no equipment Archives

30-Minute Workout With Cardio, Legs, and Core

April 6, 2016 by Jenna

You know the days when you want to get in a good workout, but at the same time you want it to be convenient and fast, yet still super effective? The days when you’re not really in the mood to run or go to the gym, but you know that working out is still a good idea?

Yeah, me too.

That’s why I put together this 30-Minute Workout with Cardio, Legs, and Core.

It’ll get your blood pumping. You’ll work your legs and core. And you won’t need any fancy equipment to do it. Hurray!

Find the full workout on Minneapolis Running.

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A Quick Post Run In The Park Circuit Workout + Stretching

September 8, 2015 by Jenna

I’m doing something I haven’t done in a ridiculously longgggg time: posting a workout.

With my move to Denver, my fitness routine has been (and still is) all thrown off. Reason #1 = the altitude. Reason #2 = my broken wrist.

First of all, the altitude is real. I thought the adjustment to being a mile above sea level would maybe take a week or two (three, tops!) and then I’d be back to my normal pace and my normal distances. I was wrong. I ran Grandma’s Marathon a short 2.5 months ago, but now I get excited when I can run 3 miles without feeling like death. I did get up to 6 miles on Monday, which I was way excited about. #smallwins

It is slow and steady progress. I’m trying to stay motivated and positive.

Of course, breaking my wrist after living here for a whole 2 days didn’t help the situation either. I took a weeklong break from running (partly because the doctor told me not to run and partly because I was traumatized by Denver’s dangerous sidewalks) and haven’t done much strength training or cross training since. Without the ability to do downward dogs, pushups, and essentially any exercise that requires me to flex and/or put weight on my wrists, I am pretty limited.

Luckily, limited isn’t hopeless. I am slowly starting to get back into the groove of things. I haven’t found a gym yet, so I’ve been doing a lot of at-home and in-the-park bodyweight workouts. These are great.

One of my go-to workouts right now is to go for a run around Washington Park, then end near a picnic table to do some strength training and stretching. At first I felt a little silly doing squats in the park by myself, but I got over it. I don’t know about you, but every time I see other people doing yoga and workouts in the park all I think is, “Man, that person is awesome. I need to do that too.” So I am.

Plus, I am much more apt to do it right after my run outside in the breezy air, rather than waiting until I get back home to my hot, non air-conditioned, garden level duplex.

Are you with me?

The next time you go out for a little jog, whether it be 1 mile or 10 miles, try to tack on this little strength training and stretching routine at the end. I really, really don’t think you’d regret it.

Exercise Cues:

Elevated Push Ups – Begin in an elevated push-up (plank) position with your hands on a bench and your toes on the ground behind you. Keeping your body in a straight line with your core engaged, slowly lower your body while bending your elbows to a 90-degree angle. Push your body back up to starting position.
Squats – Stand with feet hip-width distance apart, toes pointing forward. Squat down by bending your knees and flexing your hips, keeping your back straight and your knees behind your toes. Lower until you reach a 90-degree angle. Engage your glutes and rise back up to starting position.
Bench Dips – Sit on a bench with your legs straight out in front of you, your heels on the ground, and your hands gripping the edge of the bench on each side of your body. Straighten your arms and lift your body off the bench (starting position). Lower yourself in front of the bench until your elbows reach a 90-degree angle. Raise yourself back up to starting position.
Elevated Plank Hip Dips – Begin in an elevated forearm plank position with your forearms on a bench and your toes on the ground behind you. Keeping your core engaged and your thighs pressed tight together, twist your torso to the right so that your right hip dips towards the ground. Raise back to plank position, then twist your torso to the left. This is one rep.
Standing Lateral Leg Lifts – Stand with feet hip-width distance apart. Raise your right leg out to the side as high as your can go without sacrificing your posture, keeping your toes and knee facing forward. Make sure that your core is engaged and your left leg is straight and strong. Complete all reps on your right leg, then switch to your left.

Stretch Cues:

Standing Quad Stretch – Stand with feet hip-width distance apart. Reach behind you to grab your right ankle and pull it up until you feel a stretch in your front thigh and hip flexor. Make sure your back is straight and your core engaged. Hold for 30 seconds, then switch sides.
Standing Hamstring Stretch – Stand with feet hip-width distance apart. Step your right foot forward and rest your heel on the ground with your toes pointing up. With your hands on your hips, lean into the stretch by hinging at the waist and slightly bending your left leg. Hold for 30 seconds, then switch sides. Sometimes you can feel this down to your calves as well.
Standing Figure-4 Glute Stretch – Stand with feel hip-width distance apart. Place your right ankle over your left knee and bend down to a squatting position. Use a bench or tree for balance. Hold for 30 seconds, then switch sides.
Standing Chest Stretch – Stand with feet hip-width distance apart. Lace your fingers together behind your back. Making sure to stand straight and engage your core, raise your arms up behind you focusing on squeezing your shoulder blades together and opening your chest. Hold for 30 seconds.

Let me know if you have any questions. I hope you enjoy it! Happy running 🙂

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Plank-Less Ab Workout

April 21, 2015 by Jenna

I had a request to post a plank-less ab workout. So, here it is!

My aunt Linda has been doing a “Just J.Faye Challenge”. Since the beginning of April she has been doing a Just J.Faye workout everyday. This was totally her idea to do and it made me super happy when she told me. So far she has done the burpee run, superset tabata clover, jumping jack circuit, 5-4-3-2-1 variety speed, stair workout, fartlek run, 20-minute plyo tabata, and the 10-10-10 lower body workout. She has also been posting comments about her experience with the workout. How fun is that?! You are welcome to do the same 🙂

A week or so ago she got tendonitis in her shoulders and is required to lay off on the shoulder/upper body exercises for the next few weeks. Major bummer. Although there are still a lot of things you can do with a shoulder injury, it still puts a damper on things.

Planks are not one of those things you can do with a shoulder injury. Technically, you probably can, you just shouldn’t. Heal first. Plank later.

Since a lot of my workouts include planks – because I love them! – she asked if I could put together an ab workout that avoided them. My response: of course!

This workout is a bodyweight, plank-less ab routine. All you need is a mat and the willingness to feel your abs burn.

This is what we’ll do:

This mix of ab exercises hit your front and lower abs as well as your obliques. I know that “plank-less” sounds similar to “painless”, but I guarantee you that this will not be painless. You should really feel your abs burning. This is good pain that is making your body stronger!

Here are the exercise cues:

Crunches: Lie on your back on top of a mat with your knees bent and your hands behind your ears with your elbows straight out. Keeping your neck straight, engage your core and raise your shoulder blades up off of the mat. Lower back down. Continue.
Russian Twists: Sit on a mat with your knees bent, your torso at a 45-degree angle to the mat, and your fists in front of you. Twist your torso to one side, then twist to the other. This is one rep. Continue and make sure to keep from twisting your legs. To progress: hold a weight in your hands and/or raise your feet a few inches off of the ground.
Leg Lifts: Lie on your back on top of a mat. Raise your legs straight up in the air. Slowly lower your legs back down until your heels are 1-inch away from the ground. Continue and make sure to keep you arms and shoulder blades flat on the mat. You should feel this in your lower abs.
V-Ups: Lie on your back on top of a mat with your arms outstretched overhead. While you raise your legs straight up in the air, simultaneously raise your arms up to reach your toes. Lower arms and legs back down until they are 1-inch away from the ground. Continue.
Heel Touches: Lie on your back on top of a mat with your knees bent and your arms along your sides. Raise your shoulder blades and neck off of the mat. Reach your right arm to your right heel then your left arm to your left heel, focusing on your obliques. This is one rep. Continue.
Flutter Kicks: Lie on your back on the top of a mat with your arms along your sides. Raise your legs up about 6 inches off of the ground. As one leg kicks up the other should go down, like a scissors. Continue by making small, rapid movements. Kicking up your right leg then kicking up your left leg is one rep.
Toe Touches: Lie on your back on top of a mat. Raise your legs straight up in the air with your knees slightly bent. Reach your arms up to touch your toes, making sure to use your core to raise your shoulder blades off of the mat. Lower back down to the mat. Continue.
Bicycle Crunches: Lie on your back on top of a mat. Raise your knees up to about a 45-degree angle. With your arms behind your ears and your elbows straight out, raise your shoulder blades and neck off of the mat. Reach your right elbow towards the left knee, then twist to reach your left elbow towards your right knee. This is one rep. Continue.
Windshield Wipers: Lie on your back on top of a mat with your arms out to your sides. Raise your legs straight up in the air with your knees slightly bent. Lower legs to one side until your thigh hits the floor. Raise back up and then lower to the opposite side. This is one rep. Continue and make sure to keep you arms and shoulder blades flat on the mat.

Throughout all of these exercises please, please, please be careful of your lower back and neck, especially if you are prone to injury. Do not strain them! When you are lying on your back be sure to keep your tailbone and back flat to the mat. When you are lifting your shoulder blades and/or neck off of the mat, make sure to keep your head in alignment and your neck straight. If you are feeling pain in either of those areas, stop. Then re-assess your form. This is not the good pain that I mentioned earlier!

This ab workout would be great to add after a cardio session; however, it’s a great stand alone workout as well.

Linda, I hope you enjoy this. Keep up the awesome work and heal quickly!

Everyone else, I hope you enjoy this too! If you are looking for any specific type of workout, feel free to leave a comment in this post or email me (justjfaye @ gmail . com).

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10-Minute Bodyweight Pyramid Workout

March 30, 2015 by Jenna

A 10-minute bodyweight pyramid workout!

You guys, this is a fun one. We are going to work really hard and these 10 minutes are going to fly by. This is a high-intensity workout consisting of three moves: burpees, squats, and push-ups. That’s it, just those three. No equipment necessary.

By the time we are finished we will have completed 50 burpees, 50 squats, and 50 push-ups in just 10 short, heart-pumping, sweaty minutes. Afterwards, we will reap all the benefits of high-intensity exercise, like increased calorie burn, increased aerobic and anaerobic fitness, and boosted metabolism.

GREAT. This is what is going to happen -> We are going to do a round of burpees, squats, and push-ups, 2 reps each. Then in increments of 2 we are going to work up to 10 reps of each. This is the tip of the pyramid – more than halfway done! Then we are going to work back down to 2 reps of each and give ourselves a pat on the back for a job well done.

A few cues:

BURPEES: Begin in a standing position. Lower down into a squat, place your hands on the ground in front of you, and quickly kick your feet back into the push up position. Lower your body to the floor, raise back up, and return your feet back to the squat position as quickly as possible. Immediately jump up as high as you can.
SQUATS: Begin in a standing position. Lower your body by pushing your hips back until your thighs are parallel to the floor. Make sure to keep your back straight and your knees behind your toes. Raise your body back to standing position, pushing through your heels, and engaging your glutes.
PUSH-UPS: Begin in push-up (plank) position. Keeping your body in a straight line with your core engaged, slowly lower your body while bending your elbows to 90 degrees. Push your body back up to starting position.

This cycle of burpees, squats, and push-ups is really working our whole body: lower body, upper body, core, and cardio. And if you think about it burpees are basically squats and push-ups combined in one move with some jumps in it. Sooo… a pretty great combination of moves going on here.

I recommend doing this 10-minute bodyweight pyramid workout 1-2 per week. It would be great to do after a 30- or 45-minute session of steady state cardio or after a strength training routine. However, this would be just as effective to do as a stand-alone workout for days when you are in a time crunch.

If you really love burpees (who doesn’t?!), make sure to check out this burpee run!

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Superset Tabata Clover Workout

March 17, 2015 by Jenna

Hi friends. Happy St. Patrick’s Day! I put together a fun clover-inspired superset Tabata workout that will leave you feeling as happy as a leprechaun… assuming that leprechauns are super happy. I think they probably are. You know, all those pots of gold and stuff.

This workout doesn’t require any equipment. Meaning, you can do it anywhere.

It will take you less than 20 minutes to complete. Meaning, you can squeeze this in between work and meeting up with friends for a green beer and a dinner of corned beef and cabbage.

How perfect is that? It’s a lucky day for all of us.

This Tabata features four supersets, one for each lucky clover leaf. In true Tabata form we are going to work really, really hard for 20 seconds, then rest for 10 seconds. We will switch between the first and second exercises in first clover leaf until 4 rounds (4 minutes) has been completed. Then we rest for a minute and move onto the second clover leaf following the same pattern.

Here’s the game plan:

Each clover leaf features one strength and one plyometric/cardio exercise. We want our heart to work and our muscles to be sore. Remember, the key to Tabata workouts are to really push it for those 20 seconds so that afterwards you get to experience all of those metabolism-boosting, fat-burning rewards afterwards.

Feel free to progress the squats and alternating lunges by adding weights or biceps/hammer curls with dumbbells; however, drop them when you get to the jumps. I have used the Seconds and Interval Timer apps to keep time, but there are a lot of free ones out there too! If you have questions on any of the exercises or how to progress/regress them, just shoot me a note in the comments!

Do know this, just because this is a St. Patrick’s Day clover-inspired workout you are welcome to do this on other days of the year too. Lucky clovers are applicable everyday. Plus, you could also consider it 4-H themed, which is also relevant year round.

Shout out to all the Irish and 4-H’ers out there!! Have a happy St. Patty’s Day!

PS – If you liked this one make sure to check out these: Superset Tabata, 20-Minute Plyo Tabata, 4th of July Tabata Workout.

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The 10-Minute Quick-I-Need-A-Workout Workout!

February 9, 2015 by Jenna

This is your 10-minute quick-I-need-a-workout workout. Some days 10-minutes is just all that you have. But hey, that’s ok. 10 minutes is better than no minutes.

On Saturday my parents and younger brother were heading out early in the morning to drive to Sioux Falls for my sister’s birthday. I knew I wasn’t going to get a workout in, so I put this together as something we could all do quick in the morning before sitting in a car for 3.5 hours. My dad opted out, because he had to go “drive around and check things out” around the farm.

This workout consists of 10 exercises that you perform back-to-back for 1 minute each. It works your upper body, lower body, core and even includes a few cardio bursts. You can do this workout anywhere and the only equipment you need is some sort of timer – a stopwatch, a phone, an app, a microwave timer, whatever is convenient!

This is what you’ll do:

You may think, “10 minutes? What is even the point?” And if you do, I can totally see where you’re coming from, but I promise that his workout will still challenge you (Pushups for a minute? Not fun.) as long as you push yourself to work and make those 10 minutes worth it.

Plus, if 10 minutes is all that you have, then 10 minutes is what you should take.

So on Saturday morning at about 7:15am my mom, brother, and I started this workout. The first minute was spent doing jumping jacks while trying to stop laughing over the fact that we were doing jumping jacks… in a our dining room… while Taylor Swift played in the background. We were quite the sight. Another giggle-attack started during the lunges and then another during the pushups. The laughter just helped us burn a few extra calories! Regardless of the all the giggles, we did it and all felt better for it.

Besides being short and effective another bonus of this workout is that you don’t need to get re-ready afterwards. You’ll get your heart pumping, but you won’t be drenched in sweat. So if you need to squeeze in something during your lunch break, between work and happy hour, or even just on a super busy day, you won’t need to spend a lot of time to refresh yourself afterwards as you probably would after this workout or this workout.

This is perfect for all you business travelers out there! You can easily do this in your hotel room before heading out for the day or after work before going to dinner.

And what if you have more than 10 minutes? Do it twice. Or three times. Or add in a minute of burpees. Or a round of intervals on the treadmill. So many great options here!

The next time you don’t think your schedule will allow you to fit in a full on workout, try to at least carve out 10 minutes of time for this one! You won’t regret it.

As always, if you have any questions about the exercises feel free to ask them in the comments.

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