Ten Rounds Workout

I am so bad. I told you guys that I would be better about keeping up with my blog this week. But then I didn't leave school before 7:30pm one day this week. And I was busy, busy, busy almost every hour of the day. Okay, maybe not every hour of the day. But when I did get a free hour, I typically spent time chatting with my fellow teachers. I found that I missed seeing them and talking with them far more than I thought I would. So I'd consider it time well-spent. And today I spent all day up at Don Coleman Coliseum watching our varsity volleyball team take FIRST PLACE in the Spring Branch Volleyball Tournament. I've come full circle, because six years ago, as a senior in high school, my team won the tournament. And now, as a second-year coach, I got to watch my school come away victorious. They played so well, and even though it ate up the entirety of my Saturday, there's no place I would rather have been.

But I do have a couple of workouts to share with you guys, and this is the first one on the agenda. I did it one morning last week, when I didn't much feel like running, and I didn't feel like battling the crowds for a lane in the pool. If you don't get there right when the gym opens, good luck getting a lane to yourself. So, I headed upstairs and completed the following workout.

Let me explain this one to y'all. I completed ten total rounds. I did five rounds of set one, and then I completed five rounds of set two. Five and five makes ten, so it makes total sense, right? I think most of these exercises are pretty self-explanatory, but I'll give you a little bit of instruction on the Russian twist and the jack knives. For the Russian twist, I grabbed a 12-lb dumbbell and sat on the floor, with my knees bent at a 90-degree angle. I kept my feet a few inches off the floor, but this exercise is just as effective with your feet on the floor. Lean slightly back, without rounding your spine, and twist your torso all the way over to the left, and then all the way over to the right. Your arms should not move, as you are working your obliques here.

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I feel like I've called the jack knives something different on this blog - maybe in and outs? But I've also heard the exercise called jack knife, though I'm not sure that's the official name. Anyway, it works your core by starting with your back at a 45 degree angle with the ground. Your knees are drawn to your chest, and you can keep your hands on the floor, or, if you are looking for more of a challenge, you can keep your hands in the air, or even hold a weight. You will simultaneously lower your upper body and straighten your legs so that your body is parallel to the floor. The lower you go, the tougher the exercise will be. You will then return to your original position, taking care to control your movements so that you do not get out of control.

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And I'm off to do some food prep for the week, and hopefully get in an evening run, since I chose to sleep in a little bit this morning and skip out on my running group. Sometimes you just have to listen to your body.