No Excuses, No BS, Bootcamp!

Well it’s here, welcome to 2017!!! How did this happen? Is it just me or does it seem like 2016 was the quickest year on record? I swear it feels like just a few weeks ago we were celebrating the start of 2016, and here we are starting 2017. If health and fitness is at the forefront of your goals for the upcoming year I really hope you consider checking out the free items I have here on this website: A health & Fitness planner and the 31 day no excuses bootcamp.

The no excuses bootcamp was something I created mid 2016 for my YouTube channel.Why? Because I was tired of hearing the same excuses over and over. Excuses like “I don’t have the money”, let me tell you that walking/running costs nothing! “I don’t have the equipment”, use what you have, you and your environment are your own gym! Oh and the classic “I don’t have the time”, nobody does. We just prioritize our health as important. Sorry if this hits home, but that’s just what they are: excuses. This program is free, no signup required and literally takes 30 minutes a day. No Excuses!

No Excuses

When I launched the bootcamp program I had planned on launching it with a PDF workout guide, a nutrition plan and so much more. What actually happened was I did the videos, got super busy with work. I’m not making an excuse here, I simply had to prioritize my work and income over something I was doing for free here on the blog. I had to decide. Do I delay it, and launch in 2017? Or should I upload what I have, throw up a quick post and revisit it later. I chose the latter, because my aim is to HELP people. To build a bridge between their problems and a solution.

Workout Videos

I envisioned people liking the longer workout videos because they could literally workout while I’m doing it. What I found in reality is that people prefer shorter videos. So, I decided that in the New Year, I’d revamp it with shorter videos. Plus I’d take time to post each workout on the website, explain the exercises, offer modifications and give people somewhere to ask about each workouts. Finally, I’d be back to blogging and building the website and the bootcamp how I envisioned. So this post is dedicated to Interval Workout #1.  The full workout video is embedded below, if that’s not your thing and instead you just want to view the exercises then I uploaded a shorter versions check out my YouTube Channel.

The Program

So how does this work? You do a 30-45 minute workout Monday-Saturday all in the comfort of your own home (or garden, apartment, park, gym… whatever) and then Sundays you do 30 minutes of active recovery. So walking, hiking, yoga etc. I’ll be sharing more of the workouts here as we go but remember that the 30 minutes doesn’t have to be in ONE session. The workouts are planned so that you could do 15-20 minutes in the morning and the same in the evening rather than one session a day. Yep, I know, I’m a genius! Let’s go.

Bootcamp Interval Workout #1

Interval workout #1 has 8 exercises, and is split into two halves of four exercises each. We have cardio, then strength for lower body, upper body and core. Each exercise is done for about 45 seconds, then you repeat the whole thing three times. So for a total of 12 minutes. Then move on to the second half which is the same format with different exercises. Boom, now you know what the deal is, here are the exercises.

Burpee

First let’s get it out of the way. Nobody likes burpees. So just because you don’t “like” an exercise is not an excuse for not doing it. Honestly, it’s more of a reason to do it because it’s usually the thing you NEED to be doing. So for this exercise start standing. Fold at the hips, bend the knees and bring the hands to the floor. Jump both legs back into a plank. then jump the feet back to the hands. Stand up, and add a small jump up as you reach the arms up. Repeat

Modifications: There can be a couple of stumbling blocks to the burpee which I’ll address. First is the jumping. It’s an OPTION. If you can’t jump, don’t. Notice I said if you CAN’T jump, not if you don’t WANT to jump. No Excuses remember! If you are able to jump, then jump. If that’s not something you can do due to injury or disease then simply step/walk the feet back and in. Now another problem may be that you cannot touch the floor when you bend over. So instead have the sofa or a chair front and put your hands on the sofa and do the same step/jump back with the hands elevated. This is also a better option for those with blood pressure issues.

Wall Squat

This is an exercise that looks super easy, but burns the quads really quick. Stand with your back against the wall and step the feet away about 18″. With the feet around shoulder width apart, slide your butt down the wall until your thighs are parallel to the floor. Note to keep the shoulders back, knees over the ankles and hands away from the thighs.

Modifications: Simple modification for this is to reduce the amount of time spent IN the squat. Simply lift up, shake the legs out and reset. Or another option is to reduce the range of motion, so the hips are higher than the knees. I really need to work on this exercise again as it really helps the stabilizer muscles around the knee. No excuses, it needs to get put back into my workout exercise rotation.

Push Up

Pretty much everyone knows this movement and there is a reason for that. It works! Push Ups work the chest, shoulders, arms, and core. A full upper body movement and I have a love hate relationship with them. Again, no excuses, they need to feature more in my workouts! For this come down to the floor. Separate the feet, place the hands on the floor and straighten the legs. Keeping the abs tight lower the chest towards the floor. Push back up to the plank position.

Modifications: The easy modification is to lower the knees down to the floor. While that does work it also takes out the core work and makes the exercise super easy. What I prefer to do where possible is to raise the torso up by placing the hands on a low bench or table. You can then challenge yourself a little more each week by lowering the height until you’re performing the exercise on the floor.

Crunch

Just like the pushup everyone knows a crunch right? Exercise doesn’t have to be complicated. Ever heard the expression K.I.S.S? Keep It Super Simple! Lie back, with the knees bent and feet on the floor. Lightly cradle the head with the hands. On an exhale raise the head and shoulders up away from the floor. Inhale as you release down.

Modifications: Most people can do this exercise, however one thing I hear is “I can’t do crunches it hurts my neck”. Usually this is because people look UP towards the ceiling. If you look at the photo you’ll see I’m looking towards my knees as I come up. That keeps a nice curve in the cervical spine (neck), and prevents you jutting the chin forward like a funky pigeon pecking at the floor. Don’t be a funky pigeon.

Jacks

Another staple of fitness. Great cardio with no equipment needed and hey it’s a bootcamp so it’s pretty much expected that jumping jacks are included! Start standing with the feet together. Jump the feet out while raising the arms out to the side. Maybe even raising the arms up overhead. Make it as BIG as you can!

Modifications. Again if you CAN’T jump, don’t. That doesn’t mean you get to skip it, remember there are no excuses you simply modify. That means doing one leg at a time. Step the leg out and in, alternating sides. Keep the arms big here to bump up the calorie burn.

Squat & Front Kick

While this is mostly strength you might find it a little cardio too. Stand with feet shoulder width apart. Sit the hips down into a squat. When you stand kick one leg out in front. Lower the leg and sit back into the squat and repeat the kick on the other leg. Option here to touch the foot as it kicks up with the opposite hand.

Modifications: Again the option to not squat at low, just like the wall squat. For less intensity keep the kick low. If you have tight hamstrings, rather than kick maybe try bringing the knee up towards the chest in a knee lift.

Hi-Lo Plank

This exercise is one that packs a punch, and works the body on so many levels! Start in the push up, high plank position. Drop the right elbow to the floor, then the left. So you are in an elbow plank, with elbows under shoulders. Place right hand on the floor and push up and away from the floor, and place left hand back on the floor. The key here is keeping the hips level and not swaying the butt side to side.

Modifications: When done correctly this one can be tough on the shoulders, and core. To make things easier drop the knees down to the floor and do the exercise from there. Be careful to keep the abs engaged throughout.

Bicycle Abs

Another old school staple. Start with knees bent, and over the hips. Cradle the head in the hands. Pull the right shoulder to the left knee, while extending the right leg away from you. Return down to starting position, then repeat with the left shoulder to right knee, extending the left leg.

Modifications: If doing the upper and lower body movement together is challenging just do the upper body. Either keep the feet down on the floor with knees bent, or have knees over the hips. Notice I said to pull the SHOULDER to the knee not the elbow. Lead with the shoulder and keep the elbow back to avoid pulling on the head and neck.

Those are the exercises for workout #1 of the no excuses bootcamp. Even if you don’t do this format, I hope you found something useful, inspiring or motivational from this post and the program. Interval workout #2 is already on youtube, and I’ll breakdown the workout in a few days. Until then keep moving!