100 A Day to B Strong Fitness Challenge: Day 28

Day 28 is all kinds of shoulder stability & mobility.

Our shoulder is a super complex joint & very prone to injury because of all the muscles running through that area & our ability to move it so freely. I love doing exercises like these whenever I feel like my chest, shoulders & neck are tight. The blood flow to that area when you’re moving it really helps to release tension. It’s that perfect “1 more day this week” stress-relief kinda workout ;-)

This workout includes one of my FAVORITE plank exercises: spider crunches! Here are a few things to be mindful of as you go through the motions:

  • breath ;-)
  • keep your lats engaged & abdominals pulled tight to prevent your rib cage from popping out
  • squeeze your glutes to ensure that your lower back doesn’t arch/your pelvis doesn’t sag toward the ground
  • keep your pelvis & shoulders as square to the ground as possible.
  • when you reach your arm side, firmly press your **fingertips** into the ground, that way when you lift the foot on that side you won’t feel like you’re going to roll right over haha

100 A Day to B Strong Fitness Challenge: Day 27

Day 27 is going to BURN!
BUTT...
I think you’re gonna like it ;-)

Here are some pointers on how to keep your balance & stay in control of the runner’s lunges if you feel like you’re flailing all over the place [LOL]:

  • maintain a straight line from your head, down through your hips & all the way to your back foot, both as you’re stepping back & as you’re standing up.
  • yes, the movement is a hip hinge: booty back, head forward, spine straight ;-)
  • keep each foot in line with its respective hip. Careful not to let the foot that steps back move toward or cross over your midline because that will definitely throw you off balance!!
  • another way to put it: don’t stand “on a tight rope” [with your front foot directly in front of your back foot]. Your midline goes from your nose to your belly button & down *between* your feet. Your right foot should be on the right side of that line & your left foot on the left side.
  • on a similar note: keep your hips square. Neither hip should be higher than the other at the bottom of the lunge. If that means you shouldn’t reach all the way to the ground that’s ok!!
  • keep your abdominals tight & your lats engaged [pull your shoulders down & away from your ears] at all times!
  • drive through the heel of your front foot as you stand to engage your glute rather than stress your knee.
  • think about using your hamstring to pull your hips forward & back up over your feet/under your shoulders.
  • for the skip-ups especially, think about only moving upward as you step your feet together - crown of your head right up to the sky! - because moving forward is going to throw you off balance.

100 A Day to B Strong Fitness Challenge: Day 25

Day 25 is SUPER SWEATY!!

You’ll notice I’m getting sneaky with what I call “reps” [LOL] But we’re in the final 5 days now!! I know you can take it ;-) For example: the cardio drill is 4 walking lunges [moving forward] + 8 high knees [moving backward to get back to where you started]. The 4 lunges + 8 high knees = 1 rep because it’s 1 cycle of the “drill”. So within your 5 reps of the cardio drill you’ll complete 20 lunges! And within the entire workout you’ll complete 80 [because 20 x 4 rounds = 80!!]

Tough? Oh yeah.
Uncomfortable? Hell yeah.
Worth it? FUKK YEAH!!