12 Days of Workouts, Day 2

Day 2: Lower Body

Round 1: 3X through

  • Squats
  • Speed skaters
  • Line hops

Rest 60 seconds

Round 2: 3X through

  • Step forward lunges
  • Jump twist
  • Plank w/ glute lift

Rest 60 seconds

Round 3: 3X through

  • Squat to leg abduction
  • Lunge with glute lift
  • Elbow knees

Rest 60 seconds

Round 4: 3X through

  • Hurdle hops
  • Standing leg extension
  • Crunch to glute bridge

Exercises Part 1:

A: Squats

B1,2,&3: Jump twist

C1&2: Lateral line hops

D1&2: Speed skaters

E1&2: Step forward lunges

F1&2: Standing leg extension

12-days_day2

Exercises Part 2:

G1,2,3&4: Squat to leg abduction

H1&2: Lunge with glute lift

i1&2: Hurdle hops

J1&2: Elbow knees

K1&2: Crunch to glute bridge

12-days_day2-2

Exercise tips:

In squats, make sure you sit backwards and down, not just straight down. Sitting back keeps your knees behind your toes at the bottom of the squat and keeps the weight in your heels- this is GOOD form! Think of squeezing your glutes to stand up

Jump twist- the driving force of the move is moving your hips by squeezing your abs

Lateral line hops- find a line, or imagine a line and hop side to side over it with your feet together

Speed skaters- the images above indicate the side motions of the movements, try to have 1-2 feet of distance in between each side

In lunges, your knees need to be behind your toes at the bottom of the range of motion, just like squats 🙂

Standing leg extension- squeeze your abs to help with balance! Never let your leg drop lower than a 90 degree angle with your hip, if your leg is not high enough, you will not feel the burn 😉

Squat to leg abduction- you squat, and on the way up from the squat starting kicking your leg directly out to the side (not forward, not backward), and only lift your leg as high as you are comfortable with. As you lower the leg you return to a squat and then on the way up you lift the other leg out to the side. This move is good for the outer butt muscles, so focus on feeling the burn there!

Lunge with glute lift- similar to the move above. As you come up from the lunge kick your leg backward and upward, keeping the leg straight. This lunge is to be done stationary, meaning you do not step forward or step backward into the lunge, rather you split your legs to set your stance and bend your knees from there to start the lunge

Hurdle hops- You begin by doing 2-6 high knees (not pictured) and then you lift your legs ‘up and over’ think of how you would hop laterally over a hurdle or a fence- one leg has to lead and one leg has to follow

An Outdoor Workout For Your Holiday Weekend

Like many other places, some gyms close on holiday weekends. Don’t take this as an excuse to skip  your workouts for 3,4,5 days, use the great outdoors to get your heart pumping!

PrairieLakesWorkout

Took my workout to a nearby lake/walking path that has workout stations built in this morning, here it is for you to try yourself!

  • 25 jumping jacks
  • 20 rapid box/bench step ups (3rd picture from the left)
  • 15 deep squats
  • 10 full burpees
  • 5 pull ups (substitute for 5 tuck jumps if you don’t have a pull up bar)
  • 10 decline mountain climber twist (2nd picture from right)
  • 15 jump lunges each
  • 20 box jumps
  • 25 high knees

Repeat 5-10 times with an optional 1/2 mile run to start and end the workout!

5 rounds can be completed, at a rapid pace, in about 20 minutes with 315 calories burned!