12 Days of Fitness

The holidays come with so many wonderful things; parties with friends, family gatherings, delicious food and drinks, and much more. This time of year is meant to enjoy the things we love! However, within all of the indulging that will take place this season, keeping up with your health and fitness journey is very manageable as well! See my previous blog post “Staying on Track through the Holidays” listed on our website to read more on preparation and planning. I am challenging you to complete my Twelve Days of Fitness challenge!

Day 1: Ho Ho HIIT

High intensity interval training is great for your muscular and cardiovascular endurance. You will get a great calorie burn through this workout and feel great after! Follow the workout below:

• 1 minute - walking lunges (option to hold dumbbells)

• 30 seconds - rest

• 1 minute - plank elbow taps (starting in a plank position, lift one hand to tap opposite shoulder, alternate to other sire, repeat)

• 30 seconds - rest

• 1 minute - kettlebell swings (wide squat stance, sitting into heels, swing kettlebell back and forth through legs)

• 30 seconds - rest

• 1 minute - curl to press (biceps curl to overhead shoulder press)

• 1 minute - rest

• Repeat 4-5 times!

Day 2: Fa, la, leg day!

This lower body workout will hit different muscle groups in your legs leaving you feeling very well rounded and accomplished. Strength training is a great option if you are looking to build lean muscle mass and lose body fat.

• Hip thrust on the booty builder: 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Bulgarian split squats: 3 sets 10-12 reps (each leg)

• Lying leg curl: 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Seated adduction: 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Standing calf raise: 3 sets 10-12 reps

Day 3: Run, run Rudolph!

Cardio is not only a benefit to your overall health, but essential in the fat loss process. This jogging routine is one of my favorites for new and experienced runners, you can keep it at whatever pace you need.

• Cardio machine: Treadmill

• 10 minutes: jogging at a speed you are comfortable with (somewhere around 4-7mph)

• 10 minutes: incline walking (incline above 5, speed around 3mph)

• 5 minutes: jogging

• 5 minute finisher: sprints - 30 seconds on/30 seconds off (speed above 7mph)

Day 4: Hot cocoa and core!

Building a strong core will help you prevent injury in the gym. Most lower back pain or injuries are due to the core not being strong enough to support the back. It will also help with your balance and coordination. 

• Dead Bug: 3 sets 10-12 reps

• Bicycle crunches: 2 sets 12-15 reps

• Lying leg raise: 3 sets 8-10 reps

• Mountain climbers: 2 sets 12-15 reps

Day 5: No lifts, no gifts

This strength training workout will hit each muscle group in your upper body. Choose weights in which you can complete the desired number of reps with, but will not cause you to deviate from correct form.

• Incline chest press machine: 3 sets 10-12 reps

• Seated lat pull down: 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Cable triceps rope extension: 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Seated incline biceps curls: 4 sets 8-10 reps 

• Machine lateral raise: 3 sets 10-12 reps

Day 6: Merry Mobility! 

Mobility and stretching are essential to fitness, no matter the types of workouts you perform. It can be beneficial to strength training, running, endurance training, powerlifting, and will overall help your body feel better, aiding with tightness and soreness. 

• 90/90 hip switch: 12-15 reps

• Band Y raises: 12-15 reps

• Cat cow: 12-15 reps

• Hip Circles: 15-20 (each leg)

• Arm circles: 15-20 reps

• Downward dog to plank: 12-15 reps

• Foam rolling: quads, hamstrings, hips, back and chest

Day 7: Climbing up the chimney!

The StairMaster is an intense but effective cardio machine! If you are not used to the climbing motion, it will be challenging at first! But if you practice on it, starting with shorter bouts of time at a slow pace, overtime I promise it will get easier! You can go at a steady pace for the duration of your time on the machine, however I recommend trying interval training on the stairs. It is a great workout and makes the time go much faster! 

• 1 minute - stepping/speed 1

• 1 minute - stepping/speed 10+

• repeat 5 times

• 1 minute - stepping/speed 1

• 30 seconds - sprints/speed 18+

• repeat 5 times

• 3 minutes - double step kick-backs/speed 5+

• finish stepping between speeds 3-7 until 30 minutes are complete

Day 8: Dumbbell all the way!

The holidays can be an extremely busy time of year! If you don’t have time to make it to the gym, this full body, dumbbell only workout can be completed at home, at a work gym or anywhere that you have a set of dumbbells! 

• Wide stance sumo squat (holding one dumbbell): 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Lying floor chest flies: 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Lying hip thrusts (dumbbell on hips): 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Single arm bent over rows: 3 sets 10-12 reps (each arm)

• Walking lunges: 3 sets 10-12 reps (each leg)

Day 9: All I want for Christmas… is abs!

Adding weights to your core routine is the perfect way to challenge yourself and change it up from core routines that are mostly body weight. This weighted core workout will leave you feeling nice and toned!

• Weighted russian twists: 3 sets 12-15 reps

• Weighted jackknifes: 3 sets 10-12 reps

• Standing oblique crunches with dumbbell: 2 sets 15-20 reps (each side)

• Plate weighted plank: 2 sets 30 seconds each

Day 10: The Polar ex-stretch

We are nearing the end of this challenge! Your body is ready for a good stretching session. It is important to make time for stretching in between workouts! Some benefits include, increased flexibility, injury prevention, improved circulation, better performance and more!

• Complete each stretch for 15-30 seconds:

• Lunging runners stretch (each side)

• Pigeon stretch (each side)

• Seated straight leg hamstring stretch

• Seated butterfly stretch

• Standing wall chest opener (each side)

• Triceps cross body stretch (each side)

• Side body stretch (each side)

• Back and forth head rolls

• Standing calf stretch (each side)

• Standing quad stretch (each side)

Day 11: Christmas hammies

Most individuals are stronger in the quadriceps than the hamstrings, building up those muscles in the backs of your legs is essential to lower body strength! This strength training workout will hit your glutes and hamstrings. 

• Wide stance leverage squat: 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Dumbbell single leg RDL: 3 sets 10-12 reps (each leg)

• Glute biased hyper extensions: 4 sets 8-10 reps

• Standing single leg kick-back machine: 3 sets 10-12 reps (each leg)

• Lying hamstring curls: 4 sets 8-10 reps

Day 12: Santa’s pre-Christmas Eve training

Santa needs a lot of upper body endurance to be able to lift and carry his bag of presents! He is also trying to slim down his arms. Try out his upper body endurance training workout!

• 10 minutes on the assault air runner: 30 second sprints / walking in between

• 10 minutes on the assault air bike: steady pace

• 10 minutes on the rower: 30 seconds 15-30spm / 30 seconds 40-60spm

If you have made it to the end of this challenge you should be proud! We covered a mix of strength training, endurance training, cardiovascular training, along with core, stretching and mobility workouts. I hope this encourages you to keep up activity and exercise through the holiday season. The biggest mistake we can make is pushing off our goals into the new year. Stay on track through the season while still making time for all the festivities. Great work and happy holidays!

Need more motivation or help? Reach out to Coach Emily today at EHoffman@etageathletic.com