbs, Foot Assisted Climbs or Upper Body Climbs Only depending on your level. See this post for demos of each move as well as the Pull Up Variations. If you don’t have a rope, you can do Inverted Rows and Pull Ups Variations. how-to-climb-a-rope-using-your-feet High Knees (in place) – Bring your knees up forward as high as you can as you jog in place. You also can move around if you have room. Table Top Crawl Forward/Backward – (You can also include any crawling variation in this post) To do the Table Top Crawl, set up on your hands and knees with your knees under your hips and your hands under your shoulders. Flex your feet and lift up onto your toes/the balls of your feet. Then take a step forward with your left foot and right hand, keeping your knees close to the ground and your back flat. Make sure to brace your core so that your hips don’t wiggle a lot side to side as you crawl forward. Then step forward with your right foot and left hand. Keep crawling forward, moving the opposite arm and opposite leg together. Take small steps forward so that you don’t get too spread out. You don’t want your hips to start to wiggle and your butt to go up in the air. Also, keep your knees as close to the ground as possible. You can also do the Table Top Crawl backward. Backward may be a bit more challenging and harder on the shoulders. Make sure to keep your steps small, especially when starting out, so that you don’t overload your shoulders and can keep up the contralateral movement. To do the Table Top Crawl backward, step back with the opposite arm and leg. Make sure you don’t get too spread out as you crawl backward. If you reach too far back with your feet and get too stretched out, your going to put a lot of pressure on your shoulders and then you wont’ be able to move fluidly. Keep you steps nice and short and compact to start with and your knees close to the ground. Make sure to brace your core and keep your butt down. basic crawl Hop Over – To do the Hop Over, you need a box, bench, punching bag or any other object you can place your hands on and jump over. Stand to one side of the bag or bench with your feet together. Place your hands down on the bag, and putting weight on your hands, jump your feet over the bag to the other side. Keep your feet together as you jump. As soon as you land, jump your feet back over the bag. Continue to do quick hops back and forth over the bag using the support of your hands. Move as quickly as possible, hopping back and forth. Beginners may need to jump one foot over at a time or even have their hands up on something, but not actually jump over anything so that they don’t have to jump more than an inch or two off the ground. bench-hop-over Agility Ladder – Here are 30 Agility Ladder Drills you can play around with. agility-ladder-drills Sit Thrus – To do the Sit Thru, start on your hands and knees with your hands under your shoulders and your knees under your hips. Flex your feet and press up onto your hands and toes. Rotate open toward the right and kick your left leg under and through toward where your right hand is. As you bring your left leg forward and through, lift your right hand. You want to rotate all the way through with your left leg out straight so that you are almost sitting with your left hand down to support you. You want to “sit through.” Then bring the left leg back through so you are back in the starting position. Next rotate to the left and kick your right leg through and forward as you lift your left hand. Move as quickly as you can back and forth. Beginners may need to move slowly or even start in a more spread out position with their legs out straight instead of their knees under their hips. sit-thrus Jump Over Climb Under – You can do this with a partner or using a bench. With a partner, one partner will set up in a pike/downward dog position. They should have their butt up in the air so that their partner has plenty of room to crawl under them. Their partner will start standing to their side facing them. They will then move down to the ground and crawl under the partner holding the pike position. When crawling under, try not to touch your knees to the ground. Crawling with your knees on the ground will make the move easier. Crawl all the way under and through to the other side of your partner holding the pike. After the partner crawls all the way through, the partner in the pike will drop and hold at the bottom of a push up with their body in a nice straight line. Holding at the bottom of a push up is challenging. To make the move easier, just rest on the ground. Make sure if you do hold in the push up, your body is in a nice straight line. The partner that crawled under will then hop over the partner at the bottom of the push up. Try to hop with both feet together, however, you can make the move easier by hopping over one foot at a time. Once the partner has jumped over, they will then drop to the ground and set up in the pike position so that the partner on the ground can crawl under and then jump over. Keep alternating who crawls under and who holds the pike. If you don’t have a partner, you could use a bench. Jump over the bench then crawl under the bench and repeat. Each round you could start to a different side of the bench. partner-exercises Monkey Bars – You can play around with any of these Monkey Bar Variations. monkey-bars Explosive Step Ups – To do Explosive Step Ups, pick a step, chair or park bench that you can explode up off of that isn’t too high. Beginners should use a lower box while advanced exercisers will want to use a higher box but something they can still easily perform a Step Up on. To start, place one foot on top of the box (or whatever you are using). Driving up off the foot on top of the box, jump up in the air off the box. In the air, switch and land with the other foot on top of the box. Touch the other foot to the ground and then explode back up, pushing mainly off the foot on the box. Jump up as high as possible, driving off the foot on the box to switch and land with the other leg on top of the box. Keep alternating until all reps are complete. Don’t jump to simply tap your toe on the box. Your weight shouldn’t be back so you can tap your feet on the box. Truly explode up off the box. Use your arms to help propel you up as you jump. When you land swing your arms back and as you jump swing your arms up overhead. power-step-ups

The Deadlift And Core Workout

The Deadlift And Core Workout

WARM UP
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Hamstrings
Hips/Glutes
Chest/Back
Shoulders/Traps

WORKOUT

Complete 4 rounds of the first exercise, resting 60-90 seconds between rounds. Then rest 1-2 minutes and start the supplemental circuit. For the circuit, set a timer for 20 minutes and complete as many rounds as possible in that time. Rest only if needed but try to keep moving. Record how many rounds you complete and the weights used and try to increase next time!

SINGLE LEG DEADLIFT:
8-15 reps per side Single Leg Deadlift

CIRCUIT:
5 reps per side Sandbag Plank Pull Throughs
10 reps Duck Under Lunges
15 reps Inverted Rows
20 reps KB Swings

COOL DOWN
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Hamstrings
Hips/Glutes
Chest/Back
Shoulders/Traps

NOTES:

Complete all four rounds of the Single Leg Deadlift before moving on to the circuit. With the circuit, use the heaviest weights possible while still being able to move quickly and not have to rest.

EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS:

Single Leg Deadlift – To do this move you can use a barbell, sandbag, dumbbells or even kettlebells. To do the kettlebell Single Leg Deadlift, hold a kettlebell in each hand down by your sides. Stand on your right leg with your knee slightly bent and your left toe lightly touching the ground. Then lift your left leg back toward the wall behind you as you hinge over, keeping your back flat. As you hinge over, drop the kettlebells down and back. Do not reach them toward the ground and let your back round. Only lower them as far as you can without rounding or “squatting.” Your standing knee should be soft but isn’t going to bend extra as you hinge over. Make sure that as you hinge over you sit back in your heel and then drive through your heel to come back up to standing. You want to feel your hamstring and glute work.

kettlebell-single-leg-deadlift
Sandbag Plank Pull Throughs – To do Sandbag Plank Pulls, set up in a plank position from your hands and toes or hands and knees and place the sandbag on the ground to one side of your body just outside and below your shoulder. Make sure your hands are under your shoulders and then place your feet or knees wider apart to give you more stability. The closer together your feet are, the harder the move will be because you won’t have as wide or stable a base. If you feel your hips rocking side to side, widen your feet out. If the move is too easy, bring your feet closer together. Then reach your hand under your body and across to grab the sandbag. Squeeze your glutes and, without rotating your hips, pull the sandbag through and across to the other side of your body. Make sure your body stays in a nice straight line with your abs engaged as you reach through and pull. Do not let your hips go up in the air or sag toward the ground. You want to pull the sandbag all the way across and outside the other shoulder. If you can’t pull the sandbag all the way across or need to rotate your hips a lot to do so, it may be too heavy. Then reach through with the other hand to pull it back. To fight your body’s desire to rotate, you will need to engage your core and really squeeze your glutes. You do not want to feel this move in your low back. Keep alternating reaches until all reps are complete. Your goal is to keep a nice straight line from your head to your heels the entire time.

sandbag-plank-pulls
Duck Under Lunges – To do the Duck Under Lunge, hold the sandbag up at your chest with your arms wrapped around it. You will then squat down, sitting your butt back while keeping your chest up. As you come back up out of the squat, you will rotate toward the right, pivoting your left foot. Stand up nice and tall, facing to the right with your back leg in triple extension. Do not let your foot stay put and your knee cave in.  Then rotate and sink back down into a squat and then pivot and rotate up toward the left side, pivoting your right foot. Keep your chest up the entire time. Do not let your back round toward the ground. Also do not lean forward to try to get lower to the ground. Sink as low as you can in the squat without your form breaking down then quickly pivot up to each side. As you get comfortable with the move, try to make it as fluid as possible. The move should look like a “U” shape.  Beginners may need to make it look more like a “V” until their hips open up more. Beginners may also need to drop the weight or not go as low.

duck-under-lunge
Inverted Rows – To do the Inverted Row, hold a suspension trainer strap in each hand or use a bar. Walk your feet out so that you are leaning back. The closer to parallel to the ground you get, the harder the move will be. Squeeze your core and glutes and press your chest out so there is tension between your shoulder blades. Make sure you don’t shrug your shoulders and that your body is in a nice straight line. Then row up, keeping your body in that nice straight line. Row until your chest comes up to the handles and then lower yourself back down. Don’t let your hips sink as you lower back down or your low back arch. Also, keep your chest pressed out the entire time (make sure you don’t round your thoracic spine at the bottom). Move in a controlled fashion as you keep tension between your shoulder blades the entire time. Make sure you row low and don’t shrug your shoulders at any point. Do not bounce off the bottom of your row or use momentum to get back up.

inverted-row
KB Swings – Click here for Kettlebell Swing form and some variations if you’ve never done it before.