15 Minute Holiday Workout
| Posted by Jeff Angus on |
Every year we try to make commitments to fitness goal regimes around the start of the New Year. But, no surprise here, on average only about 20 percent of people stick to their new year’s fitness resolution. So this year, Chill is making it real easy for you with the help of Jeff Angus, Managing Director of the Ontario Fitness Council and President and CEO of CardioCore Fitness (cardiocorefitness.com).
Jeff has agreed to put together a simple 15-minute workout every issue of Chill that corresponds with the time of year and everything we have going on in our lives at that time.
Since holiday season equates with being strapped for cash, stressed out and having no free time, we’re starting with the basics. Basic moves using things around your house and your own brute strength is all this workout requires. And although 15 minutes may not seem like an ideal workout, this set of exercises was designed to get you the most our of those 15 minutes.
Have 30 minutes? Do it twice.
The Workout
The Warm Up – Since this is a bodyweight workout, your warm up can be shorter than one you would use for high intensity training and sport. Just 3-5 minutes running up and down a set of stairs in the house will suffice.
The Moves
1 Prisoner Squats: Athletic stance, feet shoulder or hip width apart, knees slightly bent, shoulder blades down and back, chest out. Heels should always be in contact with the floor. Do not lock knees at top.
What it Does: Develops quads, glutes, increases testosterone, builds core endurance and postural endurance.
2 Pushups: Elbows should be slightly angled towards body not to 90°, line up middle of chest between hands.
What it Does: Develops upper body pushing strength, develops chest, shoulders, arms; efficient exercise for core strength and endurance.
3 Bodybuilder with 4 Mountain Climbers: This move combines the squats and push ups (in that order). Once you have done your squats and you’re in your push up stance, alternately drive your knees toward your chest four times. Use a powerful movement to push off the floor and land in a wide stance squat, extend hips and explode off the floor in a vertical jump.
What it Does: Develops same muscle groups as push ups and squats, adds rotational stability and hip power with mountain climbers and vertical jump.
4 Alternating Lunge or Jump Lunge: Same range and movement as squat.
What it Does: Develops the same muscles and groups as squats, but it splits the move in two for help with muscular imbalances. For increased intensity and hip power, add a slight plyometric jump in between.
5 Progressive Bridge: Set up with elbows directly under the shoulders with 90° angle, maintain good spine position with belly button pulled in and shoulder blades retracted and depressed. Using the ankles only, slowly increase the angle at the elbow and shoulder location while walking away from the elbows. Start slow, don’t walk too far so that you feel pressure in the lower back. Slowly walk back towards elbows to decrease the angle back to 90°.
What it Does: Teaches abdominal muscles to stabilize the trunk. The rectus abdominis and erector spinae are very functional for daily life, work and sporting activities.
6 Double Floor Sweeper to Double V-Up: Lay down on your back with hands underneath you so that you can maintain a good lumbar position. Keep your pelvis at a slight posterior tilt (think of pushing your lower back towards the floor). Slowly raise your legs on an angle towards your shoulder and push or thrust your hips off the floor. Slowly return in a “sweeping" motion to the middle and do the same movement to your other shoulder. After two “sweeps" follow with two v-ups.
V-ups is the same position as floor sweeper, but with your arms raised above your head. In one motion, attempt to make a “V" with your upper and lower halves.
What it Does: This combination develops muscle tone for the whole abdominal region which is a problem area for many people; decreases waist girth (along with body fat, weak abdominal muscles contribute to waist girth); trains lower abdominal region to perform the function of spine and pelvis stabilization for dynamic leg movement; works internal and external obliques, rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis (deep “weight belt" region) and hip flexors all in one.
Put it all together.
After 3 to 5 minute warm up repeat the following sequence until you reach 15 minutes total.
1. 20 prisoner squats (part of warmup drop to 5 reps moving forward)
2. 20 pushups (part of warmup, drop to 5 reps moving forward)
3. 5 bodybuilder with 4 mountain climber combo’s
4. 5 prisoner squats/5 pushups
5. 5 Lunges or Jump Lunges
per leg
6. 5 Prisoner Squats/5 Pushups
7. 5 progressive bridge
8. 5 prisoner squats/5 pushups
9. 5 double sweeper to double v-up combos
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