The fitness movement started in 2000 and is now practiced at over 6000 gyms in the country. But you don’t have to go to a gym to enjoy the benefits of this intense fitness program. Follow these beginner workouts to get started in the Crossfit world. The best part about it, it can be done at home. Below there are five workouts to start with and as your fitness level increases you can do multiple workouts in a session or add to the amount of rounds you complete.

Workout #1
10 pushups, 10 squats, and 10 sit ups (5 rounds)

Workout #2
20 lunges and 10 pushups (5 rounds)

Workout #3
10 pushups and 5 burpees (5 rounds)

Workout #4
20 jumping jacks, 20 sit ups, and 20 squats (5 rounds)

Workout #5
20 Lunges, 10 pushups, 5 burpees, and 10 sit ups (5 rounds)

Photo courtesy of orangecoastcrossfit.com/crossfit-for-women

The moves for this challenge are basic abs moves. If you have questions on performing them correctly, follow the links listed below.

PLANKS
CRUNCHES
BICYCLE CRUNCHES

Or maybe 30 minutes fits your schedule. This fat blasting, tone-up circuit fits in any schedule. One round is exactly ten minutes and will get your heart moving, tone your muscles  and blast 100 calories. If you have more time, do the circuit multiple times and watch your fat cry! Do each exercise for one minute followed directly by the next exercise. Ten moves completes one circuit. If you are doing multiple circuits, rest one minute in-between. Use a Gymboss Interval Timer and Stopwatch to help keep track of time.

There is a beginner or a more advanced option to choose from in this challenge. In the beginner challenge, you will start at 3 pushups and work your way to 20 consecutive. The second option you will start at 8 Push-Ups and move up to 40. To improve your strength even further try do multiple sets two days a week. For example on Mondays and Fridays, do 2-3 sets of pushups. Remember, keep your body tight and move through the movements slowly.

Cardio can be one of the most boring and tedious parts of a fitness routine if you make it that way. Follow these tips to trade in your boring routine for something that will keep you going and wondering where the time went.

Mix it Up

Four 60 minute sessions weekly on the elliptical aren’t going to inspire anyone to head to the gym. Try not repeating the same session in a week. It will keep things interesting and maybe you might start to look forward it.

Try a Class 

Participating in a class will keep you motivated through the entire workout. Try zumba, kickboxing, or cycle for some mega calorie burning. Or if you feel shy or uncomfortable taking a class, try watching workout videos at home like the Zumba® Weight Loss Program DVD. You’ll get the same results if you work just as hard in your living room as you would in the gym. If Zumba’s not your thing, try something like the P90X DVD Workout.

Include Intervals 

Performing high intensity interval training burns more calories in a shorter time than steady state cardio. Meaning you can get the same results in half the time. Try interval sprints on a treadmill. After a warm up, alternate between one minute sprints and one minute of jogging. You might need an interval timer, try the Gymboss HOT PINK Interval Timer.

Figure out What you Love 

And what you hate. There is nothing that I loathe more then the treadmill. If I want to run I go outside and avoid the treadmill. I choose stairs, hiking, cycling, and zumba for my cardio.

Break it Up

Instead of doing 60 minutes on the treadmill, try breaking up the routine. Do 20 minutes on the treadmill, 20 on the elliptical, and 20 on the bike to keep it fun. Or 15 minutes incline walking on the treadmill, 15 minutes of running, and 15 minutes stairs.

By photostock, published on 18 March 2011
Stock Photo – image ID: 10035252

Summer is officially here. Well, almost. But, if you live in my neck of the woods, summer arrived two months ago. I had to break out the tank tops and shorts earlier then planned. This workout focuses on your triceps, biceps, and shoulders as those muscles are the most revealed in a tank.

A Dumbbell Set or a Resistance Exercise Band is required and the above are recommended.
Welcome to the Gun Show

• 15 pushups 
• 12 Shoulder Press
• 15 Bicep curls
• 12 Tricep Kickbacks
• 15 Reverse fly
• 20 Hammer Curls only going halfway up
• 15 Tricep pushups
• 15 Lateral Raises

Repetitions can be adjusted based on the range of weights you have access to. If you can’t complete the allotted number, reduce it until you build more strength. Proper form is more important then repetitions. Complete the exercises in a circuit fashion. Complete all exercises rest for one minute and repeat two more times. A Gymboss HOT PINK Interval Timer might help make it more challenging.
Tank Tops here we come!

“If you continuously compete with others you will become BITTER. If you continuously compete with yourself you will become BETTER.”

This months fitness challenge is a mix of exercises, rather than focusing on one specific Muscle group. Last month we did the plank challenge - and I kept planks in this month because a few people loved them. I started out slightly simple for beginners – but if you’d like to up the time on some of these – go for it! Remember: It doesn’t matter if you start at the beginning of the month or not, just start! This calendar is used as a guide for any month of any year. Do this routine alongside your regular cardio or Strength Training and you will notice a difference!

How to do a plank:

1. First of all, having a Yoga Mat is best for this type of position, since you are balancing on your elbows for quite some time. I have actually gotten rug burns from doing this on the carpet so much. A good mat that I recommend is the Gaiam Premium Yoga Mat. Good for your body and the planet as it is free of many of the toxic phthalates found in other yoga mats. Once you have your mat, lay it out on the floor, get on it resting face down on your forearms and your knees.
2. Switch your weight onto your toes lifting up off your knees, but still on your forearms.
3. Make sure your toes are shoulder width apart.
4. Straighten your body out as flat as you can – flat as a board. Squeeze your core and hold.
5. You could also do a plan on your hands rather than your forearms for another variation.

How to do a Side Plank:

1. Once again, having a yoga mat is best for this type of position, and for your elbows, hands and sometimes your knee joints. A good mat that I recommend is the Gaiam Premium Yoga Mat. Lie on your side, get up onto your elbow and raise your hips and knees off the floor balancing on your feet (they can be on top of each other or one in front of the other). Hold for the required seconds.
2. If you cannot balance on your feet, you can always start off by balancing off your knee instead. Do this by starting on your side, lift up onto your hand and raise your hips off the floor. Hold for the required seconds.

How to do a tricep chair dip:

1. Get onto a chair, Workout Bench, stool or even a park bench would work.
2. Support the heels of your hands onto the sturdy chair/bench.
3. Slide your butt off the seat and support yourself on your hands, with your knees at a 90 degree angle.
4. Bend your elbows back, making sure to keep them tucked toward your body as you dip your bottom toward the ground.
5. Push yourself back up until your arms are straight. Repeat as many reps as required.
6. For a more advanced tricep dip, do these with your legs extended out, balancing on your heels.
7. You could also do another more advanced move: extend out one leg in the air as you dip.

Print this calendar out (printer friendly version), download it or bookmark this post for everyday reference! When the month is over feel free to continue with challenging yourself to do these exercises even longer! Check in with us on here in the comments or on the Facebook page and chat with others about how you’re doing. Good luck ladies!

1. Flexibility: The most obvious benefit of yoga is increased flexibility. You may not be able to touch your toes during the first session but with consistent sessions the muscles begin to lengthen and you will be able to touch them in no time.
2. Relieves Pain: As the muscles begin to loosen, aches and pain will disappear. Tight hips affect the knees and tight hamstring muscles create lower back pain. Studies show that two 90 minute sessions of yoga a week reduce soreness by 56 percent. Read more in The Woman’s Book of Yoga and Health
3. Happy Hour: Yoga can reduce cortisol levels and increases GBA levels, both chemicals in the brain. It may not sound like much but low levels of GBA and high levels of cortisol are linked to depression. Yoga also increases serotonin levels and produces endorphins.
4. Strength Test: Yoga not only builds strength but it does so while increasing flexibility. When you lift weights your muscles shorten and lengthen as they contract. During yoga, you hold up your own body weight and the muscles experience an isometric contraction (they do not lengthen or shorten). This type of muscle contraction is similar to what a ballet dancer experiences and creates longer and leaner muscles.
5. Anywhere, Anytime: Yoga doesn’t require any special equipment to participate. Yoga mats are suggested and prevent slipping but aren’t necessary. I recommend the Giaim Yoga Mat . Take your mat and head to the beach, park, or enjoy yoga in your living room.
6. Hotter Sex: You may not have thought of better sex as one of yogas benefits but exercise is linked to increased libido. Yoga helps to reduce anxiety and increase awareness with ones body, it even speeds the release of hormones that ignites arousal. Read more in this book called Better Sex Through Yoga.
7. Joint Help: As your practice yoga, your body moves its joints through its entire range of motion. This action helps to lubricate your joints and prevent arthritis.
8. Body Confidence: Studies show that women who practice yoga report higher confidence levels then women who do aerobics alone even when their weight was similar. This benefit can be associated to the fact the yoga helps you focus on what your body can do and not what it looks like.

“For me, yoga is not just a workout – it’s about working on yourself.” ~ Mary Glover

Begin your path to mental, spiritual, physical, and sexual health with this yoga sequence. Get out your Yoga Mat and hold each pose as best you can for 10 sec. Increase the time you hold a pose as your strength and balance increase. A good thick Yoga Mat will be best for anyone as some poses might be hard on the joints.

1. Walking: The number one used low-impact exercise. It requires basically no equipment except shoes, of course. You can walk in your neighborhood, at a park, walk laps at a school stadium, walk on the beach, or just walk on a treadmill. Take a friend or your dog and make it a fun workout.

2. Swimming: Great workout for anyone who has had an injury or anyone looking for a new way to work out. Swimming laps is an excellent cardio workout. You might want to take a class or find an instructor to teach you a few strokes just til you get the hang of it. There is free-style, breast stroke, back stroke and butterfly stroke. They are all great choices and keep swimming fun with the variety of strokes.

3. Water Aerobics: This is essentially aerobics in water. Usually you would take a class for this sort of thing. But once you get used to it you could do it on your own. Great for anyone who has injuries and needs to workout but can’t jump and dance around a gym. The resistance in the water helps with strengthening your muscles.

4. Yoga: Improves muscle strength, muscle tone, flexibility and balance. It consists of postures and breathing exercise that are held for about 30 seconds to a minute and even up to 20 minutes by advanced students. Taking a yoga class is a great idea to help you learn to do the postures correctly. There are also many videos online with yoga postures. There are many brands of yoga mats out there, I recommend this one you can check out at amazon. It’s double sided, free of many of the phthalates found in yoga mats and thick for your comfort.

5. Pilates: It combines strength, balance, flexibility and control training with resistance exercises. Movements look like stretches on a mat and a lot of it is done on specific Pilates equipment. Pilates is good for people have had an injury and have a hard time jumping around or doing hard impact exercises. Taking a class is a great idea to learn the basics or you could even have private sessions with an instructor.

6. Cycling: The cool thing about cycling is you can do it indoors on a stationary bicycle or outdoors on your bike! Either way its a great workout and its not so hard on the joints.

7. Weight Training: Lifting weights is one of the best workouts you can do for yourself. You are not only building muscle but your body also will burn fat from weight lifting. See our previous post on the benefits of lifting weights. You can start off by using weight machines at your gym, then move on to free weights. Take a class at your gym or hire a personal trainer to train you in proper form and how to use machines or free weights for best results. You could also use the internet for vast amounts of information on the topic. If you don’t have a gym membership I recommend purchasing your own set of weights. One of the best types are the adjustable weights you can buy that don’t really take up too much space in your home. Try these weights – they’re pretty cool.
Adjust the weight to how much you can handle and you’ll be able to progress because there is more weight you can add up to 45 lbs per dumbbell.

8. Elliptical: The elliptical machine is an excellent cardio option and its very low impact. You can even get an upper body workout on one of these that have the arm components. If you don’t have a gym membership you can purchase one of these for your home. They take up less space than a treadmill and they work the full body. I recommend this one. It’s compact in size, and has multiple workout programs.

9. Rowing machine: This workout is a full-body workout! You push with your legs and pull with your arms working everything. You could use the rowing machine at a gym or at home, or you could be adventurous and go on a boat and row. Kayaking is a similar workout and very good for you as well.

10. Zumba/Dancing: Take a class or dance in your living room! I do it all the time! I even follow you-tube videos for inspiration sometimes. It’s a great workout that allows for movements at your own pace. It’s probably one of the most fun workouts you can do (if you like this kind of thing) because you can just have fun with it.

11. Tai-Chi: Ancient Chinese movement exercises that improves balance, concentration, flexibility and strength. Simple moving exercises that pretty much anyone can do. Take a class to learn the basics or check out the internet for videos.

12. Bodyweight exercises: These exercises can be done at home or at a gym on your own. Push-ups, sit ups, squats, lunges, tricep dips off a chair, burpees, planks are all examples. We have posted many bodyweight exercises you can do at home on this blog. Or you can make your own circuits. You’re building strength, toning your body and burning fat at the same time with these.

Abdominals + Core

Ball Crunch – There are a few ways you can do a crunch. You can do it with your lower back on the Balance Ball or your back on the ground and calves on the ball. Either way you would place your hands behind your head as you would in crunch position and crunch your body in and out making sure to look up as you do this as to not hurt your neck. More difficult option: grasp the ball between your calves and crunch the your knees toward your chest bringing the ball towards your body in and back out again. Repeat moves as many times as you can – 12-15 reps is recommended.

Side Ball Crunch – To work your obliques try the side ball crunch. Lie on your side on the Balance Ball , arms crossed over chest and crunch your body to the side back and forth. Repeat on other side. Do as many reps as you can – 12-15 reps is recommended.

Jacknife – Place your ankles on top of the Exercise Ball , stretch out so your legs are extended and with your chest facing the floor. Hold yourself up onto your palms as if you were in push-up position with your ankles on the ball. Keeping your weight on your arms, breathe out while rolling the ball in, bending your knees and hips and extend your legs back after a short pause breaking in as you return to the start position. Repeat move as many times as you can – 10-12 reps is recommended.

Butt + Legs

Reverse Extension – Great workout for the butt. Lie on your chest on the Exercise Ball , roll yourself forward onto your hips with your palms touching the ground below you for balance, but your weight is all on the ball. With your feet together, raise your legs up (backwards) and back down again, repeat never touching the ground. Squeeze your butt and abs as you do this workout. Repeat as many reps as you can do. 12-15 is recommended.

Wall Squat – The is one of my favorites. Stand with your back facing a wall. Place a ball between your lower back and the wall. Squat down slowly until the legs form 90-degree angles at the knees making sure to put your weight into your heels. Use The ball will roll from the lower back to the shoulder blades supporting you along the way. Slowly stand up again, and repeat as many reps as you can do. 12-15 is recommended.

Hamstring Curl – Lie on your back with your calves & ankles resting on the Exercise Ball . Now raise up your hips and exhale as you bring your knees in towards your chest and the ball rolls so that now the bottoms of your feet will be on the ball. This is a balancing act and works those hamstrings like crazy! Repeat as many reps as you can do. 10-12 is recommended.

Arms, Chest + Back

Plank – Pretty similar to a regular plank, only you are balancing your forearms on the ball instead of the ground! Place your forearms on the ball and stretch both legs out, holding yourself up onto your toes – stretched out as flat as a board and hold the position as long as you can. For a more advanced move, try balancing on your palms!

Balance Push-ups – Lie on your chest on the Exercise Ball , roll yourself forward until your shins are resting on the ball and with your palms touching the ground below you. While balancing on the ball, do as many push-ups as you can without falling off the ball!

Ball Bridge – Squat down and place your shoulder blades/upper back onto the ball. Cross your arms over your chest and push your hips up until your back is parallel to the ground. Go back down again and repeat as many times as you can.

Share with us your favorite exercises using a fitness ball in the comments below. And let us know if you have any questions about any of them.

Want to try these exercises out but don’t have a ball ? Check out the Gaiam Exercise Ball Just make sure you note the size on any ball you pick out, the taller you are, the bigger the ball.