Tag Archives: physical fitness

Rolling Hip Raise

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It’s Home Exercise of the Week time and this week I would like you to try the Rolling Hip Raise.

The Rolling Hip Raise is a great exercise that targets your hamstrings, calves, and glutes.  Since you will be using a ball for this exercise your core, along with the other stabilizing muscles of the legs, will be working to stabilize you through the movement as well.

A ball is ideal for this exercise to really maximize the stability work but if you don’t have one then that’s ok.  You can just place your feet flat on the floor (this is a great start for a beginner) or on a chair to get even more range of motion.

Let’s take a look at how to do the Rolling Hip Raise properly.

  • lay face up and flat on the floor with your feet up on a stability ball
  • your feet, ankles, and a bit of your calf muscles should be resting on the ball (you don’t want the ball too high up on your leg or you won’t be able to get the proper range of motion)
  • lift your hips off the floor and contract your abdominals and glutes to stabilize yourself
  • roll the ball in towards you while driving your hips up as high as you can at the same time
  • once your legs reach a 90 degree angle, roll the ball back out and return to the starting position making sure that you don’t let your butt touch the floor throughout the entire set
  • if you find yourself rolling all over the place, try placing your arms out to your side on the floor and this will help stabilize you

So there you have the Rolling Hip Raise.  Add 1 to 3 sets of 15 to 20 repetitions to your leg or full body workout and feel the hamstrings burn!

Side Plank

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Your core in my opinion is the most important area to train as it will help prevent back problems, improve balance and posture, as well as increase strength and agility for all other areas of your body.  Part of your core muscles are the obliques which are your side abs that allow you to twist and turn your body.  For the Home Exercise of the Week I want to show you the Side Plank which is an isometric abdominal exercise that will effectively target those important oblique muscles.

There are a few different versions of the Side Plank that you can do depending on your fitness level.  The most difficult version is the Side Plank supported by a fully extended arm.  To regress that to a slightly less difficult version is to support your body on your forearm which is what is shown in the video.  To regress that even further, you can support yourself on your forearm then bend one knee and let it rest on the floor which will support more of your body weight.

To properly perform the Side Plank shown in the video, follow the steps outlined below.

  • start by laying on your side with your feet stacked on top of eachother
  • prop yourself up on your forearm and make sure it is directly underneath your shoulder
  • lift your hips off the floor until your body is perfectly straight
  • keep your abs tight and hold this position for 30 seconds (you can hold longer if you’re feeling extra strong!)
  • repeat on the other side

So there you have the Side Plank.  You can increase the difficulty by adding a leg raise, knee crunch, or leg swing.  Demonstrations of these versions will be coming in the future but until then, happy planking!

Around the World

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It’s Home Exercise of the Week time and this week I have another great core exercise for you to try.  I like to call it Around the World but I’m sure other people call it by different names.

The Around the World exercise is challenging and definitely not a beginner exercise so make sure you are ready for this one before trying it.  If you can do Side to Side Leg Raises with little difficulty then you will know that you are ready to go Around the World!

You will be working your lower back, lower abdominals, obliques, and hip flexors with this exercise.  As always, proper form is key to working the targeted muscles effectively and safely.  Let’s take a look at the key points to doing the Around the World properly.

  • lay on the floor face up with your arms extended out to your side to stabilize yourself
  • raise your legs straight up so they are perpendicular to the floor
  • keeping your legs straight, lower both feet down to your side until they are almost touching the floor then swing them out in front of you and continue on to the other side and back up to the starting position
  • repeat but go the other direction this time and keep switching directions for each rep
  • throughout the whole set make sure that you are driving your belly button down towards your spine to keep your abdominals engaged and your lower back flat against the floor
  • if you find that your lower back is hurting from this move then don’t lower your legs as far and if that doesn’t help then discontinue the exercise

So there you have the Around the World.  Add a couple sets of 15 to 20 repetitions to your ab routine or throw it in to a superset with your other workout routines.  It’s a challenging exercise but over time you will get stronger and your core will thank you.  Also, as with the Side to Side Leg Raises, you can hold a light dumbbell between your feet to really up the intensity!  Happy traveling!  😉

Side to Side Pushup

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Pump up your upper body with this Home Exercise of the Week!  The Side to Side Pushup is another great body weight exercise that will target your chest, shoulders, and triceps as well as promote shoulder mobility.

There are a few different versions of this exercise that you can do depending on your fitness level.  In the video, I show the basic regressed version that would be ideal for beginner to intermediate levels.  If you are an absolute beginner though, I would recommend just doing a straight up and down pushup from the knees without the side to side movement.

Let’s take a look at the key points to doing the Side to Side Pushup properly.

  • assume the pushup position from your knees or toes but instead of having your hands shoulder width apart, keep them together directly underneath your upper chest
  • make sure your body is perfectly straight (don’t stick your butt up in the air) and pull your belly button in towards your spine to keep your abs tight
  • move one hand to your side while keeping your other hand and feet or knees stationary
  • keep your body straight while performing the pushup and return to the starting position in the middle as you come up
  • repeat on the other side

So there you have the Side to Side Pushup.  Like I said, there are a few different versions and if you want more of a challenge then do the pushup from your toes instead of your knees.  For an even more advanced version, you can move one foot to the side at the same time as your hand.  This does take a good amount of coordination and strength however so make sure you are comfortable with the easier versions first before attempting this one!

Superman

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For those of you who are super hero fans, this Home Exercise of the Week will bring a smile to your face.  This is not a super hero move however and the only similarity between the Superman exercise and the man of steel is the position you are in during the contraction of the movement.  However, you can always pretend you are superman or superwoman if that will help you get through the exercise.

The Superman is a great core exercise that will specifically target your spinal erectors as well as your glutes and upper back muscles.

Let’s take a look at how to do the Superman properly.

  • lay in a prone position (face down) with arms extended out in front of you
  • take a deep breath in and then exhale as you lift your arms and legs off the floor as high as you can (you should be feeling a contraction in your lower and upper back as well as your glutes)
  • hold for 10 seconds, breathing normally, then slowly lower back down to the starting position
  • repeat a few more times

So there you have the Superman.  If you find that you can’t lift your arms and legs very high off the floor, that’s ok.  In time you will build strength and become more flexible which will allow you to raise higher.  For an added challenge – just in case you really do feel like superman – you can hold for 30 seconds to a minute or even hold on to some light dumbbells!