Turbo-charge Your Workout with this Fat-burning Circuit from Health Club Rochester NY
Are you at a plateau in your fitness efforts? It's time to rev-up your workouts. An exercise physiologist in Darien, Connecticut, Tom Holland, M.S. suggests that you keep your muscles guessing by stressing your muscles now and then. During this period, work every muscle three to four days in a row. Perform each set with little or no rest in between.
This fast-paced circuit will eliminate your plateau in no time. Execute 8-12 reps of each exercise. Replicate the circuit three times. Rest for two minutes at the end of each circuit. Pick a dumbbell that will exhaustion your muscle by the 10th or 12th rep.
Pushups -- Get on your hands and toes (or knees) on the floor. Hands flat on the ground shoulder-width apart. With fingers facing forward or slightly turned in, lower body toward the ground, elbows flared out just a little. Keep your abs tight and push up until arms are fully extended. Keep your head aligned with your spine. Do not bend from the waist and do not allow your lower back to sag.
Forward Lunges -- Stand with feet together, hands to your sides. Step forward with left leg into a lunge. Concentrate on sinking hips toward the ground rather than pushing hips forward. Keep your back straight and lower your body until the left thigh is parallel to the ground. Firmly push off with your right leg and return to start position. Switch to the right leg and repeat. 8-12 repetitions per leg.
Chest Press on stability ball -- Sit on a stability ball. Grab a pair of dumbbells and walk feet forward until your head and shoulders lie on the ball. Keep your feet flat on the floor with your knees bent at 90 degrees. Squeeze your glutes and abs tightly throughout the exercise to stabilize your body. With your palms facing forward, bring the dumbbells around chest level. Drive weights up over chest, and lower back to start position.
Squats with dumbbells -- Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Face toes forward or slightly outward. Carry a pair of heavy dumbbells on each hand with your arms hanging straight down. Drop hips toward the ground rather than pushing hips forward. Bend knees until thighs are parallel to the floor. Keep your back straight at roughly 45 degrees from your hips. Look straight ahead or upwards at roughly 45 degrees. Stretch out legs to standing position and repeat.
Dumbbell rows -- Position right knee and right hand on a workout bench (a large chair can substitute nicely) so that back is parallel to the floor, keep head aligned with your spine. With left hand, lift the dumbbell straight up to torso level, keeping your elbow in and pointing slightly toward the ceiling. Feel your back muscle contract. Hold for 1 second. Slowly lower the weight to a dead hanging position and repeat. Switch sides between sets.
Crunches on Ball -- Sit on a Swiss ball and slowly lean back and roll on the ball until the curve of your back lies on the ball. Place hands behind your ears. Tighten abs as you exhale and slowly raise head and shoulders toward the ceiling. Lower shoulders and repeat. Do 15-20 reps.
Lunges, shoulder press and dumbbell curls -- With palms facing forward step forward with one leg into a lunge. Follow the instructions above on correct lunge technique. As you drop down, curl the dumbbells to your chest while elbows are glued to your sides. Turn wrists so that palms face forward then push the dumbbells overhead as you return to the starting position. Bring feet together and lower your arms. Repeat, stepping with the other foot forward. 8-12 repetitions per leg.
Mix any of the following exercises to spice up your circuit:
1) Add plyometric drills immediately after an exercise that works the same muscle group. Example, after a set of squats, do 10 squat jumps. Start in the squat position, jump up and extend your arms overhead. Land softly with knees bent and arms swinging behind you.
2) Add 30 seconds of intense cardio, such as jumping rope or high knee lifts between sets of the weighted exercises above. This burns a higher percentage of calories from fat. Go for at least a minute if you do less intense cardio, such as jogging in place.
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