Badass Fitness

The 100 BLTs Workout - hold the mayo!

Some BLTS are better for us than others. Today's BLT not only will make you stronger, it's sooo calorie-free that, even after finishing 100 of 'em, you'll need to refuel after finishing! Just hold the mayo.

Here's the skinny: B is for Burpees. L is for lunging biceps curls. T is for triceps kickbacks or dips (or your choice of a combo of the two). 100 reps of each. A circuit challenge workout that incorporates cardio intervals (burpees) with strength moves for bi's, tri's and legs and glutes.

By dividing these into 5 sets, it is what I like to call a "digestible challenge." If you prefer, you can even do 10 sets of 10 reps per exercise. Whatever works for you, and gets you to the finish line. So let's get to it...

100 Badass BLTs Workout

The Warmup

30 seconds each:

• Pogo hops
• Jumping jacks
• Run in place, high knees
• Skaters
• Mountain climbers
• Plank hops

The workout

• 20 burpees
• 20 alternating lunges with side biceps curls (do 10 on the left leg, while doing side curls, and then 10 more lunging on the right leg
• 20 tricep dumbbell kickbacks or bench dips (or 10 of each)

Repeat four more times, for a total of 100 BLTs.

Simple? Yes. Easy? Not so much. Badass? 100 percent, yes.

Coming later this week: The first installment of Badass Fist Bumps and Face Palms Awards!

A Weekend Warrior Whip-Through-It Workout: #500Badass Reps in 15!

Our muscles don't know what day it is, what time it is, or how little time we have to work 'em. But we know it's Friday, and we know we should find the time to fit in some fitness. But Happy Hour calls, Saturdays fly by too fast, and Sundays are meant to be lazy, right?

Today's workout is all about maximum effort in minimum time. Use it to kick off your weekend strong, or keep it handy as a go-to quick session when you are traveling or just too busy to get to your favorite fitness class or weight room.

It's just 15 minutes long, but once you start you push all the way through to the finish, working through each circuit with just 15 seconds of rest in between exercises- a sort of variation on Tabata. By combining cardio and strength moves, as well as plyometric drills, you get an ample workout that ends up being a whopping 500 reps. Boom.

Oh, yeah! Bring on the weekend like a fitness supah-star!

Weekend Warrior Workout

Warmup:

• 25 pogos
• 25 jacks
• 25 skaters
• 25 mountain climbers

Circuit 1 (150 reps):

• 25 regular pushups
• 25 regular tricep dips
• 25 jump squats
• 25 regular pushups
• 25 regular tricep dips
• 25 jump squats

Circuit 2 (100 reps):

• 25 right-leg lunges
• 25 left-leg lunges
• 25 step-ups on a bench/step, right side
• 25 step-ups on a bench/step, left side

Circuit 3 (150 reps):

• 25 close-grip pushups (works triceps)
• 15 staggered right-side pushups
• 15 staggered left-side pushups
• 25 alternating jump lunges
• 10 frog pushups (works shoulders)
• 25 incline pushups
• 25 alternating jump lunges

Circuit 4 (100 reps):

25 walking lunges

25 sumo squats

25 walking lunges

25 sumo squats

Circuit 5 (500 more reps....just kidding! Go enjoy the weekend, Badasses. You have earned it:)

Coming next week: The first installment of Badass Fist Bumps and Face Palms - a purely subjective "way to go" and "that's lame-ass" list of recent fitness and health developments....

Must-Have Training Plan for that Summer Adventure

Some vacations require more planning than others - and not just when it comes to deciding which shoes and how many outfits to pack.

A former co-worker has, as she put it, "let my sister talk me into" hiking a mountain in Oregon this summer. To be exact: The sibling duo will be hiking up South Sister, Oregon's third-tallest mountain. One website's description of South Sister: "The extremely difficult trail to the summit of South Sister gains a staggering 4,900 feet of elevation in 5.5 miles."Ouch. Not exactly a stroll in the park.

She wrote to me last week, from Tampa Bay, asking for advice on how she can physically train for her summer adventure beyond putting the treadmill on its steepest incline and running like the wind. She also recently found a four story parking garage where she can walk the ramps - and the stairs.

So what else can a future mountain hiker do to get the muscles - and heart - ready for nearly 5,000 feet up and the same distance back down?

1. Tackle the stairs, with resistance: Hiking up a mountain doesn't happen while holding a dainty clutch purse. It requires lugging a backpack filled with supplies that will likely weigh 20-plus pounds. So find a local stadium, garage or even the stairwell in a downtown office building and do multiple sets of up-and-downs with a weight vest or packed backpack that matches the weight you'll be carrying up that mountain. This works with ramps, too. You will build leg strength, back strength and endurance. Recommendation: 1 to 2 workouts per week, beginning with 30 minutes and building up to one hour by a week or two before the trip.

2. Interval Cardio Training: Because there is less oxygen at higher altitudes, we feel more winded doing any sort of physical activity in those conditions. But increasing your aerobic capacity and endurance, and even pushing your upper limits with anaerobic bursts that leave you breathless, will help make the top of that trail more bearable. This particular South Sisters mountain in Oregon is just at the bottom range of what is considered "high altitude," but especially for someone used to flat Florida, the change could physically impact performance if a hiker isn't conditioned. Recommendation: Indoor spinning class incorporating endurance bouts as well as sprints into resistance - for building cardiovascular AND leg strength. Also, try a 30-minute treadmill sprint workout going one minute moderate incline, one minute very steep, walking fast or jogging. 1 to 2 of these workouts per week.

3. Lower Body Strength Training: Weight-bearing exercises (lunges and squats with dumbbells, quad extensions, leg presses, etc.) as well as strength training using your own body weight (walking lunges, wall sits, step-ups on a bench or step, etc.) will build muscles in your quads, hamstrings, glutes and calves to power you up that mountain trail. Recommendation: Once a week, try the workout below or one of the recent ones posted on the blog, here and here:

• 25 walking lunges, holding dumbbells of challenging resistance (or start without weights and build up)
• 25 squats with dumbbells
• 25 sumo squats with dumbbells
• 20 step-ups on a bench, right side and then repeat on the left (with dumbbells)
• 25 jump squats
• 1-minute wall sit
• Repeat the circuit above two more times

Coming this week: A few tricks for keeping your hydration in check...and a 15-minute, no-excuses, 500-reps (yes, you can!) workout!

Just in time for warm temps (and shorts): A Badass Leg Burner Workout!

I could swear it was just New Year's, but the calendar says different. It's here again. Whether we like it or not. Whether we (and our Badasses) are ready for the 'unveil' or not.

Yes, spring is upon us and summer is on its way, which means no more hiding under layers of sweats, pants and sweaters. Today's workout is a lower body blast -- working quads, hamstrings and glutes with high reps and weighted moves.

Do this twice a week in conjunction with clean eating, 30-45 minutes of cardio 3-4 times a week, and you will start to see changes you like.

This workout is to be done circuit style, going through each of the 10 exercises and resting no more than 2 minutes in between (this will keep your heart rate up there and fire up your calorie burn). If you have the time and will to do a second round, go for it! Short and time? Pick 5 favorites and do just those.

Spring/Summer Leg Burner

Warmup: 5 minutes jogging, cycling, elliptical, or a combo of jumping jacks, high knees, mountain climbers, skaters, etc.

Weighted Bosu Sumo Squats: 20 reps each side

Weighted Close-leg Bosu Squats: 25 reps

Walking Weighted Lunges: 25 lunges walking forward, 25 lunges back the way you came

Lateral Weighted Lunges: 20 lunges to each side.

Weighted Side-Step Squats: 20 squats to the right, 20 squats back to the start, holding dumbbells or a weight plate at your chest

Step-Ups on a Bench with Dumbbells: 20 reps on each leg. Video here.

Dropsies with Dumbbells: 20 reps on each leg

Deadlifts: 25 reps holding dumbbells or weighted bar

One-Legged Deadlifts: 15 reps on each leg. Same form and motion as a regular deadlift, but balancing and engaging the core by doing them on one standing leg.

Glute Press-Ups: 25 each leg

Coming up: The Badass Army Playlist...and are we really Born to Run?

TGIF 10-Minute Cardio Blaster!

There are 1,440 minutes in a day - even a Friday at the end of a busy week. Ten minutes of that is less than 1 percent of an investment. So today, I challenge you to invest at least that 1 percent. This 10-minute cardio/strength intervals routine kicks to the curb any excuse of "I don't have time."

No matter what, we can find 10 minutes. And you are worth the investment. If you have more time, do an extra round or two of the whole circuit. Once you start, keep moving from one exercise to the next quickly with very short rest if needed. This will keep your heart rate up and keep you at the 10-minute mark.

Enough chatter - blast off the weekend with this Badass Cardio Blaster!

Warmup

• 30 seconds of jumping jacks
• 30 seconds of high knees running in place
• 30 seconds of skaters
• 30 seconds of jumping jacks

Cardio Blast

• 30 seconds of burpees
• 30 seconds of jump squats
• 30 seconds of right-leg lunges
• 30 seconds of left-leg lunges
• 30 seconds of mountain climbers
• 30 seconds of plank hops
• 30 seconds of regular pushups
• 30 seconds of close-grip pushups
• 30 seconds of leap frog jumps
• 30 seconds of frog pushups
• 30 seconds of leap frog jumps
• 30 seconds of floor or chair tricep dip
• 30 seconds of burpees
• 30 seconds of jump squats

 

Calories Torched, Muscles Burned: All-Tabata TRX

The beauty of TRX Suspension and Rip Training is its versatility -- and the constant challenge it puts on our muscle power and cardio endurance. TRX engages multiple muscle groups at once, strengthens the core and builds simultaneous strength and agility.

Whether you're using it for pure strength training or cardio intervals, TRX will kick your mother-lovin' Badass to the curb every time.

Today's featured workout uses Tabata intervals on both the Suspension and RIP Trainers for a challenging half-hour routine that will leave your muscles and heart feeling like they got in a much longer sweat session. When you're short on time, doing high-intensity Tabata intervals makes the most of the time you DO have - and boosts metabolism long after you put up those TRX straps.

So fuel up, water up, and get to work....

All-Tabata TRX Workout

*Rest 1-2 minutes in between each Tabata circuit

Warmup: 30 seconds each of jumping jacks, pogo hops, skaters and mountain climbers

Tabata Circuit 1 (TRX at mid-length)

• Regular Biceps Curlsx2
• Jump Squats x2
• Regular Biceps Curls x2
• Jump Squats x2

Tabata Circuit 2 (TRX at mid-length)

• Center Squat-Side Kicks Right x2
• Center Squat-Side Kicks Left x2
• One-Legged Right Leg Squat x2
• One-Legged Left Leg Squat x2

Tabata Circuit 3 (TRX fully extended)

• Chest Press x2
• Front Squat x2
• Chest Press x2
• Front Squat x2

Tabata Circuit 4 (TRX at mid length)

• Tricep Presses x2 (facing away from anchor point)
• High Rows x2
• Tricep Presses x2
• High Rows x2

Tabata Core Circuit (TRX almost fully lengthened)

• Saws x2
• Plank x2
• Crunch x2
• Pike x2


Coming up: 5 Foods that are Super...for unexpected reasons...

 

Cardio Badass-Kicker: Tabata Trails Trek

  

Tabata drills will kick your butt into shape any way you dice 'em. Strength drills, with weights or body resistance. Cardio drills, from simply moves like jumping jacks to tougher challenges like burpees. They burn. And they burn calories, as you may have felt firsthand if you did Monday's Tabata Bootcamp workout.

Tabata also works for high-intensity interval training on indoor cycling bikes, the treadmill, or an outdoor track. My quads and hamstrings are still talking to me after the workout below, with music, which we did in cycling class Tuesday night. By alternating sprint Tabata drills with climbing Tabata drills of varying resistances, and adding recovery songs in between, this becomes the format for a very challenging 45-minute class that burns lots of calories. It ends with a big push uphill, 2 climb Tabatas in a row, followed by a downhill Tabata sprint. If you're just getting started, add recovery periods in between.

The music can be changed to your liking, but try to match the song lengths, as you'll need 4 minutes for each Tabata circuit and a good 3 minutes or so of recovery in between. And if you're using a treadmill, simply apply the same resistance and speed principals outlined below.

Tabata Trails Trek

• Warmup: Light resistance, warmup pace (Rock That Body, Black Eyed Peas: 4:29)
• Second half of warmup, low rolling hills alternating every 30 seconds between a slight incline and a 5 or 6 of 10 on the resistance scale (Jump, Madonna: 3:59)
• Sprint Tabata: Flat road, going at 60% of max pace on the 10-second recovery intervals and sprint pace on the 20-second working intervals (Gonna Make You Sweat -Power Remix, J Rae: 3:58)
• Recovery: Catch your breath as you keep pedaling. After a minute or so, go back to 'active recovery' of 60% pace on a flat road (Dance About It, Paper Tongues: 2:58)
• Climb Tabata: Alternate between a 5 out of 10 max resistance on the 10-second recovery intervals and 6-7 out of 10 on the 20-second working intervals (Boys Wanna Be Her, Peaches: 3:56)
• Recovery: Catch your breath as you keep pedaling. After a minute or so, go back to 'active recovery' of 60% pace on a flat road (Hard On My Love, Robin Thicke: 3:36)
• Climb Tabata: Alternate between a 6 out of 10 max resistance on the 10-second recovery intervals and 7 to 8 out of 10 on the 20-second working intervals (Nasty, Janet Jackson: 4:04)
• Recovery: Catch your breath as you keep pedaling. After a minute or so, go back to 'active recovery' of 60% pace on a flat road. Optional mini-sprints during the chorus (Gettin' Jiggy Wit It, Will Smith: 3:49)
• Moderate Climb Tabata: Alternate between a 4 out of 10 max resistance on the 10-second recovery intervals and 5-6 out of 10 on the 20-second working intervals (Jique, Brazilian Girls: 4:15)
• Steep Climb Tabata: Alternate between a 7 out of 10 max resistance on the 10-second recovery intervals and 8-9 out of 10 on the 20-second working intervals. Slow but strong! ('Till I Collapse, Eminem: 4:58)
• Sprint Downhill Tabata: Flat road, going at 60% of max pace on the 10-second recovery intervals and sprint pace on the 20-second working intervals (Untouched, The Veronicas: 4:15)
• Cool-down: Back off the resistance and keep pedaling, slowing down easily throughout the song and lengthening your inhales and exhales as your heart rate comes down (Breathe, Telepopmusik: 4:56)


Coming up: Chris crosses the #360to30 finish line...and 5 suprising food sources for must-have nutrients.

All-Tabata Bootcamp: Burn it Out

Tabata. You know it burns. But you also know it works - torching calories and working lots of muscles. And if you alternate cardio Tabata drills with strength Tabata and even core Tabata drills, it can become the format for an entire bootcamp class or solo sweat session. Each Tabata circuit is 4 minutes long and consists of 20-second working intervals followed by 10 seconds of rest, for a total of 8 rounds. This method is one of the most efficient methods of exercise. You get a full workout that works you head to toe, yet doesn't require 90 minutes or two hours of your time.

A couple dozen students and I proved it last week with the bootcamp routine below. This one uses little equipment - just dumbbells - and even that can be swapped out for resistance bands. So give this a whirl, knowing that at the end of the 45 minutes or so you will have pushed your Badass to the limit - and conquered!

All-Tabata Badass Bootcamp 

Warmup

30 seconds each of:

• pogo hops
• jacks
• high knees running in place
• skaters
• mountain climbers

Tabata #1: Cardio

• Burpees x2
• Skaters x2
• Jump Squats x2
• Side kick squats x2 (kick out to the right, squat in the center, kick out to the left, and keep going)

Tabata #2: Strength, Pushups

• Regular Pushups x2
• Tricep Pushups x2
• Decline Pushups x2
• Incline Pushups x2

Tabata #3: Cardio

• Skaters x2
• Jump Lunges Right Side x2
• Jump Lunges Left Side x2
• Burpees x2 

Tabata #3: Strength, Legs

• Weighted Regular Squats x2 (holding dumbbells at side)
• Weighted Sumo, aka Plie, Squats x2
• Weighted Right Side Lunges x2
• Weighted Left Side Lunges x2

Tabata #4: Cardio

• Mountain Climbers x2
• Plank Hops x2
• Leg Thrusts x2
• Dead Man Crawls x2 (with dumbbells)

Tabata #5: Strength, Bi's and Tri's

• Side Biceps Curls x2
• Tricep Kickbacks x2
• Regular Biceps Curls x2
• Tricep Kickbacks (or floor/bench dips) x2

Tabata #6: Core

• Plank x2
• Ab Sprawls x2
• Side Plank Right with Crunch x2
• Side Plank Left with Crunch x2


Coming up: All-Tabata cycling profile, and Chris reaches #360to60!!

Badass Road Warrior Workout: No Excuses

Spring Break. Work trips. Family visits. They all bring us out of our regular environment and throw our routines off, for better (hello, beach weekend!) or worse (oh, look, another work conference).

Sometimes, these trips force us to take the recovery and rest time our bodies need. But if you start to get stir crazy or need to keep your workouts as part of your training regimen, the reality is we can find find ways to fit in fitness - wherever we are, and without equipment.

This equipment-free workout combines Tabata drills for cardio with a series of #50BadassReps for strength to work lower and upper body as well as core. If you want to center in on just lower or just upper body, simply run through that portion of the #50BadassReps 2-3 times depending on your schedule.

Badass Road Warrior Workout, Spring 2012 Edition

Warmup

30 second each of:

• Pogo, or side-to-side, hops
• Jacks
• High Knees
• Skaters
• Mountain climbers
• Plank hops (from plank position, feet together, hop feet from right to left)

Tabata Drill #1 (20 second-sets with a 10-second rest, eight times)

• Burpees, 2 sets
• High Knees, 2 sets
• Burpees, 2 sets
• High Knees, 2 sets

#50BadassReps Lower Body

• 50 Squats
• 25 Right Leg Lunges
• 25 Step-Ups on a bench/chair
• 25 Left Leg Lunges
• 25 Step-Ups on a bench/chair
• 50 Sumo Squats

Tabata Drill #2

• Jump Lunges, Right Leg, 2 sets
• Jump Lunges, Left Leg, 2 sets
• Skaters, 2 sets
• High Knees, 2 sets

#50BadassReps Upper Body

• 25 Walking Pushups
• 25 Tricep Dips on a chair/bench/step
• 25 Decline Pushups
• 25 Walking Planks
• 25 Walking Pushups
• 25 Tricep Dips
• 25 Decline Pushups
• 25 Walking Planks

 #50BadassReps Core

• 5 50-second planks
• 50 90-degree crunches (legs bent at 90 degrees)
• 25 right side oblique crunches
• 25 left side oblique crunches

 Stretch!!!

Coming up: A review of the Nike Fuel Band...

 

The #50BadassReps Multiplier Workout

There's a certain satisfaction that comes in doing a significant number of something. I just ran 26 miles. I just rowed 10,000 meters. I just cycled 25 miles. I just did my first 5 k!

The #50BadassReps challenge, issued each day on Twitter and Facebook, is meant to push us all to doing more than we might have previously thought possible. And today's #50BadassReps Multiplier Workout raises the bar even higher by combining several of those challenges into a full workout.

A few of these exercises include dumbbells but can just as easily be done with nothing but your own awesome Badass for resistance. If you aren't sure about form or technique, check out the how-to videos on the Badass Fitness YouTube channel.

Tackle this one with 110 percent and enjoy the feeling afterward of I just did #50BadassReps, multiplied!

#50BadassReps Multiplier Workout

Warmup

• 25 regular jumping jacks
• 25 skaters
• 25 regular jacks
• 25 skaters
• 25 mountain climbers
• 25 plank hops
• 25 mountain climbers
• 25 plank hops

Circuit 1

• 25 Jump Squats
• 25 5-second wall sits 
• 25 Jump Squats
• 25 5-second wall sits
• 25 right leg lunges
• 25 left leg lunges
• 25 right leg lunges
• 25 left leg lunges
• 15 burpees
• 15 ready-sets

Circuit 2

• 25 walking pushups 
• 25 tricep dips
• 25 plank rows (with or without dumbbells)
• 25 walking pushups
• 25 tricep dips
• 25 plank rows
• 15 burpees
• 15 ready-sets

Circuit 3

• 50 kickbox side kicks, left leg
• 50 kickbox side kicks, right leg
• 25 decline pushups
• 25 step-ups on a bench
• 25 decline pushups
• 25 step-ups on a bench
• 20 burpees
• 20 ready-sets

Circuit 4

• 25 regular crunches
• 50-second boat pose
• 25 regular crunches
• 50-second plank
• 25 oblique crunches right
• 25 oblique crunches left