WOW! Check This Out!

My friend and fellow fitness professional, Chandra Jones, shared with me this link to a YouTube video of some AMAZING functional/ dynamic/ gymnastic/ effective/ impressive exercises (uploaded by Underground Lab).  I guarantee I'll work a few of these moves into a group exercise class or two...after some serious practice in private first, or course=)  Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=UO5sF2j2BTc

Wall Climbs Explained and Modified

See video below...in depth explanation of how to perform a Wall Climb.  It looks impossible, but I guarantee you can teach it to yourself.  Unbelievable exercise that works the front of your body from the top of shoulders to the tips of your toes.  Give it a go!

http://notascongabi.com/wow

Freshen-Up Your Form

Click the link below for video of Erin's 5 Basic Moves.  You will find explanations, simplifications, and modifications for the five exercises I use in some capacity in every workout I design.  Watch this video, note what perfect form looks like, and then check yourself out in a mirror performing each of these five exercises.  Does the image in your mind match what you see in the mirror?  Hold yourself accountable; nothing will make you stronger and lend you better results than proper form when exercising.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ptxJET9wYI

List of Functional Exercises

Lately, my training focus has been to teach my clients, as well as my "Charlotte Today" viewers, how to work out at home, at the gym, and on the road using my simple workout outlines (see previous post for a breakdown of them).  In order to use these workout templates effectively, you have to switch up which exercises you use/ plug into them.  So, I'm going to keep an ongoing list here with this posting of effective, full body, functional exercises.  I will try to keep it to exercises you can do at home with minimal equipment: mat, medicine ball, kettlebell, dumbbells (soup cans, water bottles work too!).

Use this as your exercise arsenal...switch it up, plug in different exercises each time you workout, and do NOT avoid the exercises you don't like or aren't good at.  If there is any exercise you are confused about or are unfamiliar with, YouTube it; guaranteed there's a great video demonstration of it out there.  There's also video and photo demonstrations of me doing most of these at http://jbwebtv.com/index.php/fitness.  Further, you may always contact me directly through this blog or at my Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/erin.borchard)to ask me questions directly.

*Air Squat
*Sumo Squat
*Goblet Squat
*Single Leg Squat
*Overhead Squat
*Air Squat or Front Squat + Torso Twist
*Dumbbell Front Squat (rack DBs on shoulders with elbows in tight, upper arms parallel to floor)
*Jump Squat
*Sumo Squat Jump
*Round House Squat
*Round House Jump Squat
*Thruster (squat + overhead press)
*Alternating Lunge
*Overhead Lunge (DBs overhead, elbows locked out, shoulders to ears)
*Split Squat Thruster (jump into lunge down position, shooting DBs overhead)
*Step Back Lunge w/ Overhead Thrust (same as Split Squat Thruster but no jump)
*Side Lunge
*Side Lunge w/ Overhead Chop
*Side Lunge w/ Torso Twist
*Lunge Jump Right - Lunge Jump Left - Sumo Squat Jump
*Lunge-Curl-Switch (stay low!)
*Shoulder Press
*Push Press
*Push Jerk
*Push-Up
*Uneven Arms Push-Up
*Hand Release Push-Up
*Clapping Push-Up
*Push-Up to Hop-In
*Push-Up + Hop-In to Side of Hands
*Rolling Med Ball Push-Up
*Med Ball Push-Up (focus on triceps, keep elbows in tight to body)
*Rengade Row (rear dumbbell row in plank, alternating arms)
*Cross-Body Push-Up (cross one leg in front of body (i.e. right toe to left armpit) and push-up)
*Push-Up to Row
*Superman Push-Up (when drop into push-up bring one knee up to elbow)
*Plyo Push-Ups
*Rolling Med Ball Push-Ups
*Burpee (push-up, hop-in, jump up)
*Med Ball Burpee
*Weighted Burpee (w/ DBs)
*Squat-Thrust-Jump (plank, hop-in, jump up)
*Man Maker
*Atomic Man Maker
*Burpee Jack
*Tuck Roll to Jump
*Single Leg Burpee
*Side Burpee
*Burpee Frog Hop
*Burpee Lateral Hop
*Sumo Burpee
*Ninja Step-Ups (start on knees, step up to squat, return to knees, repeat)
*Ninja Jumps (start on knees, jump up to squat on feet, repeat)
*Deadlift
*Single Leg Deadlift
*Stiff Leg Deadlift
*Single Leg Stiff Leg Deadlift
*Single Leg Stiff Leg Deadlift + DB Curl and Overhead Press
*Good Morning
*Dumbbell Squat Clean
*Dumbell Ground-to-Overhead (= Clean and Jerk)
*Single Arm Ground-to-Overhead
*Single Arm Dumbbell Snatch
*Double Arm Dumbbell Snatch
*Sumo Deadlift High Pull
*Stiff Leg Deadllift High Pull
*Single Leg Deadlift High Pull
*Single Leg Stiff Leg Deadlift High Pull
*Dumbell/ Kettlebell/ Med Ball Squat Swing (single or double arm)
*Single Arm DB/ KB Squat Swing
*DB/ KB/ MB Squat Swing + Opposite Single Leg Rear Leg Lift
*DB/ KB/ MB Side Toss
*DB/ KB/ MB Squat Wood Chop (squat + swing from one hip up to opposite eyebrow)
*Med Ball Squat Toss/ Wall Ball
*Turkish Get-Up
*Jump Rope
*Single Leg Jump Rope
*Jumping Jack Jump Rope
*High Knee Jump Rope
*Side-to-Side Hop Jump Rope (slalom hop)
*Double Under Jump Rope
*Tuck Jump
*Pike Jump
*Ankle Hop (hands overhead)
*Side-to-Side Ankle Hop (hands overhead)
*Full XFit Sit-Up/ AbMat Sit-Up (knuckles to floor overhead on the down, hands to ankles on the up)
*Shuffle-Shuffle Touch (holding DB or MB chest high)
*Inchworm to 5-count Hold of Tricep Push-Up Down Positing, Inchworm In
*Plank Walk Sideways (w/ light dumbbell in ea. hand)
*Plank w/ Alternating Lateral Arm Raise (light DBs)
*Renegade Row + Opp. Single Leg Rear Leg Lift
*Dumbbell Bear Crawl
*X-Body Punches w/ light weights (down in sumo squat entire time)
*Weighted Jumping Jack
*Weighted Sumo Squat Jack
*Low Jack
*Low Jack to Sumo Squat
*MB Squat Catch and Release (MB squeezed b/w ankles, squat and jump up, tossing and catching MB w/ feet)
*Box Jump
*Single Leg Box Jump
*Depth Jump
*Burpee Box Jump
*Single Leg Step-Ups to Box - "Repeaters"
*Single Leg Lateral Step-Ups to Box (option: w/ MB or DB Overhead, same arm as working leg)
*Lateral Hops over Barrier or Box
*Broad Jumps over Barrier or Box
*Plank Jack
*Mountain Climber
*Plank + Knee-Out/ Knee-In/ Switch Legs
*Plank Single Leg Side Swipes
*Med Ball Slam Squats
*Med Ball Power Jumps

~There are so many more!!!  I will keep thinking and posting.  www.crossfit.com has a VERY comprehensive list of exercises with video demonstrations of each.  Use it as a resource.  Force yourself to learn one new exercise daily??

Weekend Warrior Bootcamp - Effective Drills to Use Yourself

Like I said in an earlier post, I (alongside three other instructors: Leonard Wheeler, Elizabeth Kapsiak, and Monica Patterson) taught a Weekend Warrior Bootcamp this past weekend at the Siskey Family YMCA.  I wanted to share some of the great, inventive, super effective, and even slightly torturous drills we used with our campers.  Many of them you can do on your own or with a workout partner at home or at the gym/ local track.

1) Hill Work: find a grassy steep hill in your neighborhood
*3 x Sprint up the hill/ run down
*3 x Run Backwards up the hill/ run down forward facing
*2 min. x Lunge up the hill/ run down
*2 min. x Inchworm up the hill (walk hands out to plank, hop feet in, repeat)/ run down
*2 min. x Bear Crawl Forward up the hill/ run down
*2 min. x Bear Crawl Backwards up the hill!!!!/ run down

*10 x Burpees at bottom of hill, then Frog Hop up the hill/ run down
*5 x Single Leg Burpees on R leg, then R Leg Frog Hop up the hill/ run down
*5 x Single Leg Burpees on L leg, then L Leg Frog Hop up the hill/ run down

*3 x Run Fwd. up hill, 1 x Run Bkwd. up hill:
     1) w/ medicine ball overhead
     2) w/ medicine ball held straight out in front
     3) w medicine ball in single-arm football hold (switch arms ea. time up hill)

2) Tabata Sprints:
*8 ROUNDS (4 min.): 20 sec. x Sprint, 10 sec. x Push-Ups
*8 ROUNDS (4min.): 20 sec. x Push-Ups, 10 sec. x Sprint

3) Partner Plank Sprints:
*Partner 1: Sprint 100 yards
*Partner 2: Hold Plank
-switch
-keep going for 6 minutes straight; alternating partners throughout (recovering in plank)

4) Exercise Pairing Count-Up/ Count-Down (by time):
Exercise A: Jack Burpee (add jumping jack legs to the push-up and jump finish portions of burpee)
Exercise B: Tuck Kneed Jump Squats (squat-jump into air w/ knees tucking into chest, land in squat)

A: 1min.
B: 10sec.
~10 sec. rest
A: 50 sec.
B: 20 sec.
~10 sec. rest
A: 40sec.
B: 30sec.
~10 sec. rest
A: 30sec.
B: 40sec.
~10 sec. rest
A: 20 sec.
B: 50sec.
~10 sec. rest
A: 10sec.
B: 1min.

5) Partner "Indian Run" with Medicine Ball:
*Complete 2 laps around a track (800m) with a partner (one in front of the other)
*Partner in front runs w/ medicine ball overhead
*Every 20 seconds or so, switch positions with partner: Partner in front overhead passes med ball to partner in back, partner in back sprints w/ med ball overhead to lead position, repeat

WALL CLIMBS: Not Just a Cool Party Trick

http://jbwebtv.com/index.php/fitness/101-challenge-of-the-week-with-erin/126-challenge-of-the-week-1

Watch the video at the link above to find out why wall climbs are more than just a way to show off.  Handstands (holding handstands, working your way into handstands, handstand push-ups, etc) are one of the most efficient exercises you can do.  A handstand works just about every muscle in your body all at once.  By taking baby steps, you CAN teach yourself to execute this move and to use it in your weekly workout routine.

More Photos from Today's W.O.W. Workout

Photo 1 (top): Basic Lunge
Photo 2: Goblet Squat
Photo 3: Tuck Jump
Photo 4: Renegade Row

Flat Tummy...Get It Back Post-Baby

I have had so many women ask me recently about how to get their tummy flat again post-pregnancy.  Because the topic is so popular, I thought I'd post some tips with a link to a great resource here on my blog.

Of course, much of the work behind losing that still-5-months-pregnant look is losing the leftover baby weight, the excess fat sitting on top of the abdominal muscles.  However, many women (including myself) lose all of their baby weight but still have a tummy that bulges out...no fat on top, but still sporting that oh so lovely still-5-months pregnant midline physique.  Most often, this is caused by a common side effect of pregnancy, called diastis recti.  This is when the outer abdominal muscles, the rectus abdominus (a.k.a. the 6-pack abs) split down the middle, cleaving the left side from the right.  Unfortunately, there is no way to fix this problem, to glue the two sides back together, without sewing them together in surgery.  However, it is not all doom and gloom; there is some good news.  By doing some simple exercises on a consistent basis and training yourself to perform traditional ab exercises with some slight modifications, you can SIGNIFICANTLY improve that bulging belly.

I, personally, have worked really hard on my post-baby belly, and I can honestly say that I am happy with the results.  I am by no means a perfect specimen (I have many a stretch mark to prove it), but I am absolutely willing to wear a bikini in the summer months when at the pool with my kiddos.  There is still a gap running the length between the right and left side of my outer abdominals, but it's not so obvious now, and my tummy does sit down pretty flat now.  (I very much wish that I had before and after pictures to post here.)

Try the tips/ exercises below and let me know how long it takes you to see an improvement...I guarantee it won't take long.

#1: SUCK-INS (a.k.a "Basic Breath"): trains/ strengthens your transverse abdominals, those muscles that encircle your organs and lie beneath your 6-pack abs; these are the muscles that suck your tummy in and give you that flat-bellied look
*3-5 x per day, just around the house while you're cooking, sitting, driving, laying in bed, etc., suck your tummy in as far as you can (belly button back to your spine, like you're trying to put your skinniest jeans on) and blow out forcefully at the same time for a count of about 10 seconds (or until you run out of breath). Do 10 reps at a time. 


#2: CHANGE THE WAY YOU PERFORM TRADITIONAL AB EXERCISES:
*Make sure that you perform the basic breath technique mentioned above anytime you are working your abdominals.  When doing crunches, holding plank, or engaging in any other ab activity, suck your belly button back into your spine, flattening out your tummy as much as you can, while simultaneously blowing out during the work portion of the rep.


#3: PERFORM THE SAHRMANN EXERCISES: 
*These exercises were designed by Shirley Sahrmann, a physical therapist specializing in abdominal rehabilitation.  They are extremely effective, as they specifically target the areas most affected by the muscular stress and stretch of pregnancy.  Click on the link below (scroll down to the bottom of the page) for the step-by-step explanation of these exercises.  Follow the directions precisely and progress through the exercises chronologically, moving onto the next exercise only when you can perform the designated number of repetitions without losing proper form.  This site is a great resource for more information on the topic.  Happy reading!...and Sahrmann exercising!


http://babyfit.sparkpeople.com/articles.asp?id=805