One of my primary focuses this year has been to get back to what I really enjoy about being a fitness professional – exercise.
Granted, in my first (and last, since it’s February and I’ve only posted once this year… hooray me!) post of 2012 I discussed goal setting, but in my defense, I wrote that article a long time ago and forgot to publish it, and I just wanted to get some credit for services rendered.
Now that February is in full swing, it’s time for me to get into the swing of things with this new laser-like (I’m assuming here that your lasers are all in desperate need of new batteries) focus on exercise. And while I enjoy long rants about public dietary policy, blogging is about nothing if it’s not about being self-serving, so I’m going to try to set those discussions aside and talk more about things that are more directly related to my interests. You’re welcome!
Today, I’d like to share a quick little arm workout you can do with a resistance band. It takes about five minutes, and it’s a great way to get in a ton of great arm work in a small amount of time.
I’m keeping the post itself short because I want to solicit some input from you. What exercise-related conundrums would you like me to discuss? What exercise do you always struggle with? Do you want to know more about strength versus cardio exercise? Do you have a particular area of your body you’d like to work more or a piece of exercise equipment you’d like to use more? Bear in mind that, if you say you’d like to see any workouts using the ab GLIDER™, I reserve the right to mock you publicly.
Here’s that arm workout:
‘Til next time!
Hey Mark!
I’d love to hear your thoughts about interval training! I’ve heard it’s great for weight loss, but what about overall fitness?
Thanks, Lexine! I use a lot of intervals in my training, and I’ll definitely include a post about its benefits soon.
Exercise Info I’d like to hear about include: injury prevention, particularly for knees and ankles, shoulders and back; inexpensive yet good quality exercise equipment to own; opportunities for exercise/cross-training locally; health and nutrition tips; free weight lifting programs for strengthening, particularly core; anything else you think we should hear about!
Thanks, Mark, love the website!
Thanks, Kris – I’ll definitely be covering many of those in the near future. Appreciate your input!
Suggestions for interval training at home, specifically using kettlebells. We bought 2 kettlebells around the holidays and I use them based on the crossfit workouts I do a few times a week, but my husband wants to know more since he does not go to CF with me.
I will definitely be including some kettlebell stuff in future posts, so watch for that soon! Thanks for the input!
I know nothing about these exercise bands. How do we know what band to buy? Are there bicep and tricep exercises to do without the use of a band? Also, pushups are a great exercise but I’m stuck at 30 per. How can I get better?
Hi David, I’ll be including info about bands, as well as many other means of exercising with and without equipment. Can you clarify the “30 per” part about the push ups? I want to make sure I know what I can help with. Thanks!
I second the interval training info. I would LOVE to hear your input on HIIT or something of that sort. I feel FANTASTIC after intervals and like it was worth it- but is it beneficial for overall fitness? Also, SHOULDERS- I love shoulder work. It really helps me with preventing dislocation as I build strength and muscle up around my joints. But honestly, I enjoy your random nutrition and fitness blogs. I enjoy learning new things (no matter how much sarcasm is present). THANKS Mark!
Hi Shawna, plenty of all that to come. As much as I’ll try to focus on exercise, I can almost guarantee a few random posts, too! Thanks!
Thanks Mark! I want to figure out what else I should be doing to get good at pushups. I feel so very inadequate even though some of my arm muscles are coming along well.
Hi Connie, push up help will be on the way soon, so stay tuned – thanks!
I’d be really interested in simple things I can do while I watch TV, with things I already have at home (heavy text books or cans of soup as weights, etc.). I watch at least an hour everyday with my boyfriend – commercials are each approx 30 seconds, maybe we could have a list of 6 or 7 30-second intervals workouts to do during commercial breaks. Not necessarily a high intense workout, but a better solution when we would be sitting on the couch anyways.
Also things to do in very limited space.
As far as advice and tips, what do I need to wear? Sometimes when I work out at home I don’t wear shoes… good or bad? Whats a good post/pre workout snack?
Hi Annie… all good things. Thanks for the input and I’ll be including some cool stuff along those lines soon!
Being new to your boot camp, I’m still learning the ropes. I feel that it’s a great work out for the time spent. I have a weak core and would like to learn more exercises that will focus on my core. I will provide continued feedback. Thanks!
Thanks, Alice – I’ll make sure to include some good core stuff in future posts!
I am a bit late in commenting on the arm exercises Mark, but I need to tell you that I really like this. I would like to have a set of band exercises for the whole body — done one a day or split amongst days — for travel and other times I cannot use other equipment. This arm routine is a great start.
Now I suppose I wil have to buy yet another type of band ;’-) I have an arsenal of them, but not the kind you use. Thanks Mark.