Swim Suit Ready Series: The Butt Workout

     Sorry I've been MIA for the last few weeks! My husband was preparing for his first clinical rotation which involved us moving temporarily out of our apartment and into my parents' house for six weeks and let me just say, I'm not a fan of packing for a 6 week vacation (I say vacation because we weren't fully moving out of our apartment, just getting 6 weeks worth of vacation-like things together and then some - crazy!). But here we are, all nice and settled for the most part and ready to blog again. (Just a side note, I didn't proofread before posting so please excuse any mistakes, I'll fix them later!) I really hope I can crank out the rest of this Swim Suit Ready Series for you so that you can get cracking on ALL parts of the workout and feel confident this summer!
     You'll start off with The Butt Workout and while you're waiting for me to post more of the Series, start The Butt Workout every other day for a nice, toned and lifted rear that you'll be proud to show off and not to hide with your cover-up!

The Butt Workout:
     You'll need to be looking at a clock for this workout, one that will show the seconds go by, not just the minutes. This workout doesn't take long - only 5 minutes with a little bit of set up time in between exercises - but you will feel the burn by the end and you'll be so happy I didn't make it longer. ;) You will need to be near a wall, and you will need a chair for balance at some point in the workout so have one nearby (don't worry, the chair is not going to affect the difficulty of the workout, it's simpley there to help you out so you can do the exercise without having to stop and regain balance).
     Stand with hands on hips, feet shoulder width apart, toes pointed forward. Squat down nice and controlled and then jump explosively off the ground landing back in the squatting position. Continue with the squat jump for 20 seconds. After 20 seconds, hold your squat postion and pulse for 10 seconds (be sure you are pushing through your heels, not the balls of your feet). After 10 seconds of pulse and the lowest point in your squat, continue to jump squat for another 20 seconds and then pulse at the bottom of your squat for another 10 seconds. Stand up and immediately get ready for the next move.
     Stand behind your chair and hold on lightly with both hands, without leaning over the back of the chair, extend your right leg straight out behind you as far as you can, squeezing your glutes. Bring the leg back to the starting point. Continue to lift and lower your leg behind you (please don't lean over your chair!) for 20 seconds and then pulse for 10 seconds at the height of your lift. Return your right leg to the starting point and then switch to do the same thing for your left leg. Return to the starting point and immediately get ready for the next move.
     Stand with your chair-back at your left side and hold on with your left hand. Then chair is only here for balance so do not lean on your chair. Place your right hand on your hip. Lift your right leg straight out to the side as high as you can and lower again. Lift and lower your right leg for 20 seconds and then pulse at the height of the lift for 10 seconds. Return to the start. Switch the chair to your right side and perform the same exercise for the same number of seconds for your left leg. Be sure to stand up straight and not lean while performing this exercise. Return to the start and immediately get ready for the next exercise.
     Get down on your hands and knees, back straight and knees hip width apart. Keeping your right leg bent, lift your heel to the sky as high as you can and then lower. Continue to lift and lower for 30 seconds. Return your right leg to the start and then perform the same exercise for 30 seconds on your left leg. Stand up and immediately get ready for your last exercise (yay!).
      Back up against a wall and perform a wall squat by squatting down so that your legs are bent at a 90 degree angle and your back is flat against the wall. Place your hands in whatever position is most comfortable for you as long as they are not helping to support you at all. You should be pushing throuhg your heels and not the balls of your feet. Hold this squat for 1 minute. It is okay to take small breaks during this minute but you should be working up to being able to hold the squat for 1 minute. Stand up and you're done! Way to go! Now go and give your glutes a well deserved stretch!

Just to recap, here's what the routine looks like without all the explaining:
Jump Squat - 20 sec.
Pulse - 10 sec.
Jump Squat - 20 sec.
Pulse - 10 sec.
Standing Rear Leg Lift Right - 20 sec.
Pulse - 10 sec.
Standing Rear Leg Lift Left - 20 sec.
Pulse - 10 sec.
Standing Side Leg Lift Right - 20 sec.
Pulse - 10 sec.
Standing Side Leg Lift Left - 20 sec.
Pulse - 10 sec.
 - Down on your hands and knees -
Kick Back Right - 30 sec.
Kick back Left - 30 sec.
 - Return to standing -
Wall Sit - 1 min.
Stretch!

Swim Suit Ready Series

     So I've got some good news and some bad news. I'll start with the good news because the bad news isn't super bad and I'm excited about the good news. ;) The good new is, I've been brainstorming like crazy and decided to come up with a Swim Suit Ready Series! It's summer time and everyone is breaking out those swim suits and starting to get rid of the pasty white skin of winter in exchange for nice tans and I'm sure everyone wants a nice body to go along with that. :) I'll have about four or five posts on the Series, each workout focusing on a different muscle group, and then I'll post a workout schedule for each of the different workouts. I'm sure somewhere in there I'll throw in some ideas for tasty summer treats you can go crazy with!
     Now for the bad news. I'm pretty darn tied up with some home things at the moment and I can't guarantee when these posts will come out. I will tell you this, however. I'm very excited about this and I will try my hardest to squeeze this in at night after my toddler goes to bed and I can't make too much noise (this forces me to have to sit down and take care of some quiet things, like blogging). I'm hoping the first one will come out tonight - but don't quote me on that! In the mean time, I'd like your input on areas of your body that you are most concerned about and I'll incorporate tips on helping you with your problem areas. Get commenting and look out for the Swim Suit Ready Series! :D

Pushup Challenge Checkup!

     Have any of you started the pushup challenge yet? I'm wondering how everyone is doing and what you're trying to do to keep yourself motivated and when you're finding time to squeeze it in! Leave a comment letting me and all the other readers know how you're doing it and help others find the motivation to do the same! Also, if you have any inspiring stories you'd like to share with the Turbo Fit world please email me at sarabsorensen@gmail.com and I'll share your story with others. Thanks! Good luck with the challenge!

Super Fit Mama

     In my quest to stay in tip top shape while pregnant I did A LOT of searching for some good fitness books for pregnant women. I have to say, there's a lot of crazy stuff out there than is not helpful at all. I visited a few book stores and I was not able to find ANYTHING that I found helpful at all. I came home quite discouraged and hoped on Amazon praying that I'd be able to find something there and I did! I found this amazing book by Tracey Mallett with tons of great workouts for every trimester and even for that 6 week period after the baby to help tighten those abs back up.
     What I love about these workouts is that they are still challenging while keeping in mind your new pregnant body. I hated looking at books with these simple workouts that were not challenging and that made you feel like you were in a nursing home rather than trying to keep your awesome body in shape while creating another human being at the same time.
     Tracey talks about pelvic floor disorders and diastasis recti (the separation of the abs that can occur in some women during their pregnancy) and has notes throughout her workouts on modifications for women who have these issues so that they can continue to workout safely.
     Just to give you an idea of what's in store, she has a chapter on each trimester including workouts, a chapter for the first six weeks postpartum (during this time you should not be doing real exercise programs, however Tracey's little ab routine is perfectly safe for those postpartum weeks and will especially help moms with diastasis recti to heal during that time), the 7-19 week postpartum phase where you can finally begin a normal workout routine again, eating for two, and baby workouts on the go (which I'm very excited to try out!). She even has a chapter devoted to helping moms learn to eat for one again and she's got great recipes for healthy foods and snacks.
     I will definitely be using this book more to help me stay in shape and to help pull my abs back in after this cute little boy is born! I would suggest that you all take a look at this book and you can find it here at the Turbo Fit Store!