Tag: format

The Final Days: A Review of Cardio 3 + Core 2

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Today was my LAST DAY of 22-Minute Hard Corps! “Woohoo!!!” doesn’t even come close to expressing how happy I am to be done with this one!

I will do a post soon with my thoughts on the program as a whole, but I just realized that I never reviewed Cardio 3 or Core 2! So, here’s what you need to know…

Cardio 3 is the same format as the other cardio workouts with different moves. There are seven moves that comprise a circuit. The circuit is completed three times. There’s a very short cooldown at the end. The seven moves of Cardio 3 include the following:

  1. Spider Crawls – These are similar to bear crawls from Cardio 1, but the goal is touch your knee to your elbow and you’re walking forward and backward on your hands and feet.
  2. Skip Flies – These are similar to jumping jacks, but your feet are moving vertically, rather than horizontally like a jump jack. Your arms start with your hands in at your chest, then punching out to the sides.
  3. Cross Climbers – These are similar to mountain climbers from Cardio 2. However, rather than running in place in plank, you are twisting in your core, striving for your right knee to touch your left elbow, and for the your left knee to touch your right elbow, as you run.
  4. Fast Feet, Up/Down – This is a reaction drill. You start by standing with your feet apart, running with your feet like they’re on hot coals. When Tony yells, “Drop!” you hit the floor and hold a low plank on your elbows until Tony tells you to get back up again. This move can be quite hard on your elbows, so be careful when you hit the floor! Here’s a short video:
  5. Sphinx Kickers – Also in low plank on your elbows, run in place you’re kicking your butt. Another move than can get a little rough on the elbows.
  6. Knee Drop Lunges – Starting from a standing position, drop down to your knees one at a time, then come back to standing. These are also known as “Surrenders” from 21-Day Fix. Try not to slam your knees down and be sure to use a mat or some other cushioning so you don’t hurt your knees. Here’s a short video:
  7. Spin Burpees – My favorite! Do a burpee, but when you jump to do a 180-degree spin, then repeat. Here’s what these look like:

A note on Core 2 – All cardio days also include a short (~10 minute), optional core workout. Core 2 includes exactly all of the same moves as Cardio 1. There are two main differences: (1) Tony is not demonstrating the moves for you, so there is less rest time. (2) The most appreciable difference – rather than doing 11 reps of each move, you’re doing a whopping 22 reps. Honestly, when I did Core 1 the first time, I was a little confused why we were doing 11 reps of each move when 22 seems to be a prominent theme of the program. Well, here’s the answer… it’s Core 2. The 22 reps DEFINITELY increases the intensity for these moves.

Interested in trying 22-Minute Hard Corps? Send me an email at distilledjill@gmail.com or find me on Facebook so I can answer your questions. If you’re ready to order, here’s where you go.

Day 22/Week 4 of 22-Minute/Hard Corps!

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I started week four of 22-Minute Hard Corps today!  For those of you who haven’t been following me, I am doing the new exercise program from celebrity trainer Tony Horton.  It’s an 8-week military bootcamp-style workout.  Workouts are only 22 minutes long (hence the name of the program) and range from cardio to resistance to core.

Week 4 introduces a new workout into the mix – Resistance 3.  Up to this point, the workout calendar alternated between Cardio 1 and 2, Resistance 1 and 2, and Core 1.  Resistance 3 is the third of three strength-training workouts in the program.
Here’s the format.  You do a very short warm up.  Then you jump into the workout.  There are five moves in the circuit:
1.  Pump Jumpers – These are plyometric push ups!  They’re crazy!  I could not do the full number of repetitions.  You start in a plank with your hands in a tricep push up position, legs spread apart.  You do a push up, then jump your hands into a wide push-up position and your legs jump together… at the same time!  Then you do another push up with your hands in the wide position.  You’re alternating tricep push ups and traditional push ups with a plyometrical switch in between.  I can do these, but NOT nearly as many repetitions as what Tony was counting out in the video.  Neverthless, I’m proud I can do them and will try to record them for you so you can see what I’m talking about!  This is the only move that I could not complete in full for Resistance 3.
2.  Split Lunge Thrusts – Another plyometric move.  With dumbbells or a sandbag in hand, start in a lunge position… say, for example, left in front.  Jump to switch your stance, so now your right foot is in front.  As you jump, do a shoulder press.  This move happens fast, and it really gets your heart rate up and sweaty.  This move definitely works your legs and shoulders, but it also works your heart for cardio.  This move makes the workout.  Here’s a clip of me doing these Split Lunge Thrusts.  Be nice… this was my first time doing them!
3.  Arm Balance Rows – Holding your dumbbells in hand, start in a plank position with legs wide.  Twist through your core and lift one arm in the air in the direction you twist.  Bring your arms that’s in the air back to the ground and switch sides.
4.  Mountain Squats – These are rough!  Grab one dumbbell or your sandbag, holding it in one hand.  Start in a standing position, dumbbell close to your chest.  Sit down, then lay onto your back, then stand up, using your legs to push you up into standing through a squat.  It’s hard to describe, so I’ll do a video once I master it.  But you’re basically going from standing to sitting, to laying to standing.
5.  Scissor Clappers – This is your abdominal move.  In a sitting position, scissor your legs, clapping under the raised legs.  Here’s a clip:
You end with a cool down, which is actually the longest of any of the cool downs that I’ve done in 22-Minute Hard Corps yet.  I think it was around 3 minutes long.
I’m actually really enjoying these resistance workouts!  And I loved that there were no pull-ups in this one!  😉
Need some motivation, support, and accountability to reach your health, fitness, and wellness goals?  Email me at distilledjill@gmail.com or send me a message on Facebook!  I’m always running an online challenge group, and participation in the group is free with your purchase of one of our awesome challenge packs!

Day 9 of 22-Minute Hard Corps

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Every time I go to press play on 22-Minute Hard Corps, I experience the same internal dialogue.  This workout’s so simple and easy. Only 22 minutes. What am I really going to get out of this? Am I even going to sweat? Psh. Kid’s stuff.

I don’t know WHY I get so COCKY.  At the end of the 22 minutes, I’m always gasping for air and soaked in sweat.  Today was my second time doing Cardio 2.  While I can physically DO all of the moves, I definitely can’t complete some of them at the pace of the video!  The two moves that I find especially difficult are gorilla crawls and waterbugs.  Since I missed my post about it last week, here’s the format:
The format is similar to Cardio 1.  No separate warm-up.  You just jump right into the moves, but the first move is sprinting in place, so it’s kind of like a warm-up.  Then there’s three rounds of seven moves with a 22-second break in between each round.  Unlike Cardio 1, there’s no bonus or burnout in the final minutes (thanks, Tony!).  There’s a very short cooldown at the end.  Here are the seven moves:
  • Sprint in place – Basically run in place with high knees.
  • Mountain climbers – In plank, keep your hands in place, but alternate your legs so that you’re running in place, tapping your toe on the ground each time you bring it forward.
  • Straight leg sprint – Kind of like low straight-leg kicks.
  • Gorilla crawls – These are THE hardest move for me!  I did a LOT better this time than when I did it last week.  I almost completed all of the gorilla crawls, but these really burn out your legs, especially if you do them right – low to the ground with your feet separated and chest up.  Some of the folks in the video were raising their butts a lot higher, which might be a bit easier.  Here’s a short video of me with my bunny as I do them.

  • Jimmy jumps – starting in a slight squat, jump off the ground and raise one arm, alternating arms each time.
  • Waterbug – I’ll do a video for you of these next time.  They’re also brutal.  You start in a plank, then hop your hands and feet off the ground at the SAME TIME, moving side to side.  Yeah.
  • Frog burpee – Do a burpee, but instead of standing up straight at the top, you stay in a low squat.

Repeat #1-7 for 3 rounds total!

You know what helps make this program easier?  Accountability partners!  My online accountability group really helps keep me motivated to stay on track.  Do you have one?  If not, you should join mine!  Send me an email at distilledjill@gmail.com or message me on Facebook if you’d like to join 🙂

Day 2 of 22-Minute Hard Corps

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Today, I completed Day 2 of the new 22-Minute Hard Corps program. Day 2 includes only one workout – Resistance 1.

The format of Resistance 1: A short warm-up, followed by three rounds of the following five moves: Push-Ups, Squat Thrusts, Pull-ups, Chopper Lunges, Sit-up Punches. The workout ends with a Bonus Round of Sprint-Burpee-Push-ups, where you do a football run in place, then drop to the ground for push-ups, and then pop back up and repeat.

The moves are pretty self-explanatory. Push-ups are push-ups, plain and simple. Squat thrusts are demonstrated in my video below. They’re basically a squat with a shoulder press. Pull-ups… self-explanatory. Chopper lunges are alternating lunges with an oblique twist with a dumbbell or sandbag. Sit-up punches are sit-ups with two alternating punches at the top.

You will need a pair of dumbbells at a minimum. I used a pair of 9-pound weights for my first time doing this workout, though I may do heavier weights for some of the moves in the future. You also need a pull-up bar, but if you don’t have a pull-up bar, you can use a resistance band with a door attachment. I have a pull-up bar, but it wasn’t set up for the workout, and I don’t have a door attachment for my resistance band, so instead, I did bent-over rows with the band. So, you can get creative if you don’t have the necessary equipment.

I haven’t done weight training in awhile, but I do consider myself to be a pretty fit person. Having done Body Beast and P90X in the past, I wasn’t expecting this to challenge me too much. I also do not normally bust out into a sweat from weight training. Well, I SWEAT doing Resistance 1. My cardio was up, even though I was just doing strength training. Sticking with Tony’s bootcamp cadence was definitely challenging for some of the moves (like the Sit-Up Punches especially), and I needed to slow it down a little bit and fall behind his pace. My goal is to keep pace with Tony for all moves as I progress through the program.

Day 1 of 22-Minute Hard Corps

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In case you’ve been wondering, yes, I’m still here.  I lost 10 pounds on a second round of the Beachbody Ultimate Reset in February-March 2016!  I’ve been plugging along, doing my at-home fitness workouts everyday, drinking my Shakeology, and serving others as a coach.  I’ve lost 60 pounds since I started my journey with Beachbody after graduating from law school in 2010.  I even wore a bikini for the first time in my life last month!  I never had the confidence to do that before, and it’s all thanks to these programs and products.

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Wearing a bikini for the first time!

What’s next?  Today, I started Tony Horton’s new program called 22-Minute Hard Corps.  It’s an eight-week bootcamp/military-style workout program that’s super short!  Only 22 minutes a day!  I’ve actually been lucky to do 22-Minute Hard Corps LIVE with Tony 3 times in the past month.  We worked out together on a cruise that I went on through Beachbody (the one where I wore that bikini for the first time!) and when he came to DC earlier this month.

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Hanging out with Tony Horton in DC earlier this month!

Today, I pushed play on Cardio 1 and Core 1.  I’ve done Cardio 1 a couple of times now.  It was the sneak peek of the workout available on Beachbody On Demand.  I love the simplicity of the moves.  The format for Cardio 1 is three rounds of seven moves (T- Jacks, Bear Crawls, Lateral Shuffle, Forward Lunge Twist, Basic Burpee, A-Skips, and Run Lunge Squats) with 22-second breaks in between each round, and a Bonus Round of 22 Bear Crawls and 22 Burpees.  No equipment needed for Cardio 1.  Day 1 also involves an optional Core 1 workout, which was a lot of fun!  (Yes, I’m crazy and find some workouts FUN.)  And it’s seriously SHORT.  Like, 9 minutes short!  For Core 1, Tony has you rolling around on the floor for a couple of moves, which makes you feel a little silly and smile, which helps push the workout along.  There were some new abs/core moves introduced that I had never done before, even after having completed most Beachbody programs.

The verdict?  I definitely got sweaty and fatigued during the 22 minutes!  See:

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Sweaty selfie from 22-Minute Hard Corps!

Nutrition-wise, I probably won’t be following the 22-Minute Hard Corps nutrition plan precisely.  I’ve really gotten into a groove with my nutrition and know what works for my body at this point.  I’m a weekday vegan, and give myself some latitude over the weekend to enjoy some top-notch treat (or cheat) meals.  it works for me.  My meals today included Vegan Chocolate Shakeology for breakfast, a spinach salad for lunch (with quinoa, beans, sunflower seeds, tofu, peppers, carrots, and a little olive oil and vinegar).  I had an apple as a mid-afternoon snack (I eat an apple a day like a big DORK).  Dinner is TBD!

Day 1 of 22-Minute Hard Corps is history!

PS – Over the past year, I’ve converted this from a blog to more of a website.  However, I’d like to keep content in the blog fresh and regular, so I’m going to try to post regularly.

PPS – Need some coaching? Motivation to start or continue your health, fitness, or wellness journey?  Send me at email at distilledjill@gmail or find me on Facebook!  My services are FREE when you buy Shakeology, a workout program, or BOTH through me.