I was going to start today off with a little introduction to meditation, but after such an incredible circuit workout this morning for my shoulders, arms, and abs, I felt it necessary to go on a rant telling you why you should try circuit training out! So before we kick into high gear with a little scientific back ground and how it all works, I'd recommend grabbing a glass of water (NO sodas unless you want that sweet high fructose corn syrup sticking to your arteries), some home made granola (Try this: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/granola-recipe/index.html), and a piece of fruit to prepare you for a work out that will not only kick your butt, but also give you the strength and cardiovascular capacity to take on a whole slew of athletic activities. Lets start.
When you go into a gym, it is pretty normal to see a group of guys, staring into the mirror as they complete their 100th bicep curl of the day. We call bicep curls an isolated movement. Why? Because it is relying primarily on one muscle to get the job done. That's great and all if you want to have a monster bicep to show off (Are people still into that even?), but really, how often do you do a movement that relies only on your bicep? Therefore isolated exercises, although still good, don't give you the maximum potential if you want strength that is going to be useful when you are playing a sport or doing some fun outdoor activities. What's even better is if you do exercises that utilize muscle groups (agonist, synergist, antagonist, and stabilizer), so the movement mimics something you might actually do in real life. See where I'm going with this?
Now what's even BETTER is for you to do it in circuit fashion! Circuit training was developed as a means of allowing a person to work on strength, aerobics, and muscle endurance all at the same time. It's a pretty sweet deal and it's really not something that countless bicep curls will give you. The way these three things are achieved is through a constant rotation of exercises with minimal breaks in between. So instead of doing 3 set of a specific weight lifting exercise, you will do one and immediately move on to another exercise that works on another muscle, keeping your heart rate up. That's key! In traditional weight lifting, you do a set and take a break. No Breaks here!!! You push and push and not only work on getting stronger, but also work on getting your cardiovascular system (Heart and lungs), working hard to. So what does a work out look like? I'll show ya...
Warm-Up:
- Stretching (calves, hamstrings, groins, shoulder, pectorals, biceps, triceps, and neck)
- 5-10 minutes light cardio (Bike, treadmill, or run in place)
Circuit (15-20 mins) Upper Body
- Pull-ups (Max in 30 seconds)
- Bench Dips (Max in 30 seconds)
- Wide arm chin-ups (Max in 30 seconds)
- Standard Push-up (Set a goal)
(30 second break, get some water)
- Close-grip chin-ups (Set a goal)
- Diamond push-ups (Set a goal)
- (Full Body) Burpees
(Repeat from the beginning. Take water breaks when necessary)
Cool Down:
- Stretching
-5-10 minuets light cardio
So obviously I'm not giving you a full break down of how to do most of these since a lot of people have an idea of how to do some of these exercises. If there was ever a question, you could always ask me and I'd be happy to assist you. My focus here is to give you a basic work out for your upper body that would require no weights. You could get much fancier if you had some dumbbells or bands. You could also get more specific with hitting certain muscles, but this is just a basic upper body work out. Do all of the exercises back to back, keep your heart rate up, take breaks when necessary.
Now this ain't gonna get you looking like a roid popper or anything, but it will be a good start (Along with good diet) to get you looking lean and toned. I'll post circuits for lower body, total body, and core in the future. If you wanna revise it to suit yourself more, go ahead! Make it fun! Add a run in before you do the circuit to get an extra good work out. Mainly, have fun, work hard, and be safe.
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