03 Jun 2016
Whether you’re refreshing your workout routine or just starting out, check out these five fitness tips for women.
The skipping rope once featured heavily in the school yard, building healthy, robust bodies. The older we get, the harder it can be to bring that rope around with a zip – kids generally don’t care about the whip effect of a missed beat. Put your nerves aside and take up a skipping rope again for an intense cardio workout. After getting into the rhythm again, push your limits with a double-turn trick – start off at a regular pace for five minutes before coiling and jumping twice as high, bringing the rope around twice before you hit the ground. Sounds simple, but this get-in-shape trick will take every ounce of patience you can muster. Don’t worry, it’s totally worth it!
Running is one of those exercises you either love or hate. If you’re slogging through long, arduous running programs, convincing yourself another 30 minutes will lead to solid muscle gains, and you’re cheating yourself. Unless you’ve set your sights on a marathon, swap those slow, loping strides for 10-60 second sprints, building over intervals and slowing down to a regular pace between. Sprinting equals muscle, muscle equals strength, and strength equals confidence.
When was the last time you took the stairs? Shopping centres, work buildings, parks, and even your own house or apartment building probably have a spare staircase or two for a lunchtime workout. If the gym is packed out and the rain won’t stop, take up workout residence in the stairwell and get those legs pumping. Set yourself a target and push through. Stairs are your butt’s best friend.
We should say, stop weighing up weights and forget the, you’ll get bulky voices swirling around in your head. Unless you’re hoarding endless stores of testosterone or a daily dose of steroids, your muscles won’t bulge to any great extent. Sure, they will become denser and your body will become a fat burning machine, but perfecting the deadlift won’t turn you into She-Hulk anytime soon.
After one session, high intensity interval training is a beast you’ll want to master. High energy, fast and in your face, HIIT workouts can be adapted to any of your favourite stand-bys, from squatting to hitting the treadmill. During the fast periods, hit it hard and give that 30 – 90 second everything you have and for the following allotment, bring it back – rinse, repeat. Not only will you increase your anaerobic fitness, fat pockets will become a thing of the past with consistency and a little weight training thrown in – why not turn the regular squat into a weighted one and kill two birds with one movement?
^The Complete Personal Trainer consists of the SIS40210 Certificate IV in Fitness + units of competency required for entry. Please contact us for further details on the course structure.
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