muscle-building monday

Today we're doing what I refer to as Jumping Lunges, and if you know how to do a lunge, then a jumping lunge won't be too hard to explain. (If you're unfamiliar with lunges, click here to read a how-to on lunges.)

Try this exercise 3 times/week, completing 3 sets of 12 reps (6 per leg), resting 90 seconds between sets.

Jumping Lunges

Start with arms at your side. You can have your hands on your hips for balance to begin. Step forward with your right foot into a lunge position. Lunge down, bringing your left knee almost to the ground and making sure your right knee does not go past your right toes. (Your right shin should be parallel to a wall.) One way to make sure you are lowering yourself correctly is to watch yourself in a mirror; your spine/torso should be moving straight down with absolutely no side-to-side movement.

When you've lowered yourself to the down position, jump up by pushing through your right heel and left toes, switch positions with your legs, and land softly on your feet. Now your left foot should be in front of you and your right leg should be behind you, again in a lunge stance.

When you do your "soft landing" after you jump, do not stop moving. Immediately (but with control) lunge down, and then jump again, switching the position of your left and right legs. Control your landing so your feet land softly and your movement to the down position of the lunge is also controlled and smooth.

One main purpose of this exercise is to use your core (abdominal and back) muscles to control your movement so you're not falling to either side but you are still maintaining a fluid motion while lunging, jumping, landing, lunging, jumping, landing.

Full-body weight lifting program

If your exercise plan includes lifting weights three times a week, here's a great workout that's effective on your time and your muscles (don't forget it's 2 seconds up and 2 seconds down):

Push-ups (works chest)
Do as many push-ups as you can, positioned either on your toes or on your knees.

Squats and Rows (works glutes and upper back)
Stand with feet hip-width apart, heavy weights in each hand, palms facing behind you. As you squat down (keep your knees over your ankles and don't go deeper than 90 degrees), bring your fists to your armpits while squeezing your shoulder blades around your spine. Pretend you're trying to get your shoulder blades to touch each other. Release the weights to your side as you stand straight. (3 sets of 10 reps)

Lunges and Curls (works hamstrings, quads, and biceps)
Stand with feet together, heavy weights in each hand. Lunge forward with your right foot (keep your knee over your ankle and at a 90 degree angle). Your left knee should be just above the floor. When lunging down, curl your biceps by bringing your weights to your shoulders. Release your bicep curl as you bring your right foot back to your left foot. Now, step with your right foot backwards and do a backwards lunge as you complete another bicep curl. Return to starting position. 1 rep will include both a front and backwards lunge. (3 sets of 5 reps for each leg)

Plies and Extensions (works glutes, calves, and triceps)
Stand in a very wide stance plie position, toes pointed out, with a little squat. Your elbows are bent and next to your ears, medium weights in your hands, palms facing each other. Extend your weights above your head as you stand on your tiptoes. Return to starting position. (3 sets of 12 reps)

Push-ups (works chest)
Finish this workout with what you started. Take the number of push-ups you did the first time and add at least 3; complete that many push-ups, and then you're done for the day!