WARM UP
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Groin
Hamstring
Hips/Glutes
Back
Shoulders
Wrists
WORKOUT
Set a timer and work for 40 seconds on an exercise then rest 20 and move on to the next exercise. Try not to rest during the 40 seconds. Instead regress movements as needed. Rest 1 minute between rounds. Complete 3-5 rounds.
COOL DOWN
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Groin
Hamstring
Hips/Glutes
Back
Shoulders
NOTES:
Take the rest between rounds to make sure you can go hard each and every round and not rest during the 40 seconds. Regress as needed but don’t rest during the work time!
WARM UP
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Groin
Hamstring
Hips/Glutes
Back
Shoulders
Wrists
WORKOUT
Set a timer for 30 second intervals with 5 seconds of transition time. Complete 30 seconds on an exercise then take the 5 seconds to move to the next exercise. You will only have the “active rest” break between the 2 rounds of the circuit. Then rest about 30 seconds before moving on to 2 rounds of the next circuit.
COOL DOWN
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Groin
Hamstring
Hips/Glutes
Back
Shoulders
NOTES:
Regress movements as needed so that you can keep moving the entire 30 seconds. It is better to regress than rest. Also, during the active rest, bring things down as much as needed. The point is to move but to bring your heart rate down a bit while still getting everything to work.
WARM UP
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Groin
Hamstring
Hips/Glutes
Back
Shoulders
Wrists
WORKOUT
Complete 3-5 rounds of the circuit below. Move straight from the hold to the reps then to the next hold. If the move is unilateral like the Warrior III, do the hold then the reps on one side before switching to the other side. Rest only if needed. Rest up to 1 minute between rounds if needed and even stretch out.
CIRCUIT: 20-30 seconds each side Warrior III Hold
15-20 reps per side Warrior III Squats
20-30 seconds Handstand Hold
10-15 reps Pike Push Ups
20-30 seconds Wall Sit
15-20 reps Squat Jumps
20-30 seconds Banana
10-15 reps TFW Sit Ups
20-30 seconds Glute Bridge Hold
20 reps Glute Bridges
COOL DOWN
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Groin
Hamstring
Hips/Glutes
Back
Shoulders
NOTES:
Shorten the holds or reps if needed, but try not to really rest between the holds and reps. Rest after both are complete if needed, but not between the hold and reps.
EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS:
Warrior III Hold – To do Warrior III, start standing tall with your feet together. Then move to balancing on one foot and hinge over at the hips, leaning your torso forward as you push your butt back and lift your back leg straight toward the wall behind you. As you lift your leg and hinge over, make sure to keep your hips square to the ground. Do not rotate open. Also, pretend you are driving the foot of the lifted leg straight back into the wall behind you as you reach your head toward the wall in front of you. Maintain a nice straight line from your head to your raised heel, making sure to keep your back flat and your core tight as you hold this hinged over position. As you hold, reach your hands overhead in front of you, out to your sides or back toward your heels. Breathe and relax into the stretch and try to straighten your standing leg as much as you can while keeping your hips square to the ground and your body in a nice straight line. Feel your foot working to grip the ground and your leg stretching while your glutes and core work to keep you balanced. Do not let your back round or your other foot touch down as you hold. Only straighten your standing leg as much as you can while still maintaining balance and a straight line with your body. Beginners may need to reach back toward their foot instead of out in front of them or they may want to use a wall behind them to help them balance. To use a wall for slight assistance, stand with a wall behind you and when you hinge over have the lifted foot lightly touch the wall behind you to help you balance.
Warrior III Squats – To do Warrior III Squats, set up in the Warrior III position, balance on one leg then hinge over so that your chest is parallel to the ground. Reach your raised leg back toward the wall behind you as you keep your hips square to the ground and straighten your standing leg as much as you can. Then reach your hands overhead toward the wall in front of you or out to the sides or even back toward your feet. From this Warrior III position, bend your standing leg to perform a small squat. Make sure to keep your raised leg up and reaching toward the wall behind you as you stay in that hinged over position as you squat. Do not start to stand up as you squat. Straighten your standing leg back out and then repeat the small squat. The lower you squat as you maintain that Warrior III position, the harder the move will be. Also, the more you completely straighten your standing leg, the harder the move will be. Complete all reps on one side before switching. Do not let your hips open up as you squat. Also, do not go forward onto your toes or round your back. The move doesn’t have to be super big to have benefit!
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 – Here are some more variations.
Pike Push Ups – To do the Basic Pike Push Up, start in the Downward Dog position and then slightly walk your feet in toward your hands so that you can drop your head straight down toward the ground between your hands. You can also do this move with your feet up on a bench to make it more challenging or you can even do a full handstand push up. Then in this piked position, bend your arms and drop your head straight down toward the ground between your hands. Lower down and then press back up, fully extending your arms. Make sure you are performing a vertical push and not turning this into more of a horizontal movement. If you are pressing back instead of up, try adjusting your feet or regressing the movement. You want to mimic a handstand movement even if your feet are on the ground. Repeat, dropping your head straight down between your hands.
Wall Sit – To do the Wall Sit, stand with your back to a wall and your feet about hip-width apart. You can change up your exact foot position to hit slightly different aspects of your quads. Then sink down into a squat, pressing your back into the wall behind you as you try to get your quads as close to parallel to the ground as possible. When you sink into the squat, keep your ankles aligned under your knees and drive back into the wall through your entire foot. Do not rock forward onto your toes. Also, do not sink past parallel. Hold there and drive your back into the wall. If you start to feel this in your low back, make sure to brace your abs. Also, do not hunch or lean forward as you hold. Stay up nice and tall. 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.
Squat Jumps – You can regress the movement and do bodyweight squats as well. To do Squat Jumps, stand with your feet between hip-width and shoulder-width apart. Sit your butt down and back into as low a squat as you can with good form (aka your heels stay down and your chest stays up and your knees don’t cave in). You can then swing your arms back as you squat or reach your hands down to touch the ground. Then explode up out of the squat and jump as high off the ground as possible. You can swing your arms and reach your hands overhead to help propel you up. As you jump, extend your body fully. As you land, sink right back into the squat so you can explode right back up. Do not land with your legs straight. Make sure to bend your knees as you land and try to land softly to protect your knees. Beginners may need to rest between each rep; however, that doesn’t mean landing with your legs straight. You should never land with your legs completely locked. Bend your knees to help you absorb the impact of landing even if you pause between jumps. To make the move harder, jump up and sink right back into the squat to repeat as quickly as possible. Really focus on a soft landing and then exploding quickly into as high a jump as you can.
Banana – To do the Banana, and improve your mind-body connection so that you can engage your entire core (everything from your shoulders to your knees), start lying on your back with your legs out straight and your arms reaching overhead on the ground. Your legs should be together and your arms should be right by your head. Press your low back into the ground and draw your belly button in toward your spine as you lift your legs and arms up off the ground. Your neck and head should be in a neutral position between your arms and your legs should be together and out straight a few inches off the ground. Hold here, squeezing your legs together as you try to get your shoulder blades up off the ground while keeping your low back against the ground and abs engaged. Beginners may find they need to lift their legs up higher toward the ceiling or bend their knees to keep their low back against the ground and their abs engaged. Beginners can also try an easier variation of the Pelvic Tilt if they feel their low back taking over.
TFW Sit Ups – To do the TFW Sit Up, lie on your back with your legs out straight in front of you and your hands in under your chin. Then sit up, bringing your knees in as you move to place your hands on your shins. As you come to a tucked seated position, place your feet on the ground. Don’t swing your arms overhead to sit up. You can move your arms from in under your chin to around your legs at the top while you are seated. Then lie back down, straightening your legs back out in front of you as you bring your hands back in under your chin. With this Sit Up Variation, you can release at the bottom and touch your shoulders and heels down. Repeat, sitting back up as you bring your knees back in, grabbing your shins. Move as quickly as possible. As you sit up and lie back down, make sure not to arch your low back. Press it into the ground and feel your abs working. If your low back takes over, try a Basic Sit Up or even a pelvic tilt progression.
Glute Bridge Hold – To do the Basic Glute Bridge Hold, bend your knees and put your feet flat on the ground just close enough that you can graze your heels with your fingertips when you stretch your arms down by your side. Your feet should be about hip-width apart. You can change up how far your heels are from your butt to make sure you feel your glutes powering the bridge. If your hips are tight, you may need to move your feet further out. Just make sure you don’t feel your hamstrings taking over. Bend your elbows to 90 degrees so that only your upper arms are on the ground then drive up through your heels and upper back and arm to lift your glutes up off the ground. Drive your hips up as high as possible, squeezing the glutes hard. Brace your abs and extend your hips so that you don’t hyperextend your back. Do not push backward off your heels. Make sure you are driving straight up almost as if driving your knees forward over your toes. Also, make sure that your knees don’t cave in or fall open. Squeeze your glutes and hold at the top. Concentrate on feeling your glutes work. Don’t just go through the motions. Actually think about the muscles that should be working as you hold.
Glute Bridges – To do the Basic Glute Bridge, lie on your back and bend your knees and put your feet flat on the ground just close enough that you can graze your heels with your fingertips when you stretch your arms down by your side. Your feet should be about hip-width apart. You may need to adjust your exact foot positioning based on how tight or mobile your hips are. You can move your feet slightly away from your fingertips, but just make sure you don’t move them so far away that you feel your hamstrings taking over. Bend your elbows to 90 degrees so that only your upper arms are on the ground. This will help you really be able to drive down with your elbows, upper arms and back to help you bridge straight up instead of pushing yourself backward. Then bridge up, driving through your heels and upper back and arms to lift your glutes up off the ground. Drive your hips up as high as possible, squeezing your glutes hard as you brace your abs. Keep your belly button drawn in so you don’t hyperextend your back. Focus and consciously squeeze your glutes at the top. You may even want to perform the pelvic tilt before you lift to help keep your abs engaged throughout the bridge so that your low back doesn’t take over. When you bridge, do not push backward off your heels. Make sure you are driving straight up and that your knees aren’t caving in. Even think about driving your knees forward over your toes to help extend your hips and prevent you from pushing yourself backward. Squeeze your glutes for second or two at the top and lower all the way back down to the ground before repeating. Do not rush through the move. Concentrate on feeling your glutes engage and on keeping your abs braced. You do not want your low back to take over. If you do feel your low back or don’t feel your glutes, stop and reset and focus on engaging them a little extra at the top!
WARM UP
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Quads
Hamstrings
Adductors
Hips/Glutes
Back/Chest/Shoulders
WORKOUT
Set a timer for 20 second intervals with a few seconds of transition time. You will move from one exercise to the next without resting and then rest 20 seconds after both moves are complete. Complete 5 rounds of each circuit before resting 1-2 minutes. Then move on to the next circuit. Do not rest during the 20 seconds of work!
COOL DOWN
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Hamstrings
Quads
Hips/Glutes
Chest
Back
NOTES:
Make sure to work as hard as you can during the 20 seconds. If you go easy or rest, you won’t get as much out of the workout. Regress movements as necessary to keep moving.
EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS:
Burpee Sit Thrus – To do the Burpee Sit Thru, start standing with your feet together. Then bend down and place your hands on the ground as you jump your feet back into a Bull Dog position. Unlike the Basic Burpee, you won’t jump your feet back into a plank. You will want to jump your feet back so you are in more of a crawling position with your knees bent. From this bent-knee position, kick one leg under your body and through as you lift the opposite hand to “sit through.” Then bring the leg back under your body as you lower your hand back down and sit through on the other side. You will again kick the leg under your body and through as you lift your opposite hand. You want to rotate all the way through so you could actually sit if you lost your balance. Once you’ve performed a sit thru to both sides, jump your feet back into your hands and come to standing. Jump up off the ground at the top and then repeat the movement. Beginners may find they want to jump back into more of a plank position to make the sit thru easier. Advanced exercisers with more mobility will want to perform the sit thru from more of a bull dog hold starting position. AKA straighter legs makes the movement easier. Move quickly, rotating open and sitting all the way through on each sit thru. Snowboard Hops – To do Snowboard Hops, start standing with your feet parallel and about shoulder-width apart. Face toward one foot, keeping your feet parallel and then step your back foot slightly forward so your stance is slightly staggered. Then squat down, pushing your butt back as you reach the same arm as the foot in front down outside your front toe. You can hinge over at the hips, but do not let your core collapse and simply lean forward. Then explode up off the ground, lifting your hand as you rotate forward and then to face the other way with your body. When you land, your back foot should be in front and your front foot should be in back, slightly staggered forward. Land and squat back down, dropping your front arm down to touch the ground outside your front toe. Then jump back up and rotate back to face the way you started. Beginners may not sink as low or jump as high. They may also do more of a “step” to switch than a full jump. Move quickly and make sure to bend your knees and sink down as you land. Also make sure your heels come down as you squat down. Keep your back flat even as you hinge over to touch the ground. Plyo Jacks –To do the Plyo Jack, start standing tall with your feet together and your arms down by your sides. Then just slightly squat, pushing your butt back, to load your glutes so you can explode up off the ground. You will then perform the same movement as with the Basic Jumping Jack, but instead of jumping your feet out wide on the ground, you will want to explode up off the ground as you jump your feet out wide. As you jump up off the ground, raising your legs up to the sides as you jump, you will swing your arms out to the sides and up overhead. To land, bring your feet back together and sink back into a little squat. You want to squat a little as you land to help load your legs for the next jump while also landing softly to protect your knees. Bring your arms back down to your sides as you land and then repeat, jumping back up. The bigger your jump and the quicker you do the reps back to back, the harder this move will be. To make the move a little easier, pause between jumps. Climber Push Ups – To do the Climber Push Up, start in a plank from your forearms. You can set your feet wider apart if needed to create a more stable base. Engage your abs and, keeping your body in a nice straight line, climb one hand at a time up to a plank position from your hands. Place your hands right below your shoulders, but outside your chest as you climb up. Then at the top perform a push up. Then climb back down and repeat. You can do the Push Ups from your knees if needed or even regress to just the Plank Climbers as you fatigue. Split Squat Jumps – To do Split Squat Jumps, step one foot back and sink into a deep lunge, bending both knees as if kneeling down to the ground. Then from this lunge, explode up and as you jump, switch and land in a lunge on the other side. As you land, sink down into a deep lunge on the other side. Once again in the deep lunge, explode back up and jump back into a lunge on the first side. Beginners may need to do quick step back lunges instead of jumping to switch. The lower you go in the lunge and the quicker you jump to switch, the harder the move will be.
Plank Skier Hops – To do Plank Skier Hops, start in the plank position with your hands under your shoulders and your legs together. Your body should be in a nice straight line from your head to your heels. Then, with your legs together, jump your feet in toward your right elbow, rotating so that your knees come outside your elbow. Jump back into the plank position with your feet back center and your body in a nice straight line. Then jump your feet back in, but this time toward your opposite elbow. Rotate to bring your knees toward the outside of your elbow. Jump your feet back out center. Do not let your body shift backward as you perform the hops and jump back out. Try to keep your chest over your hands instead of letting your hands get way up by your head. Keep alternating hops toward each elbow.
WARM UP
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Hamstrings
Quads
Hips/Glutes
Chest
Back
WORKOUT
Set a timer for 20 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest. You will complete 4 rounds of each exercise before moving on to the next exercise. Rest 30 seconds between exercises and then up to 1 minute between rounds. Complete 2 rounds of the circuit below.
COOL DOWN
Stretch and Roll Out:
Calves
Hamstrings
Quads
Hips/Glutes
Chest
Back
NOTES:
Do not rest during the 20 seconds of work. To get the most out of this workout, you need to make sure to go hard the entire work interval and rest during the allotted time. Do not shorten the rest intervals just try and go harder or do harder variations during the work intervals.
EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS:
Burpee Sit Thrus – To do the Burpee Sit Thru, start standing with your feet together. Then bend down and place your hands on the ground as you jump your feet back into a Bull Dog position. Unlike the Basic Burpee, you won’t jump your feet back into a plank. You will want to jump your feet back so you are in more of a crawling position with your knees bent. From this bent-knee position, kick one leg under your body and through as you lift the opposite hand to “sit through.” Then bring the leg back under your body as you lower your hand back down and sit through on the other side. You will again kick the leg under your body and through as you lift your opposite hand. You want to rotate all the way through so you could actually sit if you lost your balance. Once you’ve performed a sit thru to both sides, jump your feet back into your hands and come to standing. Jump up off the ground at the top and then repeat the movement. Beginners may find they want to jump back into more of a plank position to make the sit thru easier. Advanced exercisers with more mobility will want to perform the sit thru from more of a bull dog hold starting position. AKA straighter legs makes the movement easier. Move quickly, rotating open and sitting all the way through on each sit thru.
Snowboard Hops – To do Snowboard Hops, start standing with your feet parallel and about shoulder-width apart. Face toward one foot, keeping your feet parallel and then step your back foot slightly forward so your stance is slightly staggered. Then squat down, pushing your butt back as you reach the same arm as the foot in front down outside your front toe. You can hinge over at the hips, but do not let your core collapse and simply lean forward. Then explode up off the ground, lifting your hand as you rotate forward and then to face the other way with your body. When you land, your back foot should be in front and your front foot should be in back, slightly staggered forward. Land and squat back down, dropping your front arm down to touch the ground outside your front toe. Then jump back up and rotate back to face the way you started. Beginners may not sink as low or jump as high. They may also do more of a “step” to switch than a full jump. Move quickly and make sure to bend your knees and sink down as you land. Also make sure your heels come down as you squat down. Keep your back flat even as you hinge over to touch the ground.
Climber Push Ups – To do the Climber Push Up, start in a plank from your forearms. You can set your feet wider apart if needed to create a more stable base. Engage your abs and, keeping your body in a nice straight line, climb one hand at a time up to a plank position from your hands. Place your hands right below your shoulders, but outside your chest as you climb up. Then at the top perform a push up. Then climb back down and repeat. You can do the Push Ups from your knees if needed or even regress to just the Plank Climbers as you fatigue.
Skier Jacks – To do the Skier Jack, start standing with your feet together and your arms down by your sides. Then jump one foot forward and the other foot back as you swing the opposite arm up and forward and the other hand back and down toward the ground. Switch your split stance and jump the other foot forward as you swing your arms to bring the other arm up and forward. Keep alternating sides, swinging your arms so that your opposite arm and leg are always forward and backward together. These aren’t lunges, just simply jumping one foot back and the other forward into a split stance. Swing your arms to help you move more quickly.
Bicycles – Lie on your back with your legs out straight in front of you and your hands behind your head. Lift your legs up off the ground. Beginners may need to keep their feet up higher while more advanced exercisers will be able to keep their feet only an inch or two off the ground. Bring your right knee into your chest, keeping the left leg off the ground. As you bring the right knee in, crunch the upper body up and bring the left elbow up and across to touch your right knee. Then straighten you right knee out and bring your left knee in as you rotate your left elbow to the ground and your right elbow to your left knee. Keep rotating and alternating touches until all reps are complete.
