@mhsutton

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Tag: exercise

  • March's 30 Day Challenge: 2 minutes of high knees + 3 minutes of push ups!

    March's 30 Day Challenge: 2 minutes of high knees + 3 minutes of push ups!

    5 Minutes seems the right amount of time

    To get to a very nice sweat – with the right exercises of course.

    The 30 Day Plank Challenge was phenomenal! My back, legs and core feel so much more reliable. I think that they are so effective that I will keep doing them every other day, in addition to the current challenge.

    2 minutes of non-stop High Knees + 3 minutes of as many push ups as I can manage – every day, for 30 days.

    If you don’t know what the High Knee exercise is, here is a great intro (ignore the smatlzcy American accent):

    The key is sticking with it for as long as you can manage. I find that going slower is a better option than stopping – because it is really hard to get started again.

    As for push ups, maintaining proper form is key to avoid injury. This dude gives great intro. Classic push up is fine – if you are adventurous, do some funky variations.

    I’ve started already – so lets see how it goes! Good luck and please get moving.

    Tip:

    I use the very useful IntervalTimer by Seconds Pro to help me not cheat on the timing. Here is the timer for this high knees and pushups challenge.

    Challenge yourself!

    Next for April: 2 minute burpees + 3 minutes of squats, every morning !

  • I'm Delighted By: Fitness Blender

    I'm Delighted By: Fitness Blender

    In my previous life as an agile coach, I travelled a lot and stayed in hotels, airbnbs and other accommodation. Most didn’t have gyms and, to be honest, I’m not really a gym person.

    Now anyone who knows consulting, knows you eat out almost exclusively whilst on the road and anyone who knows me, knows I like both my food and wine (and cocktails and desserts!) So staying fit and healthy on the road is doubly hard!

    But a few years ago, I discovered Fitness Blender and I began to do their workouts whilst on the road. They have such a wide range of really great workouts for every phase of fitness. From less than 10 minute long easy workouts to more than an hour workouts that would literally have your lungs in your mouth!

    The best thing about Kelli and Daniel – the founders –  is that they do the workouts with you. They feel exhausted at the same points you feel exhausted, when they say ‘what a burn’, you feel like they spoke for you. Oh, and the workout videos are free – they make some money from advertising and selling longer programs but you can get fit and stay healthy for free!

    They have lots of workouts but my favourite are the High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) videos that need nothing but bodyweight (and do I have a lot of that – less since I started with them!). The HIIT workouts are generally short – bookended with warm up and cool down, they are between 15 and 35 minutes long.

    Now that I’m not on the road that much, I still do their workouts 3 times a week, I’ve never met them in person, but they are like old friends!

    I seriously think that without these guys, I would be dead by now.

    Please, if you are on the road a lot, don’t feel that you can’t keep fit and healthy. You always have time for one of their workouts. Look after yourselves – you aren’t any good to anyone dead.

    Thank you @fitnessblender!

  • 30 Day Challenge: 5 minutes of planks everyday!

    30 Day Challenge: 5 minutes of planks everyday!

    Challenge Yourself!

    I decided at the end of January that it would be a good idea to force a habit of exercise and do something every day that is both hard and beneficial.

    So, the 30 day challenge was born – technically it runs for calendar months not strictly 30 days, but it still works.

    First up – are 5 minutes of plank exercises every day during February.

    I’m already 10 days into it and it is only just getting easier. Coupled with the HIIT and CrossFit that I also do in the week – some days the planks completely finish me off.

    That said – doing them first thing in the morning is such a sense of achievement and sets me up for the day.

    If you would like to do the same challenge, here are the exercises:

    Kudos to Neila Rey who put the visual together!

    I use the very useful IntervalTimer by Seconds Pro to help me not cheat on the timing. Here is the timer for this plank workout.

    Challenge yourself!

    Next for March: 3 minutes of High Knees every morning!