Category Archives: BOSU

Rest (3/29 – 4/4)

Rest is not something I’m good at or even enjoy that much.  However, other than my daily 45s I have now taken 7 days off!!  I can’t even remember the last time I did that willingly!

Sunday 3/29  45 seated twists.

start
start
twist right
twist right

Return to center –

twist left
twist left

This was a new (to me) version of an oblique twist – you can definitely feel it in your obliques but it takes out the lower core work that you get in a reclined Russian Twist.

I did a one person race.  I ran a loop around our neighborhood that is about 2.15 miles over and over.

early in the run
early in the run
Look how cute Chris is - he set up an aid table and a lap counter!!!
Look how cute Chris is – he set up an aid table and a lap counter!!!
Hunter ran 2 loops with me and walked my final loop
Hunter ran 2 non-consecutive loops with me and walked my final loop
Jordan also ran 2 loops with me
Jordan also ran 2 (consecutive) loops with me

I decided that 25 miles was good for the day!!  I was only taking a sip of water after each lap and I don’t think that 12 sips in over 4 hours was enough for me!!

Monday 3/30  45 foam roller ab tuck.  This move is one that Lindsay (CotterCrunch) included in her 3 New Core Moves post a couple weeks ago.

start
start
pull knees to chest
pull knees to chest

Holding a plank while completing all 45 reps was definitely a challenge!!!

Tuesday 3/31  45 low squats while on wobble balls – holding medicine ball – bring elbows to knees.

ready
ready
down
down

Adding the balance challenge with the wobble balls was fun!

Wednesday 4/1  45 plank walk-ups from floor to BOSU.

start
start
right hand up
right hand up
left hand up
left hand up
right hand down
right hand down
left hand down
left hand down

At some point I started wondering if I should do 2 sets of 45 – one with the right hand leading and one with the left hand leading.  I decided to just go with one set so I alternated lead hands every 5 reps.

Thursday 4/2  45 cross body mountain climbers with feet on ledge.

ready
ready
right foot in with twist
right foot in with twist

Return to start and bring left knee in –

Left foot in - twist
Left foot in – twist

Obviously this move went faster when I wasn’t trying to pose for a picture!!  I liked doing the mountain climbers with my feet up – it changed the feel of the move a little. Right-left = 1 rep.

Friday 4/3  45 decline tricep dips (feet on chair – hands on floor).

ready
ready
down
down

This move was small but I definitely felt it in my triceps!!!

Saturday 4/4  45 diamond butt lifts.

start (feet together - knees point out)
start (feet together – knees point out)
squeeze butt and lift thighs off the ground
squeeze butt and lift thighs off the ground

This was another small move but very effective!!!

Since I’m actually writing this on Sunday (Easter) and I didn’t work out today, I have successfully managed to take 7 days off without going crazy!!!

Happy Easter (or Passover) or Sunday!!!

Kim

Race Day – 50 MILES!!!

Today is race day – 50 miles!!!

The week was very light because I’ve been trying to rest up some before running for hours.

Sunday 3/15  45 side lying front leg pulses.

pull the top leg to the front (I can't get my leg straight out)
pull the top leg to the front (I can’t get my leg straight out)
pulse leg up & down
pulse leg up & down

I was laying in the sun because it was cold and I didn’t want to turn the heat back on!

time to work the left leg
time to work the left leg
pusle
pulse

Monday 3/16  45 squats with knee lift across body – hands behind head the entire time.

squat
squat
bring right knee up at a diagonal
bring right knee up at a diagonal

Squat again and then –

bring left knee up at a diagonal
bring left knee up at a diagonal

This move was really fun!  Since I counted a right & left knee raise as 1 rep I ended up doing 90 squats.

Tuesday 3/17  45 BOSU step overs.

stand on BOSU with right leg - left leg steps front
stand on BOSU with right leg – left leg steps front
bring left leg to back
bring left leg to back

This move went quickly but my stationary quad was burning by the time I finished 45 reps (front-back-front).

Time to work the other leg! Start front.
Time to work the other leg! Start front.
back
back

I did an easy 5 mile run – 39:23 followed by 0.35 easy miles.

Wednesday 3/18  45 weighted pulsing lunges – set weights down, pick weights up.

Ready to work
Ready to work
go down and set weights on the ground
go down and set weights on the ground
come up without weights
come up without weights

To complete the rep, go back down and pick up the weights.  Umm….this wasn’t my best idea since it ended up being 90 lunges total on each side!!!

ready for side 2
ready for side 2
down and set weights down
down and set weights down
up without weights
up without weights

And, back down to get the weights to complete one rep!!!

Thursday 3/19  45 oblique punches with legs up.

punch right hand to left foot
punch right hand to left foot
punch left hand to right foot
punch left hand to right foot

I liked this move – it was fairly simple!!!

Friday 3/20  45 boat poses with moving arms (out in front – up).

start
start
arms up
arms up

This was a great core challenge!!!

Saturday 3/21  45 quick back & forth calf pumps.

thanks, Hunter!
thanks, Hunter!
other leg calf up
other leg calf up

This was a quick back & forth move of my calves – a good stretch before my race.  I took pictures of Hunter showing the move Friday morning before I left home so that all I had to do this morning was the actual 45.

Now, I’m off to run 50 miles!!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim

Taking it Easy (3/8 – 3/14)

This week I took several days off because my legs were tired and I’m trying to rest some before next Saturday!

Sunday 3/8  45 sit-ups with my feet propped on the door.

ready
ready
up - reach
up – reach

Monday 3/9  45 rear leg lifts with band.

ready to lift right
ready to lift right
lift with slight pull on band
lift with slight pull on band

After one side has been worked over, it’s time to switch and hit the other side.

left leg ready
left leg ready
lift & squeeze butt
lift & squeeze butt

I did Turbo Jam – Lower Body Jam & Ab Jam – both fun workouts!!

Tuesday 3/10  45 reverse lunge to warrior 3.

lunge back with left leg
lunge back with left leg
push off right foot and lean forward
push off right foot and lean forward

I love how many muscles are involved in these 2 moves.  And the balance challenge always makes me happy!!!

lunge back right
lunge back right
push off with left and lean forward
push off with left and lean forward

I did a 9 mile run in 68:35 followed by 1.2 easy miles.

Wednesday 3/11  45 crunches with a medicine ball toss (8 pound).

This was the start of taking a few days off since my legs felt tired.  I still ended up with almost 20,000 steps after a day of cleaning and setting up at the venue.

Thursday 3/12  45 bent over tricep pulses.

ready
ready
lift
lift

An easy move on another day off  (other than 8 hours on my feet while ironing table cloths).

Friday 3/13  45 pike and row on BOSU.  This move is another one that Nellie (Brooklyn Active Mama) shared in her Weekly Wednesday Workout.

Wrap the band around your foot a couple times – I also ended up choking up on the band to have enough resistance.

start by leaning back (work the core!)
start by leaning back (work the core!)
pike your leg up and row (pull shoulder blades together)
pike your leg up and row (pull shoulder blades together)

This was a fun move because it worked so many muscle groups and had an incredible balance challenge!!!

ready to work the other side even though my abs are burning
ready to work the other side even though my abs are burning
Lift leg and pull arms back
Lift leg and pull arms back

Saturday 3/14  45 squats on a 30% inclined treadmill.

ready to start
ready to start
down
down

I really liked this move – and it was perfect since I had just finished my run!!!

have to work the other side - sorry for the backside view
have to work the other side – sorry for the backside view
down
down

(It’s been awhile since I did pictures with my shirt off but just keeping it real – back fat and all today!!!)

I did this move after running 5 miles – 36:54 followed by a nice easy mile.

4 days out of 7 off is a lot for me but I think it was time to rest!!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim

The Legs Feed the Wolf (3/1 – 3/7)

Screen Shot 2015-03-07 at 9.43.45 AMMiracle might be one of my all-time favorite movies!!  When the head coach has the team skating lots of suicide type drills he tells the players, “The legs feed the wolf.”  When it came time for the big games (Olympics), they were better conditioned than any other team on the ice!!!

So, I tell myself the same thing when I’m running high mileage and also when I back off a little to rest my legs for a couple weeks!!!  This week I had much lower mileage but I did a number of workouts and exercises to strengthen my legs, especially my hips.

Sunday 3/1  45 standing crunches – lift one leg straight out and bring hands to foot while holding a medicine ball – crunch on the forward bend.

start position
start position
lift right leg and crunch
lift right leg and crunch
lift left leg and crunch
lift left leg and crunch

I like that this move  works your core and also your hip flexors!

I ran 8 miles in 59:58 followed by 0.6 easy miles.

Monday 3/2  45 push-ups while kneeling on a stability ball (shins rest on the ball and your butt stays down on your heels).

set-up
set-up
down
down

These look a bit awkward but it was a really good move.  You can tell that it was hard for me to keep my butt on my heels during the down part – need to work on that!

I did Cathe – Turbo Barre.  Talk about a workout for your hips and legs – this one is great!!!

Tuesday 3/3  45 side leg abduction while in a semi-squat.

Partial squat with left leg - right leg ready to lift
Partial squat with left leg – right leg ready to lift
stay low and lift right leg - squeeze butt
stay low and lift right leg – squeeze butt

There is a bit of balance involved with this move too!!

ready to squat right and left left
ready to squat right and left left
lift the leg while staing low
lift the leg while staying low

Running day – 10 miles in 75:44 followed by 1 easy mile.

Wednesday 3/4  45 single leg step-up on BOSU then circle opposite leg back-front-back before stepping down.

step up with left leg and start with right leg pushing back
step up with left leg and start with right leg pushing back
sweep leg around to front
sweep leg around to front

From the above position, sweep the right leg back so that it is behind you and then step off the BOSU.

I did all 45 reps stepping up with my left leg and then switched and did another set.

step on with left right leg, left leg squeezes back
step on with left right leg, left leg squeezes back
sweep leg to front
sweep leg to front, then back behind you before stepping off.

The hardest part of this move was staying balanced while sweeping your leg around!!!

I did TaeBo Amped – Rockin’ Buns.  There isn’t a lot of cardio involved in this workout but it is great for strengthening your hips, legs and even your core.

Thursday 3/5  45 BOSU superman lifts.  Nellie (Brooklyn Active Mama) featured this move as one of her Wednesday Workouts.

Place a band under your BOSU with enough slack that you can lift it but still have a challenge.  I decided to add an extra challenge and stay in a partial squat while completing my arm lifts.

ready
ready
lift your arms above your head
lift your arms above your head

After about 25 reps I had to give myself a little more band to work with because this was hard!!!

This was another running day – 8 miles in 60:20 followed by 1.05 miles easy.

Friday 3/6  45 quad/knee raises while pushing foot down with bar.

ready to start
ready to start
lift knee up and push down on the bar at the same time
lift knee up and push down on the bar at the same time

By pushing the bar down it makes the resistance so much harder than just lifting your body weight.

ready to work the other side
ready to work the other side
lift knee and push down on bar
lift knee and push down on bar

This day was the closest to a rest day that I took this week.  I did Caribbean Workout – Core Pilates for an hour.

Saturday 3/7  45 “first position” monkey squats.  (I had to google what the position was called!!!)

stand in first position (heels touching - toes turned out) and touch toes
stand in first position (heels touching – toes turned out) and touch toes
go down into a squat while holding on to your toes
go down into a squat while holding on to your toes

By holding your toes for the entire move this feels different than just doing normal squats!!!  Turning my toes out made the move different from a standard monkey squat.

And, I did one more run for the week.
6 miles – 45:17 followed by 1.75 easy miles.

I think overall it was a good workout week even cutting back on my running.
32 miles of hard running
4.4 easy miles

Happy Saturday!!

Kim

A Little Break Is Starting to Spiral out of Control (11/9 – 11/15)

Since I haven’t been able to run (or jump or do anything with any impact) lately, and I took a week almost completely off, it has gotten harder to really push myself during my workouts.

Sunday 11/9  – 45 squats on a wobble disc.

ready
ready
down
down

Not gonna lie – this was hard and hurt my leg (squats and lunges aren’t working out well for me right now).

Monday 11/10  45 side bends with arms behind head.

bend right
bend right

I did 45 bends to the right and then had to switch and do 45 to the left –

to the left
to the left

I did a workout that is very low impact but still at least feels like I”m doing something – Fat Burning Pilates.

Tuesday 11/11 45 sit-ups on bender ball – Bender Ball

easy part
easy part
up
up

Wednesday 11/12  45 alternate twisting knees on upside down wobble balls (right-left = 1 rep).

start
start
knee up twist right
knee up twist right

Go back to the start and then –

Knee up - twist left
Knee up – twist left

I tried to run (for about 5 steps!!) and ended up just walking (again) – 5 miles with a 10% incline.

Thursday 11/13  45 rear leg lifts (on stability ball with arms extending forward).

easy part
easy part
right leg lift
right leg lift

After doing 45 lifts with this leg (lift the leg and tap the toe down) in a slow controlled way, I switched legs –

left leg lifts
left leg lifts

I did Jillian Michaels Kick Box:  Fast & Furious.  Most of the workout was good –  a few of the kicks hurt my leg but I think I just need to suck it up!!!

Friday 11/14  45 fly to head banger while in bridge.

ready
ready
bring hands together
bring hands together
head banger (triceps)
head banger (triceps)

Reverse move to complete one rep!!!

I pulled out another old workout – TaeBo Ripped Extreme.  If you like TaeBo this is a great workout.  The last little bit had a lot of squats to kicks which I ended up skipping out on but otherwise it was a great workout!!!

Saturday 11/15  45 push-up with arm reach (feet on BOSU).  This move is one I got from Kristin (Stuft Mama).

the easiest part
the easiest part
down
down
up read forward with right arm
up read forward with right arm

Do another push-up  and then –

reach forward with left arm (I think I twisted my body too much!!)
reach forward with left arm 

The sequence above is 1 rep!!!  I had to do 90 push-ups to get my 45 done this morning!

The good news is I completed Josie’s (YumYucky) weekend push-up challenge – the advanced version!!!

What I’ve noticed after taking some time off is that after a break it gets easier and easier to take a day off and the workouts seem harder and harder.  I don’t really like this trend!!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim