Good morning!
I hope you guys are ready for another kick butt LA Boxing workout post!
In case you’re new to the blog — LA Boxing is sponsoring me for a few months, and I’ve been going there about three times a week — twice a week for their cardio kickboxing group classes (with bags, gloves, etc. — so fun!), more details of which can be found in these posts:
And once a week for 45 minute personal training sessions! My trainer’s name is Jerome and he is awesome. Check out my previous personal training overview posts for more details, inspiration, and some AWESOME strength training moves you can try out yourself:
- Personal training — week 1: a kick-butt conditioning workout
- Personal training — week 2: boxing and self defense moves
- Personal training — week 3: dripping sweat, but still laughing!
- Personal training — week 4: full body conditioning
- Personal training — week 5: bring on the tank tops!
- Personal training — week 6: conditioning-palooza!
I’ve been loving LA Boxing — it’s so much more fun (and harder!) going to the kickboxing classes than working out on my own. I’m seriously thinking about ditching my regular gym and signing up with them for the rest of the summer instead when my sponsorship ends!
Anyway! Today’s workout started with — a SLEDGEHAMMER!!! Oh, yes.
Heh. This was actually really fun (but hard!) because I felt so hardcore! It’s only a 10 lb. hammer but it felt SO much heavier since all the weight is in the head!
Today’s workout focused on what Jerome called “explosion moves” — training that will help improve your speed! I was excited since now that I’m done with all my super long training runs, I really want to focus on getting my shorter distance running speed back.
First up — holding a super low squat position (if this hurts your knees, try curling up your toes — it will help!) while pushing a tire away and then pulling it back.
This sounds simple, but it was actually REALLY hard — your legs have to seriously work to keep you from toppling over! To try this at home, try using a heavy chair instead of a tire!
Next up — a quick round of jump rope to get my heart rate up. Jumping rope is such great exercise — and so portable for travel, too! This was a special jump rope apparently made out of garden hose?? It was HEAVY which made it even harder!
Whew. Then we moved on to a great stability ball exercise — just sit on the ball, straddling it, and squeeze your legs in and out. Try doing 5 sets and then holding in the squeezed position for 10 seconds before continuing. This will work your hip flexors and inner thighs! It works best with a ball that is not completely inflated 🙂
We then moved on to a classic speed move — all you need for this is a ledge or the bottom step of a staircase!
Start with one foot on the step and one on the ground. Then, start jumping — every time you jump, swap positions so the opposite foot is up on the step. Repeat! Faster! Faster!
Jerome told me to focus on tilting forward a bit so I was really right over my legs — this will make it feel more like a sprinting position. Sorry for the blur — that’s what happens when you’re moving at the speed of light 😉
Lastly, we did some work with the bench! Holding a weight in each hand, I had to step up onto the bench and back down again. This is a great move to do on your own in the gym.
Jerome had me hold the weights at chin level for the first set, at temple level for the second set, and fully above my head for the last set.
The final move of the day was also using the bench! This is another great move for you to try at the gym. Keeping one leg on the bench, lift the other leg up into a quick knee-ing movement, then tap your toe on the ground and repeat. This should be a quick movement — no putting your whole foot on the ground! When you’re exhausted… switch legs and do the other side 😉
Whew! What a great way to start the day 🙂 I feel faster already!
Have you tried any of the moves you’ve learned from my LA Boxing personal training posts? If so, please comment! I want to hear how it went 🙂 And if not — that’s your homework challenge for this week — try one of these moves next time you go to the gym (or at home!) and report back!
