Denver Body Weight HIIT Circuit (video)

Try out this awesome body weight circuit our Denver Fit Fam did with me!

I was in Denver last week working on our next 30-day challenge and had time to meet up with some of our Denver Fit Fam! Thanks for coming out guys!

Here’s the insanely awesome workout that we did – and special thanks to Orench and the crew at Awaken Adult Gymnastics studio for hosting us!

Feel the Afterburn…

Circuits like this one combine explosive movement with total body strength in a non-stop sequence that completely fires up your metabolism and creates an awesome “after burn” – which means you’ll be burning energy for hours after the workout.

You want to move through this workout at your own pace – take short breaks between each move as needed, and a brief rest between each round. If you are having trouble with a move go back to basic body squats and just keep moving until you’re able to regain your breath. 

As always, it’s about quality over quantity.

You can get an absolutely kickass fat-burning workout in less than 30 minutes using these moves. Take your time learning them and get your form down right. One of my goals in writing body weight circuits all month has been to teach you good form for a variety of different moves so you can prevent injury, get strong, and lift more safely (if you use weights).

Program these workouts into your Seconds Pro App timer once you’ve mastered the form and take them with you everywhere!

Format

• 1 minute each move (or split 30/30 each leg when doing a single leg move)
• Repeat 3 times

Move 1: Squat Low Shuffle

• This is a super fun compound move to burn your legs and warm you up!
• Begin by coming into a squat. Keep your chest up, and your weight back in your heels. Try to keep your feet pointing mostly forward. You can see how mine like to turn out – I’m working on that!
• Most importantly, keep your knees tracking over your toes, and when your weight is back in your heels they won’t go past them.
• Once you’re down in your squat, shuffle twice to the right. Stay low! The lower you stay in your shuffle, the more you’ll work your quads, glutes and calves.
• Use your glutes to  stand up strong, then come back down to a squat. Shuffle twice to the left. Repeat this for a minute.
• If you start to get tired, do body squats until you’re ready to move again. Do this for any standing move that’s making your winded or is getting a little too intense.

Move 2: Bear Crunch

• This is an awesome move for your core and shoulders that I want you to take slow as you learn it. It’s basically a flipped over bicycle crunch that adds an extra challenge.
• Begin in a solid plank position, wrists directly beneath your shoulders. You can use soft fists if being on your hands is irritating for your wrists at all.
• Keep your core engaged by imagining an invisible glass ceiling above you that you’re pressing your lower back into.
• Keeping your hips low and your core engaged, simultaneously pick up your right hand and left foot, bringing your elbow to meet your knee at the center of your body. Squeeze! Repeat on the other side.
• It’s important to have a solid plank when you start, as all of your weight will be shifting back and forth between just 2 contact points with the ground.
• A great modification for this is to hold a plank on your knees, and bring alternating knees to meet your elbows below you – or flip on your back and do bicycle crunches.

Move 3: Star Jumps!

• You might remember this fun move from my San Francisco workout on Mount Davidson a couple weeks ago.
• Begin in a low squat, feet close together, hands touching your feet. Chest up. Explode up and open your arms and feet wide. Land softly in the same position you started.
• Pace yourself on these – they’ll get your heart rate up fast, and activate your quads, calves, inner thighs and glutes as you propel yourself from a ground level squat all the way up to the leap.  
• And anytime you need a break, just go back to basic body squats until you’re ready to try a few more jumps!

Move 4: Curtsy Lunge to Side Knee (30/30)

• This is an awesome move that will get your heart rate up, and simultaneously work your core and different muscles through the standing and knee raise legs.
• Set yourself up for a proper reverse lunge squat, so that your knee bends to 90 degrees and your weight is back in your heel.
• The leg that goes behind you will line up with the front leg, unlike a traditional reverse lunge where it is parallel. This engages your quads, glutes and deep calf muscle in the stationary leg, and targets your abdominals and quads in the raised leg.
• As you come out of the curtsy lunge, crunch your knee up and out to the side – I like to pull my arm down to meet it for a little bonus contraction.
• Because you’re coming into a high side knee and will be balancing, keep a light contacting pressure on a chairback or wall for stability like we are in the video. 30 seconds each side!

Move 5: Inch Worm Push-Ups

• Here’s where you get to catch your breath for a minute.
• Hinge forward at your hips, and walk yourself out into a strong plank, using the same good form described above.
• Once you reach your plank, do a push up then immediately begin taking baby steps in toward your hands, keeping your legs as straight as you can.
• When you reach your hands, walk your hands out again and repeat.
• If this is too much on your shoulders, come right down to your knees for your push-ups.

Move 6: Brogue Kicks! 

• These crazy ninja double high kicks are so much fun. You don’t have to travel across the room like we are, you can do them in place.
• Begin by leaping into the air, driving your left knee up. Follow the left knee with an immediate right front kick. Land softly. Repeat, leading with the same side knee for 30 seconds, then switch and lead with the other knee.
• It’s always really tricky for me making the switch – just practice it a few times on both legs before you start. And feel free to make ninja sounds
• A good modification for these if it’s a little too much explosion is walking lunges. Add a kick as you come out of each lunge.

Move 7: Hollow Rock

• This is one of my favorite moves that combines an isometric core contraction with a rocking balance. This is when you get to really test your core engagement.
• Begin by mastering the hollow hold before trying the rock: to hold a hollow, lay on your back. Squeeze your glutes and raise your feet up 6 inches and bring your arms straight up beside your ears into a diver position overhead. Press your lower back into the floor firmly. You want to keep it there the entire time. If you can hold this position, begin rocking your body back and forth with control.
• Work up to the rock by holding a hollow for as long as you can inside a minute!
• Your modification is to lay on your back, and raise and lower your legs to work on building that core strength. Keep your lower back pressed firmly into the floor as you do this, and your legs straight. Bent legs is absolutely fine if your back starts to arch. 

I have so enjoyed traveling the past month – as many of you know, I’m in the midst of a cross-country move and it was just great getting to stop along the way and meet so many of you! San Diego, Denver, Scottsdale – and FitFam everywhere, thanks for your time, questions and all your SWEAT!!

I can’t wait to get back to San Francisco to move into my new home and put your January #makefatcry challenge together!! 

Check out the 10 Simple Rules of Fitness and make sure you’re doing all of them!!