Full Body Strength Tabata – Part 1

Tone your body with this 15-minute core muscles strength tabata.

Hi gang! How’s it going? I’m a little behind on my content, I usually make my posts a week ahead of time, but life got busy, so here I am on a Sunday writing this one. Don’t worry, I’ll never leave you without a Workout Wednesday post 😏

I worked on my April and May recipe calendar this week, and I’m really excited to share with you all. I got some good dessert and dinners coming your way! It’s funny because I shoot the meal so far in advance, so the recipes I shot this weekend won’t be on the blog until May 😫

Anywayyyy, I’ve been wanting to talk about Meditation. I’ve been listening to a lot of health and wellness podcasts lately and many of the bloggers have said meditation has completely changed their life. It helps them focus and be intentional and more in the moment.

I thought this would be great thing for me to try. I’m such a busy bee, if I don’t have something to do I’ll create something, because I’m not good at just sitting. Nick who has been meditating for some time now and who has continually asked me give it a try, was very excited that I opened my mind to it. I’m not going to lie, I was nervous and didn’t know what to expect, but I thought what the hell! 💁🏻

I haven’t meditated every night, but I’m trying. At 9:30 (I set an alarm on my phone), I shutdown my computer and Nick and I meditate. I only did it for 3 minutes my first time. We kept having to restart because I couldn’t stop laughing. And you know what, that’s okay! Everyone says it’s supposed to be hard, but sticking with it is worth it in the long run. So this week, I’m going to try my hardest to meditate every night.

Annndd I was thinking that maybe I could get some people to also try it, so we can hold each other accountable. Whatta you think?!

I use an app called Stop, Breathe & Think. If you are thinking you don’t know how, either did I (and still don’t!) That’s perfectly fine. The app is self guided and it’ll walk you through it.

Just remember health isn’t all about food and fitness. You have to take care of that little brain that controls your every move too. 🙂

On to the workout! Time to whip out those weights and make your muscles shake! (I didn’t mean for that to rhyme, but I kind of like it 🤓 hehe) Full Body Strength Tabata. Perform each move for 20 seconds, with 10 seconds rest in between moves. Repeat each move 2 times before moving on to the next one. Once you complete the full tabata, take a minute break. The workout is focused on 3 main muscle groups: Legs, Chest and Back. Next week, I’ll have Part 2 with Biceps, Triceps, Shoulders and Core! Who’s ready to tone their body 🙋🏻 me too! Let’s doooo it! 💪🏼

Full Body Strength Tabata – Part 1

Warm-up (5 minutes): Jumping Jacks, Butt Kicks, High Knees, Squat, Jump Rope – 30 seconds each, 2 times through

Tabata 1 – Legs

1. Plyo Squat + High Knee Pull – squat down and then hop up, pulling right knee to the side and into chest. Lower body back to squat position and hop up, pulling left knee into chest. Repeat and alternate.
2. Wall Sit Twists – bring your body into sitting/squatting position on the wall (things parallel to ground). With hands together and arms straight, twist your upper body to the right, back center, and then to the left. Repeat and alternate.
3. Narrow Squat Pulse – in narrow squat position (feet together, hips back, butt down and knees behind toes), slowly raise and lower body 1-2 inches in squat position. Stay low the whole time 🙂
4. Squat Jack + Weighted Swing – grab heavy dbell by one end and lower into wide squat position (the opposite dbell end should almost touch the floor), using momentum, hop feet together to standing position and swing dbell up to shoulder height (no higher), repeat by squatting back down and bringing dbell back down between legs. It should be a continuous movement, keeping the dbell swinging.

Tabata 2 – Chest

1. Standing Chest Press (with light dbells) – standing, bring dbells together at chest height, knuckles facing out. Bring elbows back so they are in line with your body, creating a 90 degree angle with your arms. Open your chest, while squeezing back muscles together. Close arms by squeezing chest together (like a lying chest press). Make sure dbells stay at chest height.
2. Standing Chest Fly (with light dbells) – standing, bring dbells together at chest height, palms facing. With straight arms, draw elbows back (but don’t bend arms, they stay straight). Open your chest, while squeezing back muscles together. Close arms by squeezing chest together (like a lying chest fly). Make sure dbells stay at chest height.
3. Hip Bridge Hold + Dbell Press – in hip bridge position (hips off the ground, glutes squeezed and abs tight), bring dbells up over chest. Staying in hip bridge position, lower dbells to chest height, while bringing elbows wide (they should almost touch the floor). Squeeze chest to bring dbells back up.
4. Hip Bridge + A-Press – in hip bridge hold position, add dbell a-press, outline a capital letter A, elbows are bent at bottom and narrow at the top

Tabata 3 – Back

1. Deadlift + Upright Row – standing, with dbells in each hand, bend at the waist, pressing hips back and keeping shoulders in pockets (rolled back and down into spine. Don’t let shoulders roll forward toward the floor). Lower body so back is flat and dbells are around knee caps. Rise by squeezing your glutes and hamstrings. Then, pull dbells up toward chest, bringing elbows wide like a scarecrow, and keeping wrist strong. Stop elbows at shoulder height and then slowly lower dbells back to starting position. Repeat with deadlift.
2. Wide + Narrow Dbell Row – with dbells in each hand, slightly bend knees and hinge at hips (keep your core tight.) With palms facing, squeeze shoulder blades together, while pulling dbells back to hip position (keep elbows close to body). Lower dbells back to starting position and then flip palms down (facing the floor). To perform the wide row, squeeze shoulder blades together, but bring elbows out wide, so arms are about at 90 degrees. Lower dbells back to starting and alternate narrow and wide row.
3. RDLs (same leg) – with dbells in hand, slowly lower body like a deadlift, but bring right leg behind you (try to keep as straight as possible). With core tight and glutes squeezed, lower dbells down to knee height. Squeeze glutes and rise back to standing position.
4. Supermans – lying on ground, belly down, squeeze glutes and lower back to lift arms and feet off floor. Slowly lower back down, controlling the muscles (don’t flop body back on floor), repeat, trying to lift higher each move.

Have a question? Comment below! 🙂