Getting fit… . Are you ready to take it up a notch? In my last article, Fitness — Moving to the Next Level, I shared a little bit about my background and these wonderful ladies who took me on as their project (yes, in this case, instead of completing the project, I am the project). With Physical Therapist, Diane Foley, I will share two paths — one for the newbie (that’s me), and the other for the more advanced. As a reminder, please talk to your physician before making any changes to your regular health care routine. If anything you do hurts, please STOP immediately! The purpose of this series is to move our fitness to the next level and improve our health, not detract from it.
Rules of the workout:
- Frequency: 2-3 times a week. Take 2 days off between workouts to give your muscles time to recover.
- Time: one minute on each station (unless otherwise noted)
- Intensity: Pick a weight that you can lift for the entire minute and is moderately difficult on the last repetition. The weight may be very light for some of the exercises. This is okay!
First Set of Stations:
- Ride a stationary bike or elliptical (for advanced and newbies). If you do not have access to either, march in place at a quick pace making sure you bring your legs up high enough to hit your hands as you hold your arms at the elbow straight out at a 90 degree angle.
2. Wall Squat:
- Newbie: Using a large exercise ball, place the ball between your lower back and the wall while move your feet comfortably away from the wall. Slide into a squat moving up and down, keeping the knees behind the toes. Hold each squat for 5 seconds and return to beginning position.
- Advanced: Do the Wall Squat as noted above, however, add weights and lift overhead on the way up.
Getting Fit: Karen – Wall Squat with Overhead Lift The first exercise is more like a warm up to get things going. What is your favorite exercise to get that heart rate up?
Stay tuned for next week’s article with the second set. Because this series makes up an entire workout routine, these articles will be published weekly rather than biweekly.
