Monday, December 15, 2008

Deck of Cards Workout

Thought I would share a quick workout idea in case you have a brain freeze and don't want to plan one yourself. We did these in class today for a warm-up and it really woke everyone up. You will need a deck of cards. Feel free to change the exercises to suit your abilities. Here is an example video and description:



Here's the deal:

1. You can use either the whole deck or a half at a time. I have found that a half deck takes about 6:30-7:00 to do with clients.

2. Assign an exercise to each suit.

3. Turn the cards over one at a time and do an equal number of reps for that exercise. Number breakdown:

4. Aces: one, Numbers are what they are, Face cards: eleven

5. Rest only if you have to. This is for endurance and you should try to push your limits.

Here are three examples: One focuses on cardio, one on strength endurance training and one on core movements.

Cardio:
Hearts: Jumping Jacks
Diamonds: Kettlebell Swings (Use a dumbbell if necessary), alternative: Mountain Climbers
Spades: Burpees (aka Squat Thrusts)
Clubs: Frog Hops

Strength endurance:
Hearts: Pushups
Diamonds: Pull-ups or Body Weight Rows(can be modified using a smith machine, Jungle Gym or Assisted pull up machine)
Spades: Prisoner Squats (bodyweight and hands behind head)
Clubs: Prisoner Front Lunges

Core:
Hearts: Hanging Leg Raises
Diamonds: Russian Twist (count every right side)
Spades: Kettlebell Swings (great lower back move), alternative: Good Mornings
Clubs: Half Turkish Get Ups (up to bridge and down)

Call 910.231.5011 or email shawn@headstrongathletics.com for more information on our group kettlebell classes and personal training.

2 comments:

Franz Snideman said...

Merry Christmas Shawn!

Brilliant! I will use it in my class Sat morning!

Awesome!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Deck of Cards of Workout! Sweet idea! It will keep the routine from being the same everytime. My wife and I will try it.

Shawn,

Your Kettle Bell workouts have given me so much more endurance especially when trying to keep-up with all three of my kids.'ooooof!' My 'honey-do' list won't 'do-me-in' anymore either. 'Do' you get it?

O'Well, your workouts will be a great help to Mindy's(wife) back too!

I can tell a serious difference in the strength of my core and balance. I look forward to hitting the weights again.

Thanks so much
Jeff