stretch & abs.

Hello, friends!

As I said on my last post, I am doing a little 4 Week Challenge for myself to focus on MY health and well being.  Plus, it’s kind of fun!  Last week I cleaned.  A lot.  I did a bajillion dishes that I have been too lazy to clean and did some spring cleaning all around my apartment.  I did TONS of laundry and vacuumed or swept every floor!  It was so nice to come home after Easter with my family to a nice, clean, inviting apartment!  I also made a sweet playlist, put together a wine bar all by myself, made Easter-Eve dinner for my fam, and pampered myself by painting my toe nails!  And although I had a few rough moments this weekend, I have really enjoyed setting these goals for myself this week.  

It’s so fulfilling when each goal gets accomplished!  This week, I am looking forward to trying out some morning yoga, spring cleaning my closet, doing a full cleaning job on my car, and doing some research to help me formulate a new workout plan!  Don’t forget to check out my progress and daily reports for my challenge on Instagram @itsahealthything!

Anyway, the real point of this post is to share with you an ab/stretching circuit that I made up today that really gave me a good burn after my run.  I always try to end my workouts with abdominal exercises and stretching.  That might be a quirk from track, but I just don't feel like my workout is complete without it!  If you do this circuit by itself, definitely feel free to go through the ab exercises more than once.

And I know some of the stretching exercises might not make sense, but it is what we called them in track.  Most of them are good, dynamic hamstring stretches and the explanation for each one is below the graphic!

Knee grab to chest:  Just like it sounds.  Stand and bend at the knee and hip, pulling your knee into your chest.  You should feel a stretch in your hamstring.  Hold for a second, release, and take a step before repeating with the opposite leg.

Ankle grab:  Same idea as the knee grab, but pull up on your ankle/foot.  Your knee should naturally bend out to the side of your body.  While it is important to pull your ankle high enough to get a good stretch, it is also important to make sure you never pull your ankle above your knee.

Texas two-step:  This one is hard to explain. Stand with your left (back) leg bent and your right leg in front of the left, relaxed, but straight, reach down and touch your toes on your right foot.  You should feel the stretch in your right hamstring.  Hold for a second then take a step and repeat the movement with your left leg out front.  In track, we “jogged” the steps between legs, which resulted in a “2 step” rhythm.  I’m not sure where the “Texas” part came from……

T drill:  Standing with your weight on your left leg, reach forward to touch the ground, letting your right leg rise behind you.  Keep both legs straight for this drill and try to keep them parallel to one another.  No swinging your right leg across your body as you reach down.  The idea is that, when you touch the ground, your body should be in a “T”.  Hold for a second, stand up again and take a step before repeating with the other leg.  Are you noticing a trend with the steps in between?

High Kick:  Just like it sounds, standing upright, reach your arms straight out and alternate legs trying to reach your hands.  If that is too high, hold your hands slightly lower.  If it is too low, hold your hands higher.  Easy, huh?

Reverse Ankle Grab:  Stand straight up and lift your ankle to your butt while reaching back to pull your ankle up.  You will feel a stretch in your quadriceps.  Again, make sure you keep your leg perpendicular to the ground and your ankle is in line with your knee.  Don’t let your knee drift off to the side, as that can put unnecessary pressure on your knee.  Hold for a second, release, take a step and repeat with the other leg.

That’s all I have for today!  Enjoy!

Stay fit!

xoxo