Cardio - Jump Into It

When you just don't have time for a long cardio session, revert back to those childhood years of double dutch. Jumping rope has been around for hundreds of years and has proven track record of providing many health benefits. Jumping rope not only tones the entire body by developing long, lean muscles in all major muscle groups, but it also optimizes cardiovascular conditioning and maximizes athletic skills by combining agility, coordination, timing, and endurance.

Jumping rope is an amazing tool for burning calories when you are short on time. On average, jumping rope burns 11 calories per minute but the higher and faster you jump it can reach the limit to about 20 calories per minute. So, in just 15 minutes of exercise you can burn at least 165 calories! Not to mention, jumping rope is portable, inexpensive, easy to learn and a perfect activity that can be done with the kids too.

Strength Training - Push Ups

It's no secret that the push up has been a staple move in fitness over the past several decades. It tones and shapes the chest, back, arms and core with just one move. We know you despise them - that's because they aren't easy. But try a doing them a new way with a stability ball.

Roll out on to the ball so that your hands are shoulder width apart on the floor and either your knees, shins or toes are on the ball. The further out the ball, the more difficult it is. Inhale and lower your chest down to the ground by allowing the elbows to bend out away from your body. Exhale and push through your chest, arms and palms back to starting position. Repeat a total of 10 times.

Attitude - Stop Thinking About It

Just Do It! If you are "thinking" about adding exercise into your life you are most likely thinking about all the challenges and obstacles that stand in the way too. How about trying the Just Do It attitude one time this week? Set no expectations on how long or at what intensity, but rather just get to it. Anything - a walk, run, swim, circuit workout, exercise class. Just try something without even putting too much thought into it.

Physical inactivity has been associated with the risk of obesity and chronic medical conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. It's never too late to reap the rewards and benefits of exercise. So stop putting so much pressure on yourself and avoid making excuses. "Just Do It" one time this week and take mental note of what happens both physically and mentally.

Cardio - 20 minute blast

If you only have 20 minutes to devote to your cardio program today, high intensity interval training is a great way to burn a ton of calories. This type of training will burn more calories from fat and studies have shown that high intensity interval training keeps your metabolism raised for up to 12 hours following a session!

Here is a sample interval workout to try - you can either use a piece of cardio equipment in the gym or you can couple these interval exercises with a run or walk outside.

Take 2-3 minutes to warm up by doing regular cardio activity (walk, run, elliptical, bike) at about 50% of your max effort.

Then you will begin the interval work.
Regular cardio activity for 2 minutes at 60-70% of your max effort (run, walk, bike, etc.)
Interval exercise for 1 minute at about 90% of your max effort (sprint, hill, exercise below, etc)

Complete this cycle 5 times and then cool down at 40-50% of your max effort level for 2-3 minutes.

For the high intervals, you can either increase the speed, incline or resistance of the cardio machine you are on to intensify your workload. Or, you can hop off and try some of these exercises as your high intervals. Mixing it up is key.

Four intervals to try:

• Jump Rope
• Jumping Jacks
  
• Squat Jumps
• Side Lateral hops (like a speed skater)
  

Remember, listen to your body. If the 1 minute high intensity interval is too intense, back down to 30 seconds. As you progress, you can always increase.

For more interval programs, visit www.youcanmakeitfit.com

Motivation - Identify your Motivator

When it comes to exercise we often "think" of doing it for the wrong reasons. Is finding time for fitness really important to you? Here's how you determine that.

1. Write a "Why Bother?" List - Make a list of YOUR personal reasons for wanting to exercise. Ask yourself, why now, at this point in my life, should I bother to try to become more active? How will my life be better when I am exercising more? How is increased fitness going to help me? Why is it important to me to be an active person?

2. Get to the heart of the matter - review your list and cross out any reasons that are not important to YOU personally. Then, put a 1 next to the reason(s) on your list that really make you feel a strong emotion when you think about them. These are your POWERFUL motivators and there is no rule about what the reason(s) can be.

3. Use your powerful motivator to your benefit - now that you have identified your true list, create a way to remind yourself daily of these motivators and the emotions that go along with them. For example, if exercise is important to you because you want to be healthy and fit to keep up with your children, consider putting pictures of your kids in places you'll see them when you
may be faced with the decision to exercise or not.

Identifying your true motivator(s) is the first step to making your intentions to exercise turn into reality.

Strength Training - Forget the Barbie Weights

As a trainer who works with woman each and every day, I am constantly battling with ladies that don't want to lift weights heavier than 5 pounds for fear of looking too big and bulky. Guess what ladies - if you have children you have been lifting heavier than five pounds since the day your child was born. How about those laptop bags - those are certainly heavier too.

To quote Lou Schuler who said it best in his book The New Rules of Lifting for Woman, "Hard work includes lifting heavier weights. If the weights do not challenge you, your muscles won't grow. If your muscles don't grow, they wont look any better than they do now, even if you could somehow strip off whatever fat sits on top of them. Unless you're an extreme genetic outlier, you can't get too bulky. Your body won't allow it." Woman are naturally deprived of the amounts of testosterone that would make this worry a true concern.

So, the next time you pick up the weights, don't waste precious time with the 2 and 3 pound barbie dumbbells. Make your workout more effective in less time by choosing weights that challenge you. It won't be long before you begin to notice the difference in your figure.

Attitude - All or Nothing

Since our behaviors are largely the result of our thoughts, the way we think about fitness and activity often determines whether or not we'll choose an active lifestyle. One of the most subtle forms of sabotage to any fitness commitment is all-or-nothing thinking.

If you're having trouble starting or staying consistent with a fitness routine, get rid of the notion that you must do it "right" or not at all. And remember three things:

• Some activity is always better than none.
• There's no perfect exercise; whatever you enjoy and will do regularly is a good choice.
• You may not be as fit as you wish you were right now, but the sooner you start moving, the sooner you'll get there!