I hope everyone’s 30 Day Challenge is going well! One of my suitemates is doing day six as I write this article (I swear I’ll do it after!).
Just a few tips and reminders for the challenge:
· Squats: Make sure your knees aren’t going over your toes. Try standing in front of a coffee table to make sure your shins stay perpendicular to the floor, and get your butt as low as possible!
· Crunches: Switch it up a little! Target your lower abdominals one day and your obliques the next.
· Push-ups: If it’s too difficult to do a standard push-up, there’s no shame in doing them on your knees. Form is key!
· Dips: If you have hand weights, you can do overhead extensions (I use one 8 pound weight). Keep your elbows in as you go.
· Bicep curls: Don’t swing the weights! Check out this video of what not to do J
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Couch to 5K
For this week’s article, I wanted to talk about incorporating a little bit of cardio into your 30 Day Challenge. This summer, my friend told me she was starting “Couch to 5K,” a training plan to help people start running. After reading an absurd amount of articles, here’s the low-down on this program:
Over the course of nine weeks, Couch to 5K will help you go from sitting on the couch all day to 30 minutes of consistent running and be ready for your first 5K run (5 kilometers is equal to 3.1 miles). The time of these workouts varies from 20 to 30 minutes, and it only requires running three days a week! Don’t tell me you don’t have time for that.
Check out the three workouts for weeks 1 through 3 below:
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The trick to this program is to start off slow. It’s hard to jump right into running 3 miles if you’ve never done it before. Rushing the training can lead to injury and causes discouragement, frustration, and the idea that you’ll never try to run again. We want to prevent this because running is a great way to distress and the best way to burn calories! Cardio releases endorphins, creating a ‘runner’s high.’ In this New York Times article, writer Gina Kolata says that while you might “only occasionally feel euphoric,” you’ll still likely “feel relaxed or at peace after exercising.” Even if you don’t feel that way after, at least you’ll feel good knowing you got a workout in for the day!
Here are the three workouts for weeks 4 and 5 of the Couch to 5K program:
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Even when you’re exercising, there’s an app you can use to make your life easier. Personally, I use MapMyRun, which enables me to track the distances of my runs. I love it because I can still listen to my music while I work out and it tells me my split time every mile and the total time of my run so I don’t have to keep checking it. For those of you without smart phones (which included me until two months ago) use this site!
Finally, take a look at the workouts for weeks 6 through 9, right before you are ready to run your first 5k!
Click here to print out the workout for your dorm! I suggest running Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday, but do whatever works with your schedule.
Keep up the great work, collegiettes! Let me know how the 30 Day Challenge is going for you and how many friends you’ve convinced to join you. Really try to work three runs a week into your daily routine- you can do it!
Photo Credits:
http://www.outsidebeautyinsidehealth.com/2013/04/fitness-friday-how-to-squat-get-perfect.html