Can you HIIT Like a Girl? @fitnessblender (22 min)

I've done this workout before, but wanted  a 20 minute workout this morning and figured I'd put on the heart rate monitor and put it on the list.

It's intervals, 20 seconds on and 10 seconds rest in between. That might sound like lots of rest, but you work hard during those 20 seconds and they want you to max out your effort.

It does have quite a bit of jumping, so it can be rough on the knees. It needs no equipment. There is no warm-up or cool down included, so you have to do that part on your own.

I recommend it! Good workout and quick!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dhO7S7_DW0

20 Minute Butt and Thigh Step Workout @fitnessblender

They just posted this new workout this month at Fitness Blender. Since it uses a step and I don't use mine too often, I decided to try it out. The workout is here-->
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29SHXdBE4-o&list=UUiP6wD_tYlYLYh3agzbByWQ

It was pleasantly surprised by the workout. I don't tend to get really high heart rates on the step without weights, but an average of 136 bpm was pretty decent for a step. I will say that I turned off my heart rate monitor at minute 16 because the last 5 minutes appears to be cooldown and it's all stretching, so my heart rate came down very quickly. Once it got to below 120, I turned it off. So, it's a 20 minute workout, but I'd say only 15 minutes of active workout time. I think this workout might be a really nice warmup with stretch before a long run.

There were a few challenging moves involving jumping on and off the step or straddling the step, so if you are timid about jumping on things, that could psyche you out a bit. But, overall, it was a nice workout. I just wish the active part was about 5 minutes longer!
All natural me! --->

At Home Cardio HIIT @fitnessblender

Well, it's Saturday and I like to try something new on the weekend. I often do Fitness Blender workouts, though I rarely post on them. So, I figured I'd try a new one today. 

Most of their workouts have one single person standing there doing the workout and narrative feedback saying what to do as a voiceover (with a 5 second countdown at the end of an exercise). It's nothing fancy, no music, etc. But, that makes most of their workouts good for using while doing other things (like watching TV). 

Today, I did the At Home High Intensity Interval Training Cardio HIIT Workout from here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BS7XkoGmhXQ

It was  a very good workout! And, only 25 minutes.  My average heart rate was 150 bpm, which is awesome for a non-running workout (though you do have to run in place and do tons of butt kickers, so I guess you are technically running... but you know what I mean).  This one is for sure going on my tablet for when I am out of town and need a workout for my hotel room.

It's a bit repetitive. There is a cardio warmup and then a period of HIIT intervals that is basically just three exercises for one minute each. You do them twice through, have a period of active rest, and then you do it all again. Those three main exercises are very effective, though. It is not low impact; you do have to jump and run in place, so it might not be for everyone. But, it's a good cardio burn!

• Burpees with a leg raise instead of jump at the end
• Flutter kicks to a squat (LOVED this exercise!)
• Butt kickers (and I admit, I couldn't do that for one full minute.. ouch on the knees... so I did it for as long as I could and then just did standard jump rope jumps)

 

I dig this workout! If you don't have anything going on this morning, give it a try. Better yet, do it while watching some NCAA Tournament Basketball!

 

20 minute Kettlebell BootCamp Workout

I've been doing the T25 workout with my husband the last two months, so I haven't dabbled much with other workouts (other than the treadmill), but it's the weekend and I wanted to try something new. I really want to amp up my strength training, but the problem with many weights workouts is that they don't tend to get the heart into cardio workout range.

So, I knew of Ryan Shanahan's YouTube channel where there are some Kettlebell workouts. Mind you, I don't have kettlebells, but I do have free weights. So, I grabbed a 15 and 20 and decided to go for it.

I super liked this workout. It's non-traditional cardio. No running, jumping, or anything that really hurts your knees. It is tough on the wrist/shoulders (by design) since it's lifting weights. That didn't bother me, but if you have any injuries in that area, I thought I'd mention it.

I used 20 pounds for only one of the segments (where you lifted over the head). Otherwise, I stuck with 15 pounds (in one hand). There were a few towards the end where you just hold it straight to the side or straight in front of you and my arms were too tired... maybe with 10 pounds, but I had to just bend my arms on those. But, hey, that's good. I had to really push myself.

So, if you are looking for something that isn't jumping and running to get your heart rate up a little bit, maybe try this. You have to work. Just going through the motions with 5 pound weights isn't going to challenge you. Push yourself with the weight!

My heart rate stats were an average of 136 bpm with 156 as my high; it stayed pretty steady in the middle... didn't go really high and really low. Pretty consistent.