Helicopter

 

The Home Exercise of the Week this week is the Helicopter.  I could have called it a squat jump with a 180 degree turn but that’s pretty boring!  This is a plyometric exercise that will target your quads, hamstrings, and glutes while building explosive power and improving agility and coordination.

Also, since this is a plyometric movement that requires many muscle groups to work together, your cardiovascular system will be working hard and your body will require a lot more oxygen.

Is this a challenging exercise?  A big YES to that question!  The movement itself is fairly straight forward but the challenge comes with the jumping and turning part of the exercise.  Your heart pumps faster and harder and your breathing rate increases quite a bit to get that much needed oxygen to your muscles.  But…the rewards to doing this exercise and many others like it far outweigh the uncomfortable feeling while doing it.  You will burn more calories with this exercise than just a regular squat and if your goal is fat loss then definitely try adding this to your routine!

Burpee

This weeks exercise is a Burpee!  It is a very popular exercise used in group fitness classes and boot camps but I would say it’s not a very popular exercise for the people doing it!  The reason being is it is a challenging exercise that will test your strength and cardiovascular endurance.  Any full body movement that involves jumping gets the heart rate up high because all those working muscles are trying to get oxygen and your blood brings that oxygen to them.  More muscles used = increased cardiac output and increased oxygen uptake.

The Burpee shown in this video is a modified basic version and the burpee at the end is a regular basic version.  As I mentioned before, it is a full body movement working the muscles in your upper and lower body as well as strengthening your core, improving coordination and building cardiovascular endurance.  There are many variations to this exercise and I will be showing more versions in the future because I know how everyone just loves Burpees! 🙂

Reverse Lunge One Leg Deadlift

This is a combination move designed to work on your balance and coordination as well as your quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes and the stabilizer muscles of the ankle.  Keep a slight bend in the knee during the one leg deadlift portion and keep your back as straight as possible.  Add weights to increase the difficulty!

Alternating One Arm Side Balance Plank

The Alternating One Arm Side Balance Plank is a great exercise that will work on your abdominals (particularly the transverse abdominus which are the deep muscles of your core) as well as your obliques, shoulders, and back.  This exercise will also work on your balance and coordination.  For an extra challenge, try adding a pushup in the middle position before moving on to the other side!