Por/By: Octavio Pozos
Vaccines are here! And slowly people are getting them. It is amazing that scientists were able to accomplish this in a year. Thanks to our amazing President Biden and the pharmaceutical companies for producing hundreds of millions of these vaccines. We still must use masks, wash our hands and social distance. Perhaps by July with more people vaccinated and possibly then they’ll be allowed to open the Gyms. In the meantime, I want to show you an “Outdoors Workout” to get you in the mood to get back your body and muscles moving. These exercises come from gymnastics, very basic very clean and effective. I’m sure you have a park near your house with some Olympic bars and rings for exercise. I’m going to show you a very fun routine that you can do little by little which we will call “Interval Training” to work your cardiovascular system and your strength and resistance system.
INTERVAL TRAINING is when you combine cardio and resistance training. This has to be done with “logic or a method.” First you will have to walk for 10 minutes to warm-up and get your body temperature up, after this 10 minutes, we will start our first Cardio interval; You will jog or run for “6 minutes” keeping your mouth close when you are jogging or running, shoulders back and moving your arms and then do a combination of resistance exercises to work your whole body for 3 minutes as hard as you can. You need to make sure that in all the exercises your Core is engaged and your posture is long and tall; your breathing should be when you do an effort, such as you pull or push you (exhale). When you are preparing to do an exercise you (inhale). You will run for six minutes and then go to the rings and metal bars to perform your four strength exercises. You will do the four exercises that I have for you for three minutes and after you will be back to running. You will do this running five times. This should take 60 minutes. workout will take your breath away. Ready, here we go.
Remember the logic: 6 minutes of running and then 3 minutes with the Equipment.
1. Squats – holding the bar with one hand.
I think by now reading my articles you know “how to do a squat.” Hold the bar with one hand, position your body as you see in the image, feet wide apart, shoulders back and chest out, your back long and straight, legs flexed (inhale). As you straighten your legs and stand up; squeeze your butt and quadriceps (exhale), come back to starting position and repeat this 20 times. (see image #1). Move to the next exercise!
2. Plank – on the parallel bars with Legs up.
This one is a full body muscle exercise. Go to the lower bars, get in the middle and grab the bars with your hands, arms totally locked and straight, shoulders back, chest out and your back long and straight as well as your legs (please see my posture in the image). (Inhale), now comes the fun part! Keep your arms straight, squeeze your abs; I mean really them, begin by lifting one leg parallel to the bars (making sure leg is straight) and then the other one, “EXHALE” and hold it for 20 seconds (see image #2). Move to the next exercise!
3. Abs – hanging with Olympic rings.
You will start by jumping to grab the rings and your body hanging with legs totally straight (see the image in detail), you will have to “concentrate” so you don’t swing your body like a piñata. Keep your arms totally locked and straight (inhale); concentrate, lift your knees slowly towards your chest squeezing your abs (exhale). Bring your legs all the way down and straight and repeat. See image#3…. Move to the next exercise.
4. Pull Ups – with bar.
Here you jump to the bar and grab it, wider than your shoulders. Hanging at first; you will engage your core and tilt your head back a little (inhale), see the image; as you pull your body and chest up close to the bar (exhale) engage your dorsal and squeeze your back and bicep muscles; return to hanging position and repeat this exercise 20 times. This is not easy, so don’t go crying if you can only do just 5, try your best and you will get the strength little by little to do 20 reps. See image #4. Move to the next exercise!
Remember you will run 5 times for (6 minutes) and 4 times strength for (3 minutes), finishing with the running, use 3 minutes to jog and the last 3 minutes to only walk as a COOL DOWN. I suggest you do 15 minutes. of stretching. This is a real tuff workout.