Badass Fitness

Wednesday WOD: Zero Excuses, All Tabata

It's Wednesday, time to push through that midway Hump toward the weekend - and this time, we get a three-day weekend thanks to Labor Day!

This WOD (workout of the day) is all Tabata drills, alternating cardio rounds with strength. Ideally, you rest no more than 2 minutes between each Tabata set to keep the heart rate pumping and the muscles firing. This one is no joke, but it WILL power you through the day and make you feel invincible heading toward the weekend! It will also make the most of 25 minutes of work, using high intensity interval training to stoke the metabolism and burn major calories.

Now go on. #getafterit

Coming up: My Foodie Pen Pal surprise, and chocolate and cookies I am NOT feeling guilt over!

2012 Summer Travel: A Guide to the Badass Essentials

TLH-->Orlando-->Miami-->TLH-->Miami-->TLH-->San Diego-->TLH-->Miami and so on and so forth.

My summer is filled with travel, from fitness conferences and client events to fun weekends with my favorite person in the whole wide world. Keeping my healthy habits in check gets more challenging with all those flights, long drives and dinners out on the town. I know I'm not alone.

Summer is awesome for the freedom of vacation time and beach days it brings us, but a little too much freedom and suddenly we're feeling more sluggish than badass. This is where packing wisely can save the day - not to mention the waistline, and the energy levels.

It's all about the planning and the "just in case." As in, "just in case the airport food is horrible, I'll pack a few snacks." Or "just in case I need the motivation, I'll bring my resistance bands." And "just in case the hotel breakfast is all pancakes and syrup, I'll pack a protein shake packet."

So here's a guide to some of the essentials, based on what is in my ever-revolving cycle of suitcase packing and unpacking. Print it out and use it as a checklist to keep yourself in check the rest of this summer!

Badass Travel Essentials

Healthy snacks: I bring my Quest Bars and KIND bars with me, one for every day I am gone (or two a day if I am going to a fitness conference, where the calorie burn is amped up). Plus pistachios or almonds, Sahale mix and a few pieces of fruit (apples and bananas travel best). Whatever your favorite healthy snacks, pack enough that you never have to settle for greasy road food unless it's a conscious vacation treat.

iPod: If you have music, healthy legs and a pair of kicks, you are good to go no matter where you are. In fact, one of the best ways to "meet" a new city or town is hoofing it at a 5K pace!

Sneakers: Speaking of kicks....bring yours. Even if you think, "I won't have time" or won't want to, the urge might hit. I know I need fresh air after a day or two cooped up with extended family! So be armed with armor for your feet.

Resistance Bands or TRX Suspension Trainer: The beauty of bands and the TRX is their portability. They fold up into a small bag, weigh practically nothing but can kick your badass if used to their full potential. So nestle them in their with your socks and undies! Also great: Jillian Michaels' deck of exercise cards, many of which are body weight exercises you can assemble for a complete butt-kickin' session wherever you are. One note: Don't try to bring the TRX RIP Trainer in your carry-on, as they sort of look like nunchuks and those don't go over too well with the TSA folks!

GSeries Fit to-go packs or Crystal Light Pure: Hydration is key when you're flying or spending a hot day exploring or even beach bumming it, so I always bring the portable little packets to turn my plain water more exciting while keeping me quenched. It beats soda any day!

Breakfast, powdered: Mom was right. Breakfast is the most important meal, not only because it sets the tone for your day but also because it fires up your metabolism for the day. Depending on where you are traveling, finding a healthy breakfast might be dicey. I always stick a couple of protein shake packets into my suitcase (Advocare chocolate meal replacement shake or a couple scoops of my chocolate Ultimate Muscle Protein powder in sandwich baggies) so that no matter what, I can have that in a pinch as my first meal of the day or even a mid-afternoon snack. Just mix with water, shake and chug. Done.

Badass Blog posts: Many of you are already doing this, you've told me. Love that! Under the Travel and Tabata/HIIT categories, you'll find several workouts meant to be taken with you on the road. So print a few out, just in case you need a little sweat session while you're away from home.

Coming up: The Wakeup Energizer Workout that will start your day off right, and takes less than 10 minutes!....

 

Tuesday Tabata Challenge: Two Tabatas, Two #50BadassReps

Short and sweet: Defined as 5-foot-2 me, after a great endorphin-pumping bootcamp...or better yet, as the ideal workout.

Today's workout challenge is just that - short, sweet and effective! Two Tabata drills for cardio, two #50BadassReps sets, and at less than 15 minutes long it is less time than you'd spend grocery shopping or washing the car. THAT is called #winning, my friends!

Short duration notwithstanding, this will push your muscles and heart rate to the limit. But when you are done, you will feel like you can conquer anything!

Tuesday Tabata Challenge

Warmup

30 seconds each:

• pogo hops side to side
• jumping jacks
• high knees running in place
• mountain climbers

Tabata 1

• Burpees x2

 

• Jump Squats x2
• Burpees x2
• Jump Squats x2

#50BadassReps: Uneven Pushups, 25 right and 25 left

  

Tabata 2

• Jump lunges right side x2
• Jump lunges left side x 2

  

• Burpees x4 (yes, a big push to the finish!)

#50BadassReps: 50 In-n-Out Squats (better for ya than an In-n-Out Burger!)

  

Coming up: A few tips for making hydration a habit ...and not so boring!

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...

 

Tabata Cycling: Feel the Burn

Oh, Tabata drills, how I love thee. Let me count the ways.

Not only are Tabata drills effective and challenging for strength training and cardio circuits at the gym or in a bootcamp; they also kick some serious Badass when incorporated into an indoor cycling class.

Basically an intense form of interval training, Tabata drills consist of 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest. Multiply that by 8 times, and you get one 4-minute Tabata. On the bike, this plays out as 8 20-second sprints with light resistance. It also can be used for rolling hills - 20 seconds super steep, 10 seconds more moderate resistance, and so on for the 8 rounds.

Below is a profile with music from the cycling class I taught bright and early Monday morning featuring 2 strength and 2 speed Tabatas. (The playlist is a nod to Madonna's badass - and going strong - career, illustrated by her Super Bowl halftime performance.)

This ride is challenging, intense, and 100% awesome. Enjoy:)

Tabata Cycle

• Celebration, Madonna, 3:35: Warmup on a flat road, 50 percent of max pace
• Jump, Madonna, 3:58: Low rolling hills (a preview of the Tabata to come): 30 seconds at a slight incline, 30 seconds with a full turn added for a low hill. Repeat pattern for duration of song.
• Like a Prayer, Madonna, 5:43: First strength Tabata. During the 'rest,' resistance is at a 6 of 10 - moderate climb. During the 20 seconds of 'work,' resistance is very steep, an 8 of 10. Go back and forth between 6 and 8 for the duration of the Tabata: 20 seconds at an 8, 10 seconds 'recovering' at a 6 for 10 seconds, for eight total rounds. Spend the last minute of the song on a flat recovery road.
• Material Girl, Madonna, 4:01: Moderate endurance drill. Resistance is at a 5 to 6 of 10, pace is to be held at 60 percent of max for the entire song.
• Everlong, Foo Fighters, 4:10: First Sprint Tabata. Resistance stays at about a 4 of 10, just enough that you don't bounce in the saddle as you sprint. Your base 'recovery' pace is 60 percent of max. On the 20 seconds of work, sprint to 80 to 90 percent of your max. Go back to 60 percent pace on the 10 seconds of recovery. Go for the eight rounds.
• So What, Pink, 3:34: Low rolling hills. This time 30 seconds on the slight incline, 45 seconds with a full turn added for a low hill. Repeat pattern for duration of song.
• The Time (Dirty Bit), The Black Eyed Peas, 5:08: Second Strength Tabata. Same pattern as the first.
• Booty Bounce, Dev: Light resistance endurance drill. Resistance is at a 4 to 5 of 10, pace is to be held at 60 percent of max for the entire song.
• 4 Minutes, Madonna w Justin Timberlake, 4:00: Second Sprint Tabata. Same pattern as the first.
• Hello Good Morning, Diddy, 4:31: Cool down.

Coming up: From the Badass Bookshelf, 'Ultra' Inspiration...

 

 

Want to perform, feel strong like an athlete? Train like one

Athletes who give anything less than 100 percent do not win. Teams that slack on their training or take it 'easy' do not come in first. Athletes who don't keep pushing themselves a little harder as they get stronger, never discover how far they can really go.

Sunday's Superbowl and basketball's upcoming March Madness basketball are the best illustration. Those players do not get there by going half-hog. They go all the way, every game and every workout.

The workout below, a variation on this past weekend's Badass Bootcamp, was inspired by the Super Bowl. Lots of burpees, ready-sets, sprint drills, pushups, plyometrics, etc. Students burned an average of 100 calories every 10 minutes - and emerged 60 minutes later feeling, as one student put it, 'pumped!'

Completing this workout might not get you a spot in the starting lineup, but it will make you stronger and incinerate some serious calories. (Equipment needed: 3 cones or anything to mark sprinting starts and finishes; a set of 5- to 15-lb dumbbells)

So get after it!

Super Badass, Super Bowl Workout

Warmup

• pogo hops, 30 secs
• jumping jacks, 30 secs
• mountain climbers, 30 secs
• plank hops, 30 secs
• Jog 100 meters up and back x 2
• 25 pushups
• Shuffle 50 meters up and back x 2
• 25 pushups

Cardio plyometric circuit

• 15 ready-ready sets (squat low, run fast in place, and every few seconds 'set' back into a plank by hopping the feet back and dropping down into a plank)
• 15 burpees
• 4 suicides, aka ladder runs (set three cones 25 meters apart. Sprint to the first and back to the start, then to the second cone and back to the start, then to the third cone and back to the start. That's 1.)
• 25 pushups
• 25 floor or bench tricep dips

 

 

 

Legs strength circuit

• Weighted walking luges: Holding dumbbells, lunge up and back between the first and third cone
• 40 dumbmbell close-in squats (legs and feet together)
• Weighted side squats: Holding dumbbells, squat sideways up and back between the first and third cone
• 40 dumbmbell regular squats (legs and feet a little more than hip width apart, knees and toes facing forward, holding dumbbells at your side)

Repeat cardio plyometric circuit

Repeat legs strength circuit

Power Plyo Circuit

• 10 Dead Man's Crawls
• 30 leap frogs
• 10 Dead Man's Crawls
• 10 Ready-Ready-Sets
• 10 Burpees

Strength Tabata 1

• Frog Pushupsx2
• Tricep Dipsx2
• Incline Pushupsx2
• Tricep Dipsx2

Repeat Cardio Plyometric Circuit

Strength Tabata 2

• Jump Squats w Dumbbellsx2
• Sumo Squats w Dumbbellsx2
• Right Leg Lungesx2
• Left Leg Lungesx2

Abs Circuit

• 25 regular crunches
• 1 minute plank
• 25 regular crunches
• 1 minute plank
• 25 right oblique crunches
• 25 left oblique crunches

Stretch and cool down!

Coming this week: "Ultra" inspiration from the Badass Bookshelf, and a Spinning profile using sprint and strength Tabata drills...

A few fit essentials for your holiday travel carry-on

Toothbrush? Check. Toiletries? Check. Underwear and socks? Got it. Whether you are traveling by plane, train and automobile, the list of must-pack items for the carry-on or overnight bag is pretty standard.

But if you've got fitness on the brain, there are a few extra items to add to the list. Even this week and next, amid Christmas and New Year's, we can keep on the Badass path as part of those 2012 (new and continuing) Resolutions by packing smart.

So here are a few essentials, and this applies to travel any time of year - though especially during the gluttonous holiday season. I, for example, will be fed ample amounts of meatballs, pasta, cookies, and other things I don't usually eat this weekend by my Irish-Italian grandparents. So Tabata drills are on the menu, too.....

Badass Carry-On Essentials

1. Fitness magazine or book, or Kindle loaded with fit reading: Out of sight, out of mind works in reverse, too. If you are reading about exercise and healthy eating while you travel, it keeps wellness on the brain - and maybe induces a healthy amount of guilt. I don't know about y'all, but the last thing I want to do after I read Oxygen,  Shape or Jillian Michael's latest book is sloth around on the couch eating a third serving of Grandma's Cinnamon Sour Cream Coffee Cake.

2. TRX, or resistance bands: The beauty of the TRX or resistance bands is, you can bring them anywhere and use them anywhere. They weigh very little and take up little space. Yet they are all you need for a challenging workout, be it a quick 15 minutes or 45.

3. Healthy Snacks: Airports and rest stops increasingly offer better eating choices. But it doesn't hurt to have insurance. So pack almonds, turkey jerky, granola bars, fruit, string cheese and other portable snacks so that you have a healthy choice when hunger hits. I also pack a few Emergen-C packets to help ward off plane and other germs, as well as Crystal Light Pure flavor packets to make water taste less boring.

4. Sneakers and workout clothes: No explanation needed. If you pack it, you have just taken away the excuse of, "But I don't have my clothes and stuff."

So happy packing and safe travels, everyone. Happy New Year, and get ready for some great blogs to kick off 2012 strong!