At Home Polar Vortex Workout - BODY WEIGHT ONly

Well isn't this exciting!

The Polar Vortex teamed up with Snowmageddon has forced schools and businesses to close for 4 straight days. I can't remember this ever happening before. On top of that, we have Amber Alerts going out telling us to turn DOWN our heat. I completely understand the situation, but it's still rather insane and completely ironic.

Oh well, what can you do?

You can workout inside is what you can do!

I have created another body weight only workout that you can do in the comfort of your very own freezing home.

Let's get into the details.

Warm-Up, 3 Phases Of Circuits, Cool Down

 WARM- UP

As always, let's begin with a simple warm-up to get the blood flowing and the joints lubricated (simply click on the name of the exercise to see a quick demonstration). 

Neck Circles - 30 Seconds
Butt Kickers - 30 Seconds
Swimmers - 30 Seconds
Groiners - 30 Seconds

Repeat twice and good to go.

PHASE 1 - Body Weight Tabata

​This is going to be a 3 phase workout, with phase 1 being a 4 minute body weight tabata. 

​For those unfamiliar with a tabata, it is simply doing an exercise for 20 seconds, taking a 10 second break, and then either repeating that exercise again for 20 seconds, or moving to another one. You will repeat that timing for 4 minutes. 

Here are the exercises (if you are unfamiliar with an exercise, click the name of it and you will be directed to a How To video from YouTube):

Body Weight Speed Squats - (Go only as low as you can comfortably go on these. Try to go as fast as you possibly can and make sure to keep your knees from buckling towards each other. Think KNEES OUT!)

Mt. Climbers - (Keep your hips down on this exercise and your hands directly under your shoulders. Again, go as fast as you can. It's only 20 seconds.)

Plank Jacks - (Same cues as the Mt. Climbers. Hips down, hands under the shoulders, go FAST!)
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High Knees/Running In Place - (Ideally we get those knees up and keep a good, quick pace, but if you have any pain, simply run in place as fast as you can.) 

Repeat this circuit two times through to complete a full 4 minute tabata.

PHASE 2 - 10X10 AMRAP

For this part of the workout, you will have a circuit of 5 exercises to complete. You are going to do 10 reps of each exercise before you move onto the next one. Once you complete all 5 exercises, that is considered one round. You are going to try to do As Many Rounds As Possible in 10 minutes. Try not to take any breaks. Obviously, if you absolutely need one, take it, but the idea is to go as fast as possible and get through as much as you can in 10 minutes.  

Here are the exercises:

Split Squats - (You are going to do 10 reps with one leg, then 10 reps with the other leg before moving onto the next exercise. Ideally you tap your back knee to the ground, but go as low as you can comfortably go. NO knee pain.)

Plank Punches (Right and left punches equal 1 rep. Keep you hips down and under control. If you need to modify, bring your knees to the ground.)

Star Jump Burpees - No Push-up (If you need to modify, put a laundry basket or chair against a wall and do a normal burpee down to the laundry basket and back up.)

Push-Up + Plank Jack (You will most likely need to modify the push-ups down to the knee, but do as many full ones with good form as you can. The plank jack will always be at the TOP of the push-up.)
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Chair Dips - If you don't have a good sturdy chair or bench to use for this exercise, just skip it. Don't go super low on this. Keep the range of motion pretty short and your shoulders pain free)

Try to get through at least 3 rounds of everything.

​Good Luck!

PHASE 3 - CORE CRUSHER

For this part of the workout, you will complete each core exercise for 45 seconds. Only take 10-15 seconds to switch to the next exercise. Repeat 2-4 times. 

Here are the exercises:

Toe Touches - (Simply peel your shoulders blade off the ground and try to have a little control back to the ground. You should never feel your low back on this exercise. If you do, bring your feet down to the ground.)

All 4's Plank w/ Knee Taps - (Keep your knees just an inch or two off the ground and go SLOW with this movement.)

Reverse Crunches - (If you have something to hold onto for this exercise great. If not, it will still work. Only drop your legs as far as your low back stays flat on the ground. You should NEVER feel your low back on this exercise.)
​
Russian Twists - (Keep your chest up, have a slight lean back, and don't crazy with the twisting motion. Try to keep tension in your core the entire time. Imagine you are getting ready for someone to come punch you in the stomach.)

Again, repeat 2-4 times depending on your fitness level and how you are feeling for the day. 

DOn't Lose All Your Momentum

I truly believe fitness momentum is a real thing, and once you lose it, it can be hard to get it going again. 

Think of your fitness like a train rolling down the tracks. It's a whole heck of a lot easier to keep it going than it is to stop and get it started again. 

These at home workouts are nothing crazy, but they are good enough until you can unbury yourself and get back in the gym. 

Stay safe and keep moving!

​Author

​Nick Heuer aka "Coach Nick" has been working in the fitness industry for 7 years. He's done everything from one-on-one training to large group training to online coaching and everything in between. He's helped dozens and dozens of men and women regain their fitness, lose weight, burn stubborn body fat, and get them feeling comfortable and confident in their own skin again.