Workout for Tuesday, December 1

50-40-30-20-10

Dumbbell push press
Squats

50 DB Push presses, 50 squats, 40 DB push presses, 40 squats, and so on. Try to make this really fast--so just use 5 or 10 lb. dumbbells and blow through it! We did this last on Sept. 8

Workout for Monday, November 30

For Time:

100 sit ups
100 push ups
100 squats

Break these up however you want. Just get them all done!
We did this last on Oct. 20

Workout for Sunday, November 29

Tabata--

Use a treadmill, set at 12% grade at 0-30 sec slower pace per mile than best 5k pace. Do not reduce the speed!

Remember, a tabata is 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest, for 8 intervals. 4 minutes total.

This workout is from CrossFit Endurance.

If you do not have a treadmill, run from home. I suggest you run the first 4 intervals away from home, as fast and as far as possible. STOP in place when you have your 10 seconds rest. Run back home for the last 4 intervals. This will give you a good indication if you were able to hold your speed for the entire 4 minutes.
We did this last on Oct. 11

Workout for Saturday, November 28

103rd Bedlam Football Game (OSU-OU)

For Time--103 each:

B--Bear Crawl (approximately 103 feet)
E-Extensions (back)--do not hurry these!
D-Dumbbell swings (10-15 lb)
L-Lunges (walking)
A-Abmat sit ups
M-Mountain Climbers (total, not each leg)

Workout for Friday, November 27

Happy Anniversary to my husband, David

Can you believe it has been 28 years?

60 push ups in as few sets as possible. Try to do them from the toes, if possible, for as long as you can.

50-40-30-20-10
Double Unders
Sit Ups

If you can't do double unders, do 3x single under jumping rope. So...that would mean...150 single jumps, 50 sit ups, 120 single jumps, 40 sit ups, 90 single jumps, 30 sit ups, 60 single jumps, 20 sit ups, 30 single jumps, 10 sit ups.

We did this last on October 28.

Workout for Thursday, November 26

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Supermans:
3 sets of 15, hold for 2 count each

V-Ups:
sets of 15

Workout for Wednesday, November 25

As many rounds as possible in 10 minutes:

5 tuck jumps
10 mountain climbers (10 each leg)
15 squats

Rest a bit, then...

100 sit ups for time
We did this last on Oct. 24.

Workout for Tuesday, November 24

50 standing broad jumps, for time.

Jump as FAR as you can each jump.

Rest 5 minutes or so, then:

Tabata squats

We did this last on Oct. 3

Will eating more protein make me look like a bodybuilder?

From Shape, November 2008:

"When women hear that body-builders follow high-protein diets and drink protein shakes, they think they're going to get huge muscles if they eat that way too", says Leslie Bonci, R.D., director of sports nutrition at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. But what's bulking up the weight lifters' biceps--and everything else--isn't the food they're eating but the kind of workout they're doing."

"You'd have to train for hours in the gym, lifting very heavy weights, to see a major change in your lean muscle mass," says Bonci. "And still the average woman will never get too beefy because she has far lower levels of testosterone, a key hormone for muscle growth, than a man does."

Workout for Monday, November 23

Complete as much as you can IN ORDER in 10 minutes:

50 squats
50 sit ups
50 walking lunges (each leg--this is an addition to the last time we did this)
50 push ups
50 tuck jumps
50 burpees
50 goodmornings

If you get this far--I guess just quit! Record how far you get in the list. We did this last on Oct. 23.

More great news about Omega 3 fats

From Oxygen Magazine, November, 2009

"Omega-3 fats are critically important in the anti-inflammatory process. When you strength train, you are breaking down the muscle cell structure to allow it to rebuild bigger and stronger. Part of that process uses inflammation to initiate the rebuilding phase. But inflammation can get out of control and cause more damage and soreness than required, which actually slows the process down and inhibits your training. Omega-3 fats short-circuit the inflammation and keep it in check--so that you can get the benefits without the negative effects."

Workout for Saturday, November 21

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1

Dumbbell Push Presses (10-15 lbs. if possible)
Dumbbell Walking lunges (same dumbbells)
Dumbbell Squats (same dumbbells)

Let the dumbbells hang at your sides for the lunges, rest them on your shoulders for the squats.
We did this last on October 19.

Workout for Friday, November 20

Run 5 minutes
50 squats
30 push ups

For time.

I suggest running away from your house for 2 1/2 minutes, then run back home and immediately start in on your squats and push ups.

Is Faster Better?

From Women's Health, December 2009

"If you tend to walk at an easygoing pace, pick up your speed and you may live longer, reports a study in the Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging. Researchers tracked the hoofing habits of 1300 older women for eight years and discovered that faster walkers had a lower death rate than slower ones and used fewer meds for diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. Treading quickly is a good indicator of overall health, says principal investigator Hubert Blain, M.D., Ph.D., of the University Hospital of Montpellier in France."

Workout for Thursday, November 19

The Pistol (One-Legged Squats)

Do 3 sets of 5 for each leg

I have a couple of videos below. Pistols are VERY difficult. The first video shows to squat down to a chair or bench. You can also hold on to a door frame for support while squatting.

The second video is for fun--Wow--this is some CRAZY pistol action!

Workout for Wednesday, November 18

Sorry I didn't get this posted before our class on Wednesday! Great to see you Carrie, and nice to have you with us, Kim!

For time:

10 Push ups
20 Medicine ball cleans
30 DB walking lunge
40 Wall ball shots
50 Box jumps
60 Dumbbell swings
70 Sit ups
80 Squats
90 Jumping jacks
100 yard dash

We did this last on September 23.

How's your back?

From Women's Health, December 2009:

"Strength Training four days a week for 13 weeks decreased lower-back pain in chronic sufferers by about 28 percent."

Personally, I have found this to be true, and it was very surprising to me. I used to have back pain a few times a year, bad enough to keep me from doing much physical activity for several days at a time. Now that almost never happens.

Workout for Tuesday, November 17

Favorite/Least Favorite Tabata Mash up

Pick your least favorite and favorite of the following exercises:
Sit Ups
Push Ups
Burpees
Squats
Lunges
Box Jumps
Mountain Climbers
Tuck Jumps
Double Unders
Jumping Jacks
Good Mornings

The normal Tabata is 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest for 8 intervals. The Mash Up is to alternate favorite and least favorite exercises for a total of 16 intervals (8 minutes total). If you choose Burpees and Sit Ups--you would do burpees for 20 seconds, rest for 10 seconds, sit ups for 20 seconds, rest for 10 seconds, burpees for 20 seconds, and so on. Your "score" is the lowest number you do in any 20 second period of each exercise (you will have two scores.) We did this last on Sept. 11.

Workout for Monday, November 16

For time:

30 Jumping jacks
30 Push-ups
30 box jumps
30 v-ups
30 supermans
30 walking lunge
30 KB swings
30 sit ups
30 squats
30 burpees

We did this last on October 12

What's going on back there?

From Fitness magazine, October 2009

"A recent European study suggests that walking backward--instead of the usual direction--can help you problem solve faster and more effectively. Bonus: It can also tone the body parts everyone sees except you. Ready to reverse course? David Pardue, a certified trainer and manager of One2One BodyScapes in Boston, suggests these easy ways to get started:
--Set the treadmill on a 3.0 incline and walk backward for 20 minutes.
--Instead of stepping forward into your lunges, step behind and do five on each side.
--Do the backstroke in the pool for 25 minutes."

Workout for Sunday, November 15

Running day--

Pick a distance that you consider pretty long. For instance: I typically run 5k (3.1 miles) every week or two and run some shorter distances in between. For today, I would choose to run 10k. If you haven't run at all in a really long time, try for a mile. Walk/run it if necessary.

You could do the same thing for biking or using a rower.

Some distances to think about:

1 mile
2 miles
5k
10k
15k

Workout for Saturday, November 14

400 meter walking lunge

We did this last on August 17

Workout for Friday, November 13

Remember this? If you've been doing this since February--you might find it a little easier these days!
13 x 13 on the 13th

For time:

13 squats
13 good mornings
13 sit ups
13 push ups
13 jumping jacks
13 squats
13 good mornings
13 sit ups
13 push ups
13 jumping jacks
13 squats
13 good mornings
13 sit ups

Sick and tired of being sick and tired?

From Shape (October 2009)

"Work out for 30 minutes a day and you'll catch half as many colds this year, according to a study in the American Journal of Medicine. That's because exercise prompts more white blood cells to circulate in your body, where they kill disease-causing invaders. Physical activity also lowers your estrogen levels, which helps explain why women who exercise regularly have a 30 percent lower risk of breast cancer."

Workout for Thursday, November 12

Planks!

Try to hold each of the following planks for 2 minutes:

Front plank
Right plank
Left plank

Workout for Wednesday, November 11

Our version of "Fight Gone Bad"

1 minute at each exercise, rotate through all 5, rest 1 minute. Count reps, each exercise, each round. 3 rounds total.

Wall Balls (10#)
DB Push Press (20# dumbbells)
Sumo Deadlift High Pull (45# bar)
Box Jumps (14" at church, 20" would be better)
Jump Rope (Divide number of jumps by 5)

We did this last on Sept. 30

Example: If you start at wall balls, you would do as many wall ball shots as possible in 1 minute, then move to SDHP and do as many as possible in 1 minute, then box jumps, then DB push press, then jump rope. At this point you would have 1 minute rest. Then you would repeat the sequence 2 more times. Add up the total number of reps for all rounds, all exercises and that is your score.Scaling:If you are new, or if the above is just too much--please scale back! You can reduce the weight on wall balls, dumbbells, and SDHP. You can do step ups instead of box jumps. You can do jumping jacks instead of jump rope. Try to make it through all 3 rounds.

Wanna be less hungry?

From Women's Health (Oct. 2008)

"People who do both aerobic and resistance training eat less than those who do one or the other, reports a study in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine. For 16 weeks, subjects did cardio, lifted weights, or combined the two while reporting everything they ate. Those who did double duty ate 517 fewer calories per day by the end of the study. The combo may cause a shift in hormones that control appetite, says study co-author Grogory Brown, Ph.D."

Workout For Tuesday, November 10

50-40-30-20-10

Sit ups
Squats

Do 50 sit ups, then 50 squats, 40 sit ups, then 40 squats, and so on
For Time.

Workout for Monday, November 9

For Time:

50 jumping jacks
50 walking lunges
50 good mornings
50 box jumps (or step ups--record height)
50 dumbbell push presses (5-10 lbs each hand)
50 squats
50 tuck jumps
50 sit ups
50 burpees
50 mountain climbers

We did this last on Oct. 6

Get out there!

From Women's Health (Oct. 08)

"A study of adult premenopausal women found that those who average an extra 4.6 hours per week of moderate exercise (like slow running) or seven hours per week of easy activity (like walking) may lower their risk of breast cancer by 9 percent versus sedentary women, the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reports. Activity lowers levels of hormones related to increased breast cancer risk, such as estrogen and insulin, explains lead investigator Graham Colditz, Ph.D."

Workout for Sunday, November 8

Running day--

If you are close to a track to use:

3x400 meter sprints
1x800 meter sprints

Rest between intervals, try to keep within 10 seconds time for each 400 sprint.

Or:
Run as far as you can, as fast as you can, for 30 minutes. Record distance, if possible.

Workout for Saturday, November 7

Push up ladder, doubled

Do 2 push ups the first minute, 4 the second, 6 the third and so on until you can no longer complete the push ups required for that minute.

Workout for Friday, November 6

Sorry to those who dislike running--but we don't have beautiful weather like this very often--need to get out in it!

Run away from your house (or on a treadmill) for 8 minutes
Do as many squats as possible in 2 minutes (count and record them)
Run home, trying to reach home in 8 minutes

Workout for Thursday, November 5

Push Up, Sit Up Endurance

4 rounds for reps of:

Push-ups, 1 minute

Sit-ups, 1 minute

Rest 1 miunte

So, you will do as many push ups as possible for one minute, go directly to do as many sit ups as possible in one minute, then rest for one minute. 4 rounds. Count your total reps for push ups in each round and all rounds. Same with sit ups.

Workout courtesy of CrossFit OKC

We did this last on Oct. 8

Workout for Wednesday, November 4

Run 400 meters
25 wall balls

Run 400 meters
25 box jumps

Run 400 meters
25 dumbbell push press

For Time

Workout for Tuesday, November 3

Walk or run for 2 minutes
Do 20 push ups

Walk or run for 2 minutes
Do 30 lunges

Walk or run for 2 minutes
Do 40 squats

Walk or run for 2 minutes
Do 50 jumping jacks

Record total time

We did this last on Sept. 25

Workout for Monday, November 2

Their back!

Two HORRIBLE Tabatas:

Knees to Elbows
Bottom to Bottom Squats

All you need for knees to elbows is a bar to hang from. If you do not have one, I guess just do a push up tabata. Bars that hang in doorways are very inexpensive and a good investment. Pull ups are an unmatched exercise, and need to be worked on.

Most people will not be able to get their knees all the way to their elbows from a hanging position. This takes an incredible amount of core strength. The important thing is to raise your knees up as high as possible, trying to "tip" the pelvis up while doing so.
Remember...a tabata interval is 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest for 8 intervals (total of 4 minutes) Count the number of reps in each 20 second interval. Your score is the LOWEST number of reps in any given interval. Do the knees to elbows tabata, rest a few minutes, then do the bottom to bottom squat tabata.

We did this last on Oct. 2.