fun, accessible workouts for women
Yeah mate I’d really love to re-pack this drawer for the 867th time this week.
OK so lack of movement isn’t usually a struggle when you’ve got young kids (in my experience, sitting still is approximately 833 times harder) BUT with gyms closed and stay-at-home orders in place across Sydney, it doesn’t hurt to have a few extra ways to burn energy up your sleeve. So with that in mind, here are 10 ways to burn more energy during lockdown. Just for you, my fellow parents of toddlers….
Far out, it’s been quite a week. I planned to post this workout last Wednesday, but life disintegrated into a total sh*tshow. We spent Sunday night in Emergency after Alfie tripped and hit his head on our coffee table. Thank goodness there was no head injury beyond the superficial, but he needed an operation with a plastic surgeon to fix it.
I am wracked with guilt; he, meanwhile, has taken it all in his stride. He barely complained through 5 hours in Emergency, 24 hours without food (do not underestimate how impressive this is for a toddler!), and 12 hours in the hospital waiting room with no nap before his operation. What an incredible little human he is. I am now in the market for a round coffee table and/or a padded house, so hit me up if you’ve got any suggestions….
It’s incredible how quickly so many gyms and studios have managed to shift their offering online during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has made at-home workouts so much easier during this period of isolation. And while I know bootcamps and group gatherings are beginning to open back up (across parts of Australia at least), I think there’s a fair portion of the population (me included) who are going to be stepping verrrrrry cautiously and watching closely for a potential spike in cases over the next few weeks at least.…
Santa has the sweetest life. He does literally nothing for 364 days (I’m sorry, but we all know the elves do the grunt work and Mrs Claus is the brains of the operation), then pulls one all-nighter that basically consists of flying around the world with intermittent breaks to eat some cookies, thus cementing his place as most loved human on the planet. Honestly it’s kind of BS if you ask me….
You know what’s better than working out alone? Well, lots of things actually. But for the purposes of today’s post, the answer is ‘working out with a friend!’. For starters, it’s waaaay harder to skip a workout when you’ve got someone who’ll make you feel guilty about it. You’ll go harder when you’ve got someone to compete against too. Oh plus you’ve got someone to chat with about how much fun burpees are while you’re during burpees together. It’s almost too much, right?! And if none of that gets you going, then just think of the coffee you’ll get to have together afterwards….
Don’t judge me, but I’ve been known to show up late to a social occasion (ok… or not show up at all) to ensure I didn’t miss my daily exercise, whether it be Pilates, a run or a quick 20 minute workout. Yep exercise and fitness has always been a priority for me… or at least that was the case until Alfie was born. As I mentioned in this post, I expected to return to exercise a few weeks after giving birth. Oh bless me and my naivety. And then when my body finally was keen, my mind still wasn’t ready to get back on the horse (or Reformer, as it were)….
If I had a dollar for every time I’d skipped out on the abs section of a workout… well, let’s just say I’d probably have enough cash-money to just buy myself a six-pack via some of that abdominal etching surgery instead*.
I think it’s because I used to tack them onto the end of a workout, which meant by the time I was supposed to be doing my first set of hell oblique crunches I was already a hot sweaty mess that wanted nothing more than to escape to the shower. These days my workouts are less frenetic and waaaaaaaaay less sweaty, and I’ve actually come to enjoy the old oblique crunch and his many pals. In fact, some days I’ll actually do an abs workout at home while I’m watching Masterchef, just, you know, because!
This little 10-minute ab workout kicks off by warming up through the entire mid section, and difficulty increases from there. Perform each movement in a really slow and controlled manner for maximum effectiveness, aim for the shakes, and always ALWAYS keep your core connected.
Have a splendid four-day week Aussies, and to everyone else, happy Monday!
Jess xx
*FYI and in case there’s any confusion… you can chalk abdominal etching surgery up under ‘things I’ll never be doing’, along with bungee jumping and owning a ferret.
Anyone else struggling now the evenings are getting dark so early? Ergh. To be fair, the lighter early mornings are an absolute delight, but come on, can’t we have it all?…
I’m not really one for overly complicated workouts using too many pieces of equipment. For starters, if you’re working out in your home gym (or as most people refer to it, their ‘backyard’ or ‘balcony’) you don’t want to be forced to invest in too many pieces of equipment. And if you’re working out in a gym, the last thing you want is the anxiety of having to race around the gym floor, sneaking glances out of the corner of your eye so you can pounce on the leg press/rower/chest press when it becomes available.
Nope, it’s the simple life for me.
Generally I like to pick one or two pieces of equipment and build a workout around them… and today I’ve done just that, with the kettlebell and my beloved skipping rope. If you’re new to Lazy Girl Fitness, you may not be aware of my love affair with skipping, but trust me, you’ll soon understand (seriously; type ‘skipping’ into the search bar of my blog and you’ll find a plethora of workouts featuring this humble little movement).
This is a high intensity pyramid workout and I don’t think there’s a muscle group it doesn’t hit. Try it and let let know what you think in the comments below!
LGF Skipping and kettlebell pyramid workout
Round 1: 12 reps of each exercise + 3 minutes’ skipping
Each round, reduce reps by 2 and skipping by 30 seconds
So; final round will be 2 reps per exercise + 30 seconds’ skipping
Exercises:
KB squats
Push ups
KB swings
Chest-to-ground burpees
KB upright row
KB overhead lunges
Hungarian twist
Skipping
Much love and wishes for an excellent week!
Jess xx
p.s If you’ve never used a kettlebell before, I’d suggest getting some expert guidance before jumping in. It’s an incredibly versatile and effective little hunk of metal, but it’s also quite easy to injure yourself if you’re not careful.
This time in tomorrow I’ll be on board a plane to India, champagne in hand, ready to get married again (it’s to Karn again guys, don’t panic). Before I go though, I’m pulling together a butt, chest and abs workout for me (and therefore you) that can be done super fast and in the comfort of a hotel/bedroom/backyard/gym/practically anywhere….