Kendra's Fitness Corner: Summer Starter Challenge Weeks 5-8

Hello moms! Are you getting off the couch and doing the Summer Starter Challenge? I hope so!

Weeks 5 - 8

You should be close to week five, so now it’s time to take it up a notch! You can do this!

Your goal:

Complete at least four – 30 minute cardio sessions (or a grand total of 120 minutes a week) and two full body strength training sessions (approx 20-25 min each).

Here's an example of what your week might look like:

Monday: 30 min Cardio (run/walk)
Tuesday: Strength training + 30 minutes biking
Thursday: 35 min Cardio (hiking at the Metro parks)
Saturday: Strength training + 30 minutes (run/walk)

Trainer Tip:

Put your weekly workout plan in your calendar, blackberry, or whatever it takes. You wouldn’t skip your hair appointment if it was written down…and your workout is making you feel better about yourself - JUST like a trip to the salon!

Cardio Ideas:

At the gym: If you are fortunate enough to find time to go to the gym, use a different cardio machine at least every 3rd workout….AND vary the program on the machines. Your body is very good at adapting to a new stress. I prefer the interval programs on any machine as they will generally burn more calories in a shorter amount of time.

At home: Add jumping jacks and/or pretend you are jumping rope! Do 30 seconds of either (you should feel winded but be able to say a word or two) then do 10 minutes of your cardio. Repeat 3 times.

Strength training Ideas:

Remember to work every muscle group. Also if you are doing strength training for you whole body in one session, work the bigger muscle groups first. For the exercises with dumbbells, you should pick a weight that makes your muscle burn during the last 3-4 reps. Typically you would start with 5 to 8 lb weights for the exercises below.

Here's an example:

1. Walking lunges - 5x each leg (optional: hold dumbbells by your sides)
2. Squats (sit back like you are going to touch a chair but don’t…stand back up!) 15x
3. Push-up with pause (on toes or knees) – make each phase of the push-up into 2 parts with a little 1 second pause. Down/Down/Up/Up
4. Shoulder press –15x (hold 2 dumbbells or grab 2 full liters of pop….stand with hands near shoulders and press straight up but don’t lock your elbows, keep eyes forward and neck relaxed)
5. Bicep Curl – 15x (hold 2 dumbbells…stand with good posture & feet hip width apart…lift weights towards shoulders but keep elbows near your sides)
6. Tricep Dips off chair – As many as you can do! (sit on end of sturdy dining chair with hands on the sides near the ends but wrapped around the sides of the chair…heels are 1-2 feet out in front of you with knees slightly bent…lower your butt in front of the chair until elbows are bent 90 degrees then push back up until arms are straight)
7. Crunches / other abs to fatigue – (start with regular crunch…on your back, feet on floor, knees bent, hands supporting your head and elbows pointing out….keep eyes on ceiling and press your lower back into the floor until you feel your abs contract…keep abs “tight” while you raise shoulder blades 6 inches off floor then lower down again and repeat to fatigue)
   
   Repeat the above one more time!
   

Remember….small changes yield big results. Doing anything is better than nothing...so get started!

Tomorrow, I will post the June Part 2 topic: How to burn the most calories in 30 minutes!

Feel free to comment below or contact me at columbusmultiples@gmail.com with any questions you might have for me. Whether the questions are about this summer challenge or anything fitness related for you or your children (and husband too!), I am here to help you!

Get moving!
Kendra