Hi guys,

Yesterday I met one of my friends that I haven’t seen for about 2 years, and I was amazed how great she looks. She actually looks better than when I saw her the last time. This girl is 34 years old, but she doesn’t look older than me and I will be 28 in April. She has a regular job from monday to friday so she exercises at home and on the weekends she is always doing something fun like skiing, roller blading, hiking or just generally being active. I don’t think that this is a coincidence or just a matter of good genes that this girls looks so great with this kind of lifestyle. The cool thing about my friend is that she doesn’t waste her time. You would never catch her sitting around on the weekends or when she has her free time. She is out living her life and usually in the most active way possible. People just feel good  around her and her attitude is contagious. Sit down with her for five minutes and you will have the next weekend planned out before you know it and you won’t be sitting around either. She is another great example of the fact that you don’t need a fancy gym membership to stay active and keep yourself in top shape. Having friends like this is can keep you not only active and entertained, but also inspired to make better choices with how you spend your free time.

Today’s workout was a lot of fun and a lot of sweat. There are two parts in this routine. In the first part you will be counting your reps, but it’s not a time challenge so make sure that you are focusing mainly on your proper form. For some of the exercises I am using my 8kg kettlebell (I call her Bozenka). The second part of this workout is high intensity interval cardio, and you will need an interval timer. I am using my  pink Gymboss Interval Timer.

1. Burpees – 20 reps

2. One Leg Dead Lift – 5 reps on each leg ( I am using 8kg kettlebell)

3. Jump Lunges 20 reps

4. Windmill 5 reps on each side

Take a short break and move directly to the second part of this workout – high intensity interval cardio

5. Side Jump lunge – 10 seconds rest and 20 seconds of maximum effort. Set your timer for 8 rounds. This cardio segment will take you only 4 minutes so push really hard to make it intensive.

Take a short break and repeat the whole routine one more time.

Enjoy your workout,

Zuzana.

Burpees. Start by standing with your feet hip width apart. Squat down and place your hands down on the floor in front of you. Jump your feet back into plank position. Keep your body tight and in one line. Don’t drop your hips or arch your back. As you lower your chest towards the ground jump your legs apart keeping on your toes. As you push up jump your feet back together. Reverse the order and get back into the squat. Jump up reaching for the sky and land softly on the balls of your feet bending your knees slightly.  Repeat 20 times.

One Leg Dead Lift. Stand with your weight balanced on one leg and the other leg perched on your toes behind you as shown in the first picture. Keep your back straight, chest up and shoulders back and down. Tighten your abs and the muscles on the standing leg. Push your hips back and bend at the waist leaning forward until the weight touches the floor. Keep your back straight, with a slight arch in your lower back. Keep your abs contracted. Now really squeeze your butt and the muscles on the standing leg and reverse the movement to get back into the upright position. Repeat slowly 5 times on each leg. If you don’t have a free weight, you can do this exercise with your body weight only or you can also use a heavy book, etc.

Jump Lunge. Get into the lunge position as shown in the picture. Keep the front shin vertical, thigh parallel to the ground, chest up, back straight, weight on the front heel and shoulders back and down. Don’t forget to contract your abs as well. Before you jump up to switch the legs, touch the ground lightly with your back knee. This way you have to control the movement all the way down plus you will get the benefits of a deep lunge – the way it should be.

Windmill. Stand with your feet a little wider than shoulder width apart and turn both feet side ways at  about a 45 degree angle. Bring the kettlebell up next to your shoulder and shift your weight towards the back leg pushing your hip to the side and up  as shown in the first picture. Push the kettle bell up keeping your shoulder back and down. Keep the arm vertical and wrist straight and tight. Keep your eyes on the bell and bend over rotating your upper body sideways. Bend down slowly and touch the floor with your extended arm as shown in the picture and reverse the movement to get back upright. Thrust the hip of the back leg forward squeezing your glutes. Repeat this exercise 5 times and than switch sides.

Set your timer for 8 rounds and 2 different intervals. The first interval should be 10 seconds and the second interval 20 seconds. You will be doing the side jump lunge during each 20 second interval at your maximum effort. I wasn’t writing down my reps, but I did on average about 13 reps per interval and in the last round I was doing about 9 reps, because I was already tired.

Get into the Side Lunge position and push your hips back bending at your waist forward. Keep your chest up and your shoulders back and down. Your shin should be vertical, thigh parallel to the ground and your extended leg locked at the knee. Keep your weight on your heel and push up off of the heel when you jump up. Drive the knee of your extended leg up as you lift up. Land softly on the ball of your foot and than shift the weight back into your heel and get back into the starting position. Do as many reps as you can during each 20 second interval.

After completing this entire routine, take a short water break and repeat one more time. Have fun.