WOW –Workout of the Week: Bicycle Crunches

This week’s workout is Bicycle Crunches. Bicycle Crunches are a great core and lower body exercise that can strengthen your abs while burning fat.  Here’s how to do them:

·         Start by sitting on the ground, with both feet on the floor in front of you.

·         Next, raise your feet off the floor and find your center of balance.

·         Straighten out both legs and place both hands behind your head, keeping your elbows in.

·         Next, bend one knee and bring it in toward your chest. At the same time, twist your torso so the opposite elbow meets the opposing knee.

·         Finally, repeat for the other knee, twisting your torso and touching your other elbow to the opposite knee. Congratulations—you just completed one Bicycle Crunch!

Try doing 15-20 Bicycle Crunches, or as many as you can, for 30 seconds. For an added challenge, try adding 10 Bicycle Crunches to your set each day! 

We hope you’ll try Bicycle Crunches over the weekend and then build them into your daily routine Monday through Friday of the coming week.  

Want more fitness ideas?  If you’re a Health Advocate member with access to the Wellness Coaching program, reach out to your Wellness Coach for more healthy ideas to get—and stay—fit. And remember, talk to your doctor before beginning any new fitness regimen.

WOW –Workout of the Week: Mason Twists

This week’s workout is Mason Twists. Mason Twists are a great core exercise because they work your obliques and center abdominal muscles. Here’s how to do them:

·         Start out sitting on the floor with your knees bent so that you can place your feet flat on the ground. (You may want to use a yoga mat or towel for extra padding.)

·         Lean back so that your body is in a 45-degree angle, or until you start to feel your abdominal muscles tighten, while keeping your back straight. Raise your feet up until your lower legs are parallel to the floor.

·         Balancing your weight on your glutes, bend your elbows and clasp your hands together in front of your chest.

·         Twist your torso to the right side and try to bring your hands as close as you can to the floor. Move only your upper body while keeping your abdominals engaged throughout the motion.

·         Finally, twist over to the left side and bring your hands toward the floor. Avoid using momentum – be sure to control the motion. To complete one set, continue twisting from the right to the left side.

·         Try doing 2 sets of 30 twists (15 on each side).

For added difficulty, hold some weight (like a medicine ball or light dumbbell) in your hands while twisting. Try adding 10-15 Mason Twists to your sets each day this week! 

We hope you’ll try Mason Twists over the weekend and then build them into your daily routine Monday through Friday of the coming week.  

Want more fitness ideas?  If you’re a Health Advocate member with access to the Wellness Coaching program, reach out to your Wellness Coach for more healthy ideas to get—and stay—fit. And remember, talk to your doctor before beginning any new fitness regimen.

WOW –Workout of the Week: Burpees

This week’s workout is Burpees.  You may have heard of Burpees before, as they are a popular exercise used by personal trainers, athletes, military personnel, and CrossFit enthusiasts. Burpees—also known as squat thrusts—are a great calorie-torching, full-body exercise for strengthening your arms, chest, quads, glutes, hamstrings and abs. They are performed in five steps with rapid movement—each step should take about one second. Here’s how to do them:

1. Begin in a standing position with your arms at your sides and your feet shoulder-width apart.

2. Next, assume a squat position with your hands on the floor in front of you.

3. Kick your feet back into a push-up position and complete one full push-up.

4. Immediately return your feet back to the squat position as quickly as possible.

5. Finally, stand up from the squat position. Congratulations, you just completed one full Burpee!

For added difficulty, try adding two push-ups into step 3. Try incorporating 2 or 3 sets of 15-20 Burpees into your workout. You can even do them in between other exercises to keep your heart rate up.  After doing a few sets of Burpees, your legs will likely feel a bit like lead—but don’t worry, this is normal!

We hope you’ll try Burpees over the weekend and then build them into your exercise routine Monday through Friday of the coming week.  

Want more fitness ideas?  If you’re a Health Advocate member with access to the Wellness Coaching program, reach out to your Wellness Coach for more healthy ideas to get—and stay—fit. And remember, talk to your doctor before beginning any new fitness regimen.

WOW –Workout of the Week: Walking Lunges

This week’s workout is Walking Lunges. Walking Lunges are great for building muscle in your quads as well as your hamstrings, and calf muscles. They are also great for improving balance!  Here’s how to do them:

·         Start by standing tall with your back straight, feet together, and your arms at your sides.

·        Next, take a big step forward, landing on your heel, then forefoot (your toes and the pads of your feet). Lower your body, flexing the knee and thigh of your front leg to create a 90-degree angle. Keeping your weight on your front foot, drop your rear leg till the knee almost touches the ground.

·         After that, raise your body by bringing your back leg forward. Take another big lunge, bending your now-forward knee at a 90-degree angle, again letting the rear knee almost touch the ground.

·         Congratulations, you just completed two Walking Lunges! Try doing multiple sets of 15-20 Walking Lunges, or do them from one end of a room to the other.

Note: Keep your torso upright during the lunge—do not hunch over. This will help engage your abdominal muscles. Throughout this exercise, the knee you lead with should point in the same direction as your foot.

For added difficulty, hold weights in your hand (like dumbbells or kettle bells) as you perform your Walking Lunges.

We hope you’ll try Walking Lunges over the weekend and then build the exercise into your daily routine Monday through Friday of the coming week.  

Want more fitness ideas?  If you’re a Health Advocate member with access to the Wellness Coaching program, reach out to your Wellness Coach for more healthy ideas to get—and stay—fit. And remember, talk to your doctor before beginning any new fitness regimen.

If you have a great exercise you really enjoy, share it with us by tweeting us @HealthAdvocate using #WOW.

WOW –Workout of the Week: Abdominal Side Bends (Standing)

This week’s workout is Abdominal Side Bends. Abdominal Side Bends are a great exercise for strengthening your side obliques, tightening those pesky “love handles,” as well as your lower back muscles. These muscles are important to strengthen as they help with bending over, sitting down, and standing up. This exercise requires a weight, such as a dumbbell, but if you don’t have one, household objects like a can of soup will work too.  

Here’s how to do Abdominal Side Bends:

·         Start out by standing with your feet close together, holding a weight in one hand and keeping it next to your thigh.

·         Next, place your opposite hand behind your head (or on your hip).

·         Bend your waist to the side that is holding the weight, exhaling on the way down. You should feel tension in your side, above the waist.

·         Finally, bring your body back up into the starting position. Congratulations, you just completed one abdominal side bend! 

A few tips:

·         Alternate sides, and be sure to do the same amount of bends on each side so you get an even workout.

·         Important! Do not bend too far—the weight should not go past your knee, as it could cause straining in your back.

·         Be sure to keep good posture, and remember to exhale on each bend.

·         For added difficulty, hold a heavier weight or do the bends at a slower pace. Try doing multiple sets of 20-30 bends on each side.

We hope you’ll try Abdominal Side Bends over the weekend and then build this exercise into your daily routine Monday through Friday of the coming week.  

Want more fitness ideas?  If you’re a Health Advocate member with access to the Wellness Coaching program, reach out to your Wellness Coach for more healthy ideas to get—and stay—fit. And remember, talk to your doctor before beginning any new fitness regimen.