12 Days of Health & Fitness Day 12 - get moving! Sometime during the week or weekend, set a goal of "moving" for 30 minutes. It could be walking, jogging, swimming, raking leaves or doing a workout video. If it's too cold outside, find alocal mall or big box store where you can walk the perimeter. I like to go right when the store opens, so I can avoid the throngs of people. I also like to throw in some intervals - pick up the pace for 30 seconds and then recover for 30 seconds at least five times during the walk.
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12 Days of Health & Fitness Day 11 - REST. Sleep is one of the best gifts you can give to yourself. Try to go to bed 30 min. earlier than normal!
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12 Days of Health & Fitness Day 10: Lunge it, Lunge it, Lunge it! Find a track nearby (or an indoor gym) and prepare to do some lunges. Advanced option - Lunge around the entire circle of the track! Intermediate - Lunge 50-100 yards (about 50 lunges each leg); Beginner - 25 lunges each leg. Modification for individuals who don't lunge: sit on the ground and raise one leg up. Swing that leg to the side and back to the starting position. That's one rep. Complete 25 reps per leg.
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12 Days of Health & Fitness Day 9: Try this 7-Minute "I-Don't-Have-Time-to-Exercise" workout.
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Day 8: Add a serving of vegetables to one of your meals. If you are a consistent veggie eater, double your serving!
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Day 7: Pick out your favorite stretch and DO IT! Make sure you do some light activity beforehand, so you aren't stretching a cold muscle. Maybe you need to stretch your calves or hamstrings or need to do gentle neck rolls to relieve some tension and soreness. Pick one and give your body the gift of stretching!
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Day 6: Steppin' it UP! Find a place where you can "step up" for 5 minutes. Advanced/Intermediate - Run stairs for 5 minutes or jog each step up and down. Beginner - step the same lead foot up and down on a step for 30 seconds; switch to the other foot. Perform the exercise for 3-5 minutes. Take breaks if you get need to!
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12 Days of Health & Fitness Day 6: Drink 8 servings of 8 ounces of water today! Water is essential to your body - it regulates body temperature, lubricates joints, protects body organs and tissues, carries oxygen and nutrients to cells as well as many other benefits! People often confuse thirst for hunger, so this is a great way to ensure you are not eating when you are really just thirsty!
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Day 4: Work those legs - lying side leg raises. Advanced option - 45 per leg, Intermediate - 30 per leg and Beginner - 15 per leg. A great way to make sure you are in alignment while doing these is to lay on your side with your back, bottom and legs pressed against the wall. Your top leg will slide up along the wall as you do your raise.
12 Days of Health & Fitness: Day 3
12 Days of Health & Fitness - Day 3: Do your age in push-ups. If you are 45, you have 45 push-ups to do throughout the day. Beginner modification - complete 15 push-ups standing (against the wall) or on the ground.
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Day 2 - Balance on one leg: advanced option - strive to reach 4 minutes in total balance hold; intermediate - complete 2 minutes in total balance hold; and beginner - 40 seconds in total balance hold. Alternate legs throughout the time, so you practice balancing on both legs.
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Day 1 of 12 Days of Fitness & Health: Pay for your Productivity - Do one burpee (with push-up!) for every email and/or text you received and sent today. Low-impact option: Do a stepback - take out the jump (squat down and place hands on ground, step back into plank, do a push-up, step feet back to hands and stand up).
Beginner Option - Do a modified Jumping Jack. Take out the jump - alternate stepping feet out as your arms come overhead.
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