Exercise Ball

In class on Thursday, we went through many core routines. The main focus was how we could use the exercise ball to improve our core strength. A challenge I faced throughout, was definitely balancing on the ball. However, I know that this shakiness was strengthening my core and improving my balance. We ended with the push-up countdown which was a great workout to end with.

UVA vs. UNC Football Game

Core Workout

Today in core training, we returned to our normal core routine from the earlier portion of the semester. We have finished having each student teach a lesson the class, so now Jenna is teaching again. Today was a good quality workout. Iy felt good, in part because of all the reps and I think also because it felt fresh - we have not done these same routines in quite a while.

Class Cancelled

Last Tuesday morning, our classes were cancelled due to Hurricane Sandy. Since I was not able to get a workout in during the morning, I was eager to get a run in at cross country practice that afternoon. For practice we ran toward the downtown mall and up 5th street ultimately toward JPA. I ended up running for 26:08 minutes by the time I got back since I had to cut off the run a bit to make a meeting. Overall it was a good run at an uptempo pace.

Free Weights Lesson to the Class

In class, Jessica Glidewell and I had the opportunity to teach the rest of the class a workout routine. For our segment, we decided to go with free weights. Free weights are different from many of the core workout we do, because they are very much dependent on form and a slow pace. We began the workout with a playlist that I had put together. The songs were fun and helped get the class motivated, but they were slow enough that they worked with the pace of the exercises. Next we began our routine.


Side lunges (5 sets of 10)

Bicep reverse curls (2 sets of 20)

Crunches with one weight in hand and one weight in feet (50)

Standing overhead press (2 sets of 20)

Plie squats (5 sets of 10)

Ball bridge (2 sets of 30 seconds)

Toe raises (2 sets of 25)

Upright row (3 sets of 10)

The workout seemed like a success and through the repetitions - we were able to push the class into getting a good workout in.

Free Weights

In class today, we began with our normal jog and warm-up. Then for the rest of the class we worked with free weights for added resistance. One workout in particular I liked was when we stood in the push-up position over our weights and alternated lifting a weight to our sides.

Partner Workout

Today in class, we broke into pairs and did a number of partner core workouts. The workouts included, a medicine ball, resistance bands and a balance ball. First we dealt with the medicine ball and did a variation of squats, overhand throws, and cherry pickers. With the balance ball, one of us stood on the ball while the other stood on one foot. Each of us held an end of the resistance band and tried to stay balanced the longest - I found standing on one foot to be more difficult than standing on the balance ball. Another neat workout was the patty-cake planks. In this variation of the traditional plank, we positioned ourselves so we faced one another and alternated clapping our hands with each other. We ended the workout with a large circle medicine ball pass. We each did cherry pickers until the medicine ball was passed all the wat around the circle. Since we did four sets, I found this very difficult to complete.

Quiz and Resistance Bands

On Thursday, we took a quiz in Core Training. We read an article and answered questions on the main benefits of core training. After that we did more strength training with the resistance bands.

Running

9/25 I ran about 4.5 miles. I ran down JPA and took the trail back behind OHill. It took me about 38 minutes and aside from my blister, I had no pain.

9/26 I ran about 5.25 miles. I ran down Emmet, up Preston and toward downtown. I ran for about 45 minutes. I felt pretty good except my hips were sore from core training yesterday and I have a blister forming on the arch of my right foot.

Resistance Bands

On Tuesday, we did our core workout with resistance bands. We took on many typical core exercises, like crunches and donkey kicks, but this time we added bands. The bands added more resistance to the moves, making them harder to complete. However, the bands also slowed down the workout so we ended up doing fewer but more controlled exercises. We also ended with a plank rotation and the push-up countdowns which still make me very sore the next day.

Day 7 and 8

Unfortunately, I had to miss both of these classes, because I wasn't feeling well. However, I have just begun running again and am looking forward to some core workouts for next week.

Day 6

Yesterday, we did another core workout using stations. I started off with the push-up station. Then we did several other stations to work our arms, butts, abs etc. It was a good workout and today I feel a bit sore in my shoulders.

Day 5

Yesterday we did core stations as opposed to the traditional core training class. I started off at station 6 which was planks. In this station we did all sorts of variations of the traditional plank. I can tell them I'm improving, but it definitely still tired me. Next we moved to the arms station. Instead of free weights, we took off our sneakers and did arm lifts using those as resistance. Because of the many repetitions, the  weight of the shoe was a good weight. After that we moved to lower abs. The last station we made it to was our butts. This station turned out to be a great workout, since I am still sore today. Between the lunges and the squats, I got a very good workout in. By that station (9) we ran out of time. I'd say it was a successful workout and I hope I am not sore for our next session tomorrow morning.

Day 4

Thursday was a lower abs day. We focused on a mix of plans and variations of the traditional crunch. We also incorporated some superman back exercises and ended the class with the push-up sequence. The push-up sequence has felt very difficult but I am happy to say that it has been getting easier - I'm taking that as a good sign. A day later, my lower abs are a bit sore but overall not bad compared to my soreness after the upper body workout.

Day 3

Today the focus of our core training class was on upper body strength. Most of the work outs involved plank, push-up and free weight variations. Out of all the core groups, I would say that my upper body is in need of the most improvement. When we did our planks, we switched between side, forward, leg raised, and dynamic stances. In the push-up routines, we did many that we have done before, but one new one was the triceps push-up. In this exercise, I put my hands shoulder-with apart below my rips, rested my knees on the ground, and twisted my wrists. I then lowered my body as if to do a normal pushup with bent elbows. This proved very difficult and will definitely be a great workout for improving my triceps strength. Then for the free weights, we did many variations of raising 5lb weights parallel to the floor in sets of ten. Thankfully, we interrupted our upper body routines with a few ab routines which was a much appreciated break. One interesting opportunity I learned today was an alternative to free weights. As we were getting tired in class, Jenna suggested that we instead take off our sneakers and use these in our reps. I imagine that idea will come in handy one of these days when I do not have access to free weights.

(Before class, I had a light breakfast of a banana and peanuts. After class I had a bowl of uncle sam cereal with grapes, kiwi, soy milk and banana.)

Day 2

Today we covered a wide variety of exercises and muscles groups in class. The class started with a warm-up jog around the room, that I sat out from because of my ankle, and a bit of warm-up stretches. Next we grabbed out mats and did routines to strengthen our hips, backs, shoulders, lower abs, side abs, butts and probably more that I am already forgetting. Some of these routines included side planks, leg raises, supermans, donkey kicks, basic crunches, cherry pickers etc. I found that I was still sore from Tuesday and that the side planks and pushup cycle were the most challenging today.

Day 1

Yesterday was the first day of my phys. ed. core training course. After going through icebreakers and introductions, we began the workout. First, the class ran a warm up around the room (I sat out due to an ankle sprain). Next we went through a plank rotation that included forward and sides planks with both static and dynamic positions. Last, we finished the class with a push-up cycle. In this routine, we began with 8 push-ups and one hand reach and progressively did less pushups while increasing the number of times we raised our hands in the air. I found it very difficult and did modified push-ups in order to finish the whole set.