1, 2, 3, POWER! - Get Ready For Toned and Fabulous Arms!

Congratulations!  It’s now officially Spring!  Even though it sure doesn’t feel like it this week, Spring weather is coming soon; that means we’ll all be flashing our guns in no time…our super toned and fabulous arms that is.  However, if your arms aren’t quite as impressive as you’d like them to be, or you just want to make sure they stay looking great, then read on and enjoy this week’s arm blaster.

This week we are going to rock the arms with a triple jab/cross combo.  This exercise is fast-paced and endurance driven so get ready to work those arms and feel the burn!

1, 2, 3, POWER!

NOTE: Although I love the practical self defense application of practicing from an “on guard” position with your hands up to protect your face (this is what I am demonstrating in the photo with a “front two knuckle punch”), I have found that my cardio kickboxing students have better form and are able to work the full range of the movement easier if they just keep returning their hands to their armpits.  I also recommend doing a “thrust punch” which will keep the pinkie side of your hand down towards the ground the entire time; this will keep your elbows down throughout the punch (very important).  Again, to do the punch correctly, and get the most out of it, start from the armpits, keep your elbow down and in tight to your body the entire time, and extend your punch all the way (just shy of locking your elbow).  Once you have this, the rest is easy!

Start with your feet staggered (think of standing on the corners of a box) with your hands pulled up by your armpits.  If your right foot is in front, you are going to punch 3 times with your right hand (a “jab”) followed by 1 punch with your left hand (a “cross”).  This rear hand should have more power since you are able to use the torque and strength of your legs and hips in the strike.  As you are punching, think: fast, fast, fast, POWER…fast, fast, fast, POWER (no breaks allowed; keep the tempo up).  To help you keep your speed up, I recommend listening to some upbeat music with a fast, strong bass (in class we listen to Pandora’s “Dance Cardio Radio”).   

Go for 1 minute with your right as the 1, 2, 3 (and your right foot in front) and then 1 minute with your left as the 1, 2, 3 (with your left foot in front).  Remember to extend your punch all the way and then keep that arm coming back all the way to your armpit…this will get harder to do the farther into the 1 minute round you get.  But remember, if you want to sleeveless shirts with pride, keep going!

Enjoy!

The Sprinkler Move for your Core

Welcome to daylight saving time!  Isn’t it nice to have some more hours of daylight in the evening?  Daylight saving time means more time for the kids (and us) to go play outside, enjoy the outdoors, grill, and dream of all those warmer spring days ahead.  If you haven’t yet, take some time this week to go outdoors and enjoy the calming and rejuvenating nature of…nature!

This week we are working on our core muscles.  With more daylight hours and warmer weather comes more time gardening and working on the lawn.  This exercise will help you strengthen your side abdominal muscles, helping to keep you fit and feeling great during your twisting, turning, outdoor chores.

The Sprinkler

Sit with your legs fully extended, feet flexed.  Make sure you activate your leg muscles, feeling as though they are pressing together and lengthening out through your heels.  Pull your belly in toward your spine, lift out of your lower back, and open your chest.  Lift your arms up to shoulder level (yes, shoulder level, not below) and extend your arms in each direction; this will activate all of your arm muscles.  This is your foundation; maintain this position throughout the exercise (it will make sure you workout your entire body, focus on your core, and protect your lower back).  Now, lean back slightly and twist to the left while inhaling; return to center with your exhale (moving slowly).  Repeat on the other side.  Alternate sides for 15-20 sets (1 on each side = 1 set).

Variation

Do The Sprinkler as above but this time vary the tempo.  Try:

1.       Inhale to the left, exhale to the right (moderate tempo).  Repeat for 20-25 sets.

2.       Complete 1 full set (left and right) on each inhale and exhale (fast tempo).  Repeat for 25-30 sets.

Great Leg and Hip Workout -- Double-Bam Kick

Wow.  I feel like it has been ages since I was able to write my last blog; I apologize for the lapse!  These last two weeks have been a blur of snow, travel, and a lot of sickness.  As I often tell others: life is crazy!  You just have to make sure you keep moving forward.  That said, let’s jump right in to our exercise of the week!

This week we are going to focus on our quadriceps and hip flexors with the:

Double-Bam Kick

Begin with your feet separated, left foot in front; think of your feet being on the corners of a box.  In Kempo we call this a “half-moon stance”.  Bring your hands up “on guard” (knuckles in front of your chin), pull your belly in toward your spine, and lift your chest up.  Maintain this position throughout the exercise. 

Now it’s time for the “Double-Bam Kick”.  Bring your right knee up in front of your belly button while keeping your right foot pulled in tight by the left knee.  Think of this as your starting point for the kick.  For the kick you are going to do a double flick with the right foot; with each flick, extend the leg as high as you can and then return to the starting point position.  The goal is to keep your knee high and steady while you kick as quickly as you can.  Finally, you can step back down to the ground with your right foot.  Continue kicking with the right foot for 1 minute, then repeat with the left foot.  Feeling daring?  Go for 2-3 more rounds on each leg.

If you don’t feel like you are working your legs enough (ha), bend your standing leg more, lift your knee higher, and make sure you are doing the full extension and re-chambering of your kicking leg.  In addition, try to keep your upper body and hips totally still while you are kicking so that you isolate your quad and hip flexor muscles. 

Valentine's Day...what do you love? Taking care of what matters most.

This is the week of love. Valentine’s Day is always centered around telling and showing those you love how much you care about them, but what about yourself? Do you love and care about yourself enough to take time each week to take care of your health and nourish your soul? I know, life gets crazy! And most of the time, the person to sacrifice when time gets scarce is the person who needs it, us! Yes, we all have so many hats to wear that it’s hard to take time for each of them. But here’s the key, for the things (people) most important to you, your absolute top priorities, you really need to take time to nourish and nurture them every week, each day even if possible.

For me, that is my family, my husband, my business, and myself. Most of us can successfully manage two of these, or maybe even three of these, but all four? Whew! Here are a few thoughts:

For your loved ones, don’t wait until a special day (like Valentine’s Day) to tell them and show them how much you love them. This has to be a daily thing! Give gratitude to each other, talk and listen to each other, and chose each other, even if means doing something that wouldn’t be at the top of your list of ‘most favorite activities’. Relationships take work, communication, and love…every day; carry that expression of love from Valentine’s Day with you always.

For yourself, you have to take time for your health and your own well being (sanity time!). Again, I know how busy we all are these day, but here’s the thing: If you don’t take the time each week to relax, exercise, de-stress, and do something for you, when it comes time to play with your kids, grandkids, play after you retire, etc., you are not going to have the physical, mental, or emotional ability to live life to the fullest, to truly live! Doing the right kind of exercise will keep you young, really! Taking time for yourself each week to relax and de-stress will keep you happy and young, really! This might sound strange, but I used to be the person who would carry the weight of the world, and everyone else, on my shoulders; it took me until my Junior year of college to realize that I couldn’t live the rest of my life like that. If I just kept giving, caring, and taking care of everyone else, eventually, I wouldn’t have any more left inside me to give. Taking that little bit of time each week will restore your reserves and make sure you can keep giving, caring, loving, and playing for as long as you live.

Since exercise is vital for taking care of your health and future health, we come back around to our exercise of the week.

Strong Arms and Shoulders - Powerful Backfist

Read the next blog entry for your exericise of the week.  Happy Valentine's week!  This week we are working arms (better for hugging with, right?).  Although this is a relatively easy-to-do exercise, if you add weights you will increase the challenge and the muscle building and if you increase the speed you will add a more cardiovascular component; I recommend both options.

Powerful Backfists

Begin with our legs in a mid-squat position; belly pulled in toward your spine, chest open, shoulders down and back.  Bring your left hand up by your armpit and your right hand up by your left ear; you want to keep your elbow up and pointing forward.  In class, I always describe it as being like Count Dracula with a cape.  Keeping your knees out and pointing forward, twist to the left (like you are winding up).  For the strike, explode from your legs, then hips, then core, and lastly, out your arm; use your entire body to generate power (and a better workout).  You can either alternate sides for 1 minute or do 30 seconds on the right, then 30 seconds on the left.  Repeat for 2-4 more rounds.

Happy Valentines Day!

Stong Core - Ab Circles

Oh how it feels like Spring!  I know it is only the beginning of February but give me a little bit of warm weather (we’re talking 50s here) and “Spring Fever” is upon me!  So far this week my family has played in the backyard, done yard work, enjoyed our patio with fire pit, gone for a walk, and played at the park; yay for time outdoors!  Being out in nature with the ground, fresh air, and sun shining is invigorating, energizing, and calming to the soul.  If you haven’t yet gone outside for a little bit of TLC, I thoroughly recommend it; now is the time to get outdoors and recharge your batteries!

This week we are going to focus on your core.  I like this simple exercise because it works all of your abdominal muscles: inner/outer, upper/lower, and sides.  That said, this is not a cardiovascular exercise so make sure you add it in with other moves that will get your heart rate up.

Ab Circles

Begin on your back with your knees bent, feet on the floor.  Pull your belly in toward your spine, relax your neck, and put your hands palms-down on the floor.  Now, place a ball (preferable a weighted ball) between your knees and press your legs together to hold the ball in place; you should feel this activate your inner thigh muscles.  Keeping this position, lift your feet off the ground slightly to begin your Ab Circles.  Pretend you are going to draw a circle with your knees, bringing the ball to the left, up into your chest, to the right, and back to an inch off the floor.  To really get the most out of this exercise, really twist your hips to each side and draw as big of a circle as possible.  Do 10-20 circles counter-clockwise, then 10-20 circles clockwise.  Repeat 1-2 more times.

Rising Knee/Front Kick PLUS How to Keep Your Spirits Up and Ahieve Your Goals

 

It is now the last week on January, 2013, and I hope all of you are experiencing some success and results from the changes you have made for the New Year.  Like the tides of the oceans, your journey will have some ups and some downs, but the key is to just keep moving forward. 

To help you do this, I recommend writing down what you are experiencing related to your goal each month.  Sometimes, when the change happens slowly over time we forget how much better we feel or even how far we’ve come.  We see this in our business all the time; people come in, and after a few months or a year, they have greatly improved their energy levels, endurance, flexibility, etc, but if they didn’t write down their accomplishments along the way, they have a hard time seeing how much progress they have actually made; they can’t look back and be reminded of all of their achievements.

So, each month, write down what you have made improvements in in addition to what you would like to accomplish over the next month (be realistic).  It can be as simple as “I was able to do 1 pushup on my toes” or “I now have an extra inch in the waistband of my pants”.  Try to be specific and use actual numbers or measurements whenever you can; this will make it easier to see definite improvements over the months.  Next, write out your goals for the next month (relating back to your overall long-term goals).  Examples are: “I want to be able to do 5 full pushups by the end of next month” or “I want to be down a pant size by the end of next month”.  Repeat this process each month.  Then, when you are having a hard day, or feeling discouraged, you can look back at where you were when you started this new journey and actually see, in writing, how far you have come. 

At this point you should give yourself some kudos and some back-patting!  This is very important in order to keep your spirits up and keep you moving forward!

Rising Knee/Front Ball Kick

This week we are going to do the Rising Knee/Front Ball Kick combo.  This exercise will specifically work your core, hip-flexors (the little muscles in the crease of your leg and pelvis that help you lift your legs up), and legs.  Plus, if you really reach your arms up in the air and pull them down hard for the rising knee you will also activate all your arm muscles.  Do this combination as fast as you can while still keeping your knee up at waist level (or higher); this will get your cardio up, up, up!

Put your weight on your left leg and reach your right leg back to the angle.  In order to really work the muscles in your standing leg you will want to keep your left leg bent as if you are in a mini-lunge position; the deeper you bend, the more you will work your standing leg and the harder it will be.  Pull your belly in toward your spine, open your chest, and relax your shoulders.  This is your starting position. 

Reach Your arms up over you.  Now, forcefully pull down with your arms as you rise your knee up into your chest (the “Rising Knee”).  In our martial arts (or self defense), this would be used to knee an attacker in the groin or belly (pulling them down into the knee adds more power and would knock the wind out of your assailant).  Reset your legs to the starting position, keeping the weight on the left (front) leg.  Next comes your “Front Ball Kick”.  This time, keep your arms in front of your chest, lift your knee up to belly level, and extend the ball of your foot out in a kick.  To activate your hamstrings, after your kick keep your knee up and pull your foot back in; only after this “re-chamber” do you step back to your starting position.  Repeat.

Go as fast as you can for 30 seconds – 1 minute on each leg; repeat 1-3 more times.

 

To see this in action you can also watch our Fox 4 KC fitness segment at: http://fox4kc.com/2013/01/27/kempo-fitness-jan-27/

Enjoy!

 

ps.  Yay!  Pictures are back!  I will try and post all the past MIA pictures as well