Take it to the Street Full Body Workout

It’s Workout Wednesday here!  What is your workout today?  Do you still need one?  Don’t worry, I have you covered with this tough, sweaty “Take it to the Street” Full Body Workout.

It’s a rainy morning here in Indiana and I had great intentions to drop C off at Preschool and put M in the stroller and go for a nice 4-5 mile run, but the weather had other ideas.  I could have gone to the gym and gotten in a workout this morning but then I wouldn’t have had as much time with M.  I am trying not to head to the gym on Wednesday mornings while C is at Preschool because I want to have some one-on-one time with M.

After dropping C off at Preschool we played in the playroom, rolling and throwing the ball of course, before he went down for his morning nap.  Since he still takes a morning nap, I thought it was the perfect time to knock out a quick, sweaty garage workout.

The rain decided to let up a little so I decided to “Take it to the Street” for part of my workout and incorporate some fast running- also known as sprints!  This was the perfect workout for me today as I am less than three weeks away from a half marathon and needed to get in some speed work.

I have an Olympic bar that I love using for my at-home workouts because it is heavier than the dumbbells I have at home.  I know that not all people have an Olympic bar, so using dumbbells for this workout is just fine.

AT-HOME WORKOUT

Don’t worry, even if you are not training for a half marathon, this is a good workout for anyone.  This full body workout will help anyone burn fat and leave you sweaty and sore.  Sprinting is not just good for runners, everyone can benefit from it.  Sprinting helps you build muscle and increases the size and strength of the fast-twitch fibers.

I used to prefer steady state cardio over a workout like this, but not anymore.  I would much rather get in a workout like this over going out for a 45 minute run.  In less time, I get a better workout- more bang for my buck!

RUNNING

As a runner, I attribute my increased speed and my recent PRs to this type of training.  Prior to having kids I ran… and ran… and ran.  Once I had a baby, I didn’t have as much time to do this and I started doing shorter workouts: more sprinting, more weights, and less mileage.  Guess what happened?  I became faster- a lot faster.  I knocked 8 minutes off my half marathon PR one year after I had my first child!

MODIFY

If you don’t want to sprint in this workout, that is okay, there are other options too.  Complete the “sprinting” part on a bike or a row machine.  Don’t have that at home?  That is okay too do high knees in place, jumping jacks, or jump rope.  Whatever you do during that cardio piece, get your heart rate up- you should be out of breath by the end of your 30 or 45 seconds.

I love creating my own, tough workouts right from home.  It saves a lot of time and I never sacrifice the quality of my workout.  I hope you enjoy this one too!

Your turn- tell me!  
What kind of workout do you do when you are on a time crunch?
How do you turn your home into your gym?