Total Body Functional Workout

May 3, 2017 by Leave a Comment

I think I am finally, hopefully, starting to get back to a somewhat normal exercise schedule. It was so hard for me to get started again after having Jesse. But just like anything else, sometimes you just need to be disciplined and make it happen.

I so enjoyed all the time I spent letting my body rest after having a new baby and I knew it was time to get back to my workouts. Now that I am three weeks in to exercising consistently I am actually looking forward to my workouts again.

I am focusing right now on rebuilding my strength and concentrating on reconnecting muscles (specifically in my core and pelvic floor) back together after having a baby.

This is a workout I put together that takes under an hour to complete. Each movement should be done slowly and with intention and not rushed.

Equipment Needed: Bands (found HERE and HERE)

Exercises:

Let me know if you try this out and what you think! This workout is challenging and some of the moves may surprise you in the level of difficulty. Have fun and get sweaty!

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Filed Under: Fitness, Health, Postpartum, Workouts Tagged With: ,

Backyard Circuit Workout

April 10, 2017 by Leave a Comment

Two weeks ago my favorite clients came over to our house for a backyard training session. The workout they did was so good that I wanted to share it on the blog. I realize not everyone has access to this equipment or space at their house but this could make a great park, track, or gym workout too with a few modifications if need be.

Equipment Needed: Pull-up Bar (Josh built one in our backyard but I am linking to an at home option), Battle Rope, Heavy & Light Kettlebells/Dumbells

Complete three rounds of circuit one resting only after a round is completed. Once three rounds are complete move to circuit two. For the squats and lunges I held in 18 pound kettlebell but you could also just use your bodyweight for these exercises. We have an alley behind our home that I used for sprinting, thus the name alley sprints, and I am estimating that the distance sprinted would be 100m.

Right before Jesse was born was the first time in my life that I had ever been able to perform a pull-up unassisted. I love Black Mountain Fitness Bands to assist with pull-ups and highly recommend these to help build strength. If you are using the bands be sure to concentrate on lowering yourself slowly and resist the temptation to fling yourself up and down.

In case you are unfamiliar with what I am calling the Lazy Man Rope Climb (see photo below), I recently found this exercise idea in the book The Modern Art of High Intensity Exercise that we recently ordered. I am always hesitant to purchase exercise/fitness books but this one was worth the money! It has great ideas and workouts!

Since starting to climb ropes can be difficult this is a good exercise to do working with a rope on the floor. This exercise is anything but lazy, I just like to name my exercises something fun that is also easy for me to remember!

Lazy Man Rope Climb: Lay the rope on grass or another surface that isn’t sticky or slippery. Attach one end of the rope to a kettle bell or dumbbell (I used a 44 pound kettlebell) and lie on your back at the other end of the rope. Then grab the rope and pull the weight towards you. Be sure to stop in time before you get close to your head. When the weight reaches you stand up and grab the weighted end of the rope and drag it back to where it started and get ready to pull the weight towards you again. Repeat a total of 3 times. Be sure to engage your transverse abdominis!

And that is the workout! It is a doozy for sure but also fun! I hope you have a wonderful week leading up to Easter. I am so thankful for God’s grace and get choked up thinking about the significance of Jesus on the cross, the Temple veil tearing, and the stone being rolled away. If you have children or even if you don’t you might be interested in the book The Garden, The Curtain, and The Cross. It is perfect for Easter or really anytime of the year that beautifully illustrates and explains God’s plan for salvation and explains the Gospel message without watering it down.

I love the following verse…

A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up,and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together,for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” Isaiah 40:3-5

God’s glory has been revealed and each one of us has to choose what we will do with that knowledge. Jesus Christ offers hope. A hope that is steadfast and true. Following Christ doesn’t mean that life is going to be easy. In fact the Bible tells us to rejoice in our suffering, which is very counter to what our culture teaches (Romans 5:3-5, James 1:2-4, 1 Peter 4:13, 2 Corinthians 12:10).

This past weekend at church one of the points made in the sermon was that “the ultimate irony would be to go to Hell after hearing the good news many times, and refusing to receive it.”

Seek the Lord while he may be found, call of Him while he is near. Isaiah 55:6

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12

God forgives and has offered a way for us to be with Him in Heaven through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross. And that is what Easter is about.

Faith, hope, forgiveness, and redemption isn’t personified by chocolate bunnies. Instead it is represented by two outstretched arms on the cross.

xo, Tamara

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The 20 Minute Workout: EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute)

February 2, 2016 by Leave a Comment

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

If you are limited on time but still want to make an impact with your training time EMOM workouts might be the answer you are looking for.

When it comes to learning a new movement or wanting to improve how you move, you need to practice. The problem with practicing and refining a specific movement during a total body strength day or after an intense cardio session is that your body will be more fatigued. To become efficient at a movement and to ensure that your form and technique are not lacking you need to practice quality repetitions.

Most of us to do not have extra time in the week to devote to our movement patterns when we are already exercising several hours each week. The majority of us, myself included, want to feel like we gave it our all when we workout, dripping with sweat, and like we pushed our  bodies until we had nothing left. The older I get the more I realize how important it is to balance these high intensity sessions with movement specific focus sessions.

If you are looking for an efficient way to add movement training into your week EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute) workouts are a great starting place.

While there are many different ways to do an EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute) workout today I am mainly focusing on 1 movement pattern with very few reps performed each minute.

HOW TO DO AN EMOM WORKOUT

  1. Pick one movement. This movement needs to be a total body movement. Examples – Turkish Get Ups, Pull-Ups, Box Jumps, Pushups, or Burpees.
  2. Pick your total reps. How many reps do you want to do? Start with 20 if it is a new to you movement. Your total reps can be 20, 40, 60, 80, or even 100. It really depends on the movement.
  3. Each minute you perform 1-5 reps of the movement you selected. The goal here is to make sure that the during the minute you are only working for about 15-20 seconds.
  4. Rest during the remaining time. The beauty of these types of workouts is that you are allowing your body ample time to recover so you are never overly fatigued while performing the movement.
  5. Repeat for 20 minutes.

BENEFITS OF AN EMOM WORKOUT 

  • You don’t have to think about the workout. You can focus on form and technique. The pace is set for you by using the clock.
  • EMOMs are super versatile. You can program these with many different exercises. Keep reading for examples.
  • Built in rest. You should be resting more than you are working during an EMOM workout. If you can keep the movement to 15 seconds to perform all your reps for the minute you are looking at a rest to work ratio of 3:1. This is a very good ratio. The recovery will allow to complete your next set without being fatigued.
  • You will feel it. By focusing all your energy on practicing one movement not only will you become more efficient but you will also be feeling your effort within the next day.
  • Did I mention it is only 20 minutes?!?

EXAMPLES OF EMOM WORKOUTS

Like I mentioned earlier there are so many ways you can do an EMOM workout. Below are 6 examples of different 20 minute EMOMs.

20 Minute EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute) Workouts

It wasn’t until a few months ago that I was able to do a pull-up. I followed a 12 week strength training program and was super consistent with my workouts. I am still working on building up strength and working on my form. When I perform pull-ups in an EMOM workout I try to do as many as I can without assistance. When my form starts slacking or I can’t get my body up I use thick resistance loop bands to assist me. I just wanted to share that in case pull-ups are challenging for you also.

To time these workouts I like to use either the Seconds Pro App on my iPhone or my Gymboss.

Get creative with EMOMs. These are just examples and are by far not the only way to do these. Have fun working on a more balanced and stronger body!

PS…In case you are looking for some new workout gear check out the Reebok One Series Tights. I love these pants! I wear them at least twice a week. I also have worn my ASICS Women Gel Fit Sana Cross Training Shoe for every workout I have done since I received them in the mail last Fall. This shoes fit like a sock and are so light! Hands down my most favorite shoe. EVER.

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