Tag Archives: fitness

Superman Back Row Pushup

Posted on by
Reply

Hey there, it’s time again for a new Home Exercise of the Week! This time I have a great core and upper body exercise for you to try called the Superman Back Row Pushup.

The Superman Back Row Pushup works quite a few different muscle groups so there are a lot of benefits to this one. You will be working your upper and lower back, your glutes and hamstrings, your chest, shoulders, and triceps, and also your abdominals. If you suffer from lower back pain from sitting at a desk all day then this is the move to do to strengthen up those muscles. Often times, a little strengthening of the muscles of the lower back goes a long way to giving some back pain relief and prevent back pain in the future.

So let’s take a look at the key performance points of the Superman Back Row Pushup.

  • start by laying face down on your mat with your arms fully extended over your head
  • while keeping your head and neck in line with your spine, squeeze your glutes and lift your head, arms, and legs straight up as high as you can 
  • when you can’t lift any higher, pull your elbows back and squeeze your back muscles
  • after getting a good flex in your upper back muscles, drop your hands down to the floor in line with your chest while lowering your feet back down to the floor at the same time
  • now push your body up on to your hands and toes and stop just before your arms fully lock out
  • lower your body back down to the floor and extend your arms over your head again while lifting up your legs and squeezing your glutes
  • repeat for your desired amount of reps or time
  • if you find it too challenging to do the full pushup, you can do the modified pushup from your knees as seen in the video demonstration

So there you have the Superman Back Row Pushup. This is one of my favourite exercises and it is a great one to add in to your upper body or full body routine.

Let me know how you do in the comments below or if you have any questions.

See you next week with another new exercise!

Pike Pushup

Posted on by
Reply

Hello and happy Wednesday! It’s time for a new Home Exercise of the Week and this week I have a challenging variation of the pushup for you to try called the Pike Pushup.

The Pike Pushup primarily works your shoulders and triceps but it also works your upper pecs, upper back, and serratus muscles. I won’t sugarcoat it, the Pike Pushup is tough! It requires a fair amount of shoulder strength so start with regular pushups and other shoulder strengthening exercises and work your way up to this move.

Let’s take a look at the key performance points of the Pike Pushup.

  • start in a full plank position with your feet shoulder width apart and hands a little wider than your shoulders
  • while keeping your legs straight, walk your hands back towards your feet as far as you can without rounding your back and stopping just before your knees start to bend
  • keep your abs tight and bend your arms at the elbow to slowly lower your head towards the floor
  • stop just before your head touches the floor and then push back up to the starting position 
  • keep a slight bend in the arms and don’t lock them out at the top of the movement to keep tension on the muscles throughout the exercise
  • make sure to keep your head and neck in line with your spine throughout the movement as well
  • repeat for your desired amount of reps or time

So there you have the Pike Pushup. This one will take some practice but it is a great exercise to build strength and muscle in your shoulders especially if you are working out at home and don’t have any weights. And if eventually doing handstand pushups is a goal of yours then this is the exercise to start with!

Let me know how you do in the comments below or if you have any questions.

See you next week with another new exercise!

Crunch Hold Leg Scissors

Posted on by
Reply

Hello there, it’s time for a new Home Exercise of the Week! This week I have a great ab exercise for you to try called Crunch Hold Leg Scissors. This one will work your lower abdominals as well as your hip flexors and for an added bonus the crunch and hold will isometrically work your upper abdominals.  So you know what that means….muscle burn time!

Let’s take a look at the key performance points of Crunch Hold Leg Scissors.

  • lay face up on your mat and raise your legs to a 45 degree angle keeping them as straight as possible
  • reach towards your toes with your hands by crunching up until your shoulders are off the floor.  Avoid going too high, as this can strain your back, and avoid tucking your chin in to your chest
  • while holding the crunch, lower one leg until it is about an inch or two off the floor then return to the starting position and repeat with the other leg
  • ensure that you are pulling your belly button in towards your spine to achieve optimal ab contraction and to avoid straining your lower back
  • if you find that your back is arching or hurting while doing this exercise then don’t lower your legs as far down. For a further modification, you can also just do a crunch while holding your legs up and not doing the scissor movement

So there you have Crunch Hold Leg Scissors. Get those abs burning by adding a couple sets of 20 to 30 repetitions to your ab routine or add it in to a superset to get an even bigger metabolic boost!

Let me know how you do in the comments below or if you have any questions.

See you next week with another new exercise!

Pushup Butt Drop

Posted on by
2

Hello, it’s time for a new Home Exercise of the Week! This week I have a very challenging upper body and core exercise for you to try called the Pushup Butt Drop. This exercise is definitely going to take some practice and I’ve included a modified version in the video that you can start with if you’re having trouble doing the full version.

The Pushup Butt Drop will work your chest, shoulders, triceps, and your entire core muscles.

Let’s take a look at the key performance points of the Pushup Butt Drop.

  • start by getting in to a full pushup position with your hands wider than your shoulders and in line with your chest
  • keep your abs tight and lower your body until you are almost touching the floor
  • push yourself back up and at the top of the movement, rotate your left foot and bring your heel down
  • at the same time, lift your left hand off the floor and bring your right leg underneath you
  • reach for your right foot with your left hand while you drop your butt towards the floor but stop just before you touch the floor
  • rotate back to the starting position and then repeat the pushup
  • now rotate your right foot down, lift your right hand off the floor, and bring your left leg underneath you
  • reach for your left foot with your right hand while dropping your butt towards the floor
  • return to the starting position and repeat each side for your desired amount of reps or time
  • you can modify this exercise to make it a bit easier by performing your pushup from your knees. After the pushup, lift your knees off the floor and do the butt drop as described before

So there you have the Pushup Butt Drop. This one is going to take some practice so take your time getting the move down. Once you get it though, it is very effective and fun to do and it will add some variety to your workout. It also looks really cool and you will definitely impress your friends! 

Let me know how you do in the comments below or if you have any questions.

See you next week with another new exercise!

Plank Jacks

Posted on by
Reply

Hello and Happy New Year! It’s a brand new year so let’s start 2021 off right with a new Home Exercise of the Week! This week I have a great cardio and core-strengthening exercise to show you called Plank Jacks.

Plank Jacks will help strengthen the muscles of the upper and lower body and will also increase core strength and stability, burn calories, and help reduce fat.

Let’s take a look at the key performance points of Plank Jacks.

  • start in a full plank position with your hands under your shoulders and your feet together. Your body should be in a straight line from your head to your heels
  • while engaging your abs, jump both feet out wide to each side as if you were doing a horizontal jumping jack
  • stay in the plank position with your abs engaged as you quickly jump your feet back together
  • continue to jump back in and out for your desired amount of reps or time while keeping your back flat and don’t let your hips drop too much throughout the movement
  • you can also modify this to a lower impact version by stepping each foot out to the side and back in instead of jumping

So there you have Plank Jacks. Add this exercise to your routine and you will strengthen your core, help prevent back pain, and get the benefits of a cardio exercise!

Let me know how you do in the comments below or if you have any questions.

See you next week with another new exercise!