Thursday 13 March 2008: SPRINT PYRAMID

SPRINT PYRAMID

Today's workout may look complicated, but it really isn't. Run sprints of 10, 15, 20, 30, 20, 15, and 10 seconds with 1 minutes recovery in between (90 seconds on each side of the 30 second sprint).

• 5 minutes - Run or Run-walk
• 10 seconds – Sprint
• 1 minute – Recovery
• 15 seconds – Sprint
• 1 minute – Recovery
• 20 seconds – Sprint
• 90 seconds – Recovery
• 30 seconds – Sprint
• 90 seconds – Recovery
• 20 seconds – Sprint
• 1 minute – Recovery
• 15 seconds – Sprint
• 1 minute – Recovery
• 10 seconds – Sprint
• 1 minute – Recovery
• 5 minutes - Run or Run-walk

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Wednesday 12 Mar 2008: MAX SETS-PU

MAX SETS: PUSH-UPS

Complete five max sets of pull-ups at five minute intervals. Perform sets at 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 minutes.

These are max sets but not to muscle failure. Perform the maximum number of repetitions possible while maintaining good form, but stop short of actual muscle failure (you may go to failure on the last set if you prefer).

Advanced: Push-ups, Handstand PU, Wall PU, and/or Dips

Intermediate: Push-ups and/or Knee PU

Basic: Push-ups, Knee PU, and/or Countertop PU

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Tuesday 11 March 2008: B-CIRCUITS

Today's agony brought to you by Bryce Lane.

B-CIRCUITS

Complete as many circuits as possible in twenty minutes.

If you are not accustomed to plyometric training or are obese, perform the Basic WOD.

Advanced:

• 12 Short Range Squat Jumps
  (Half-Squat Jumps: Squat until your elbows touch your knees and thighs are parallel to ground and then jump for height or distance)
• 12 Full Range Squat Jumps
  (Deep Squat Jumps: Squat deep until your hands touch the ground and then jump for height or distance)
• 20 High Tension Bodyweight Squats
  (Squat while maintaining conscious tension of the leg mucles)

Intermediate:

• 6 Short Range Squat Jumps
• 6 Full Range Squat Jumps
• 10 High Tension Bodyweight Squats

Basic:

• 5 Half-Squat Jumps
• 10 Lunges (Each leg)
• 10 Calf Raise and Flex

Are you tempted to cheat on the jump as your legs become tired? Try Traveling B-Circuits by jumping for distance instead of height. Try to cover the same total distance on each circuit as the workout progresses to ensure that you are pushing yourself adequately.

Post results to Comments.

B-Circuits are covered in Bryce's excellent booklet Fitness Secrets of the Road Ninja. I also highly recommend The Booklet of Bodyweight Power and A Mighty River of Steel.

Monday 10 March 2008: ON THE ROAD

Today's workout is adapted from John Peterson.

ON THE ROAD #1

Perform two of the following circuits in twenty minutes.

Advanced:

• Atlas II Push-ups - 1 minute
  Perform push-ups with each hand on a sturdy chair seat or blocks and the feet elevated to the same or a greater height on a third chair or block.
• Sit-ups - 1 minute
• Self-Resistance Arm Curls - 1 minute/each arm
  With one arm held straight and slightly in front of your body, grasp your wrist with the opposing hand. Slowly curl your straight arm until the hand is at your shoulder while firmly resisting with the opposing arm.
• Step-ups - 6 minutes
  Step up and down continuously on a sturdy chair, step, or box, alternating which leg leads on each rep.

Intermediate:
(Rest as necessary during each circuit)

• Atlas I Push-ups - 1 minute
  Perform push-ups with each hand on a sturdy chair seat or blocks and the feet on the floor.
• Crunches - 1 minute
• Self-Resistance Arm Curls - 1 minute/each arm
  With one arm held straight and slightly in front of your body, grasp your wrist with the opposing hand. Slowly curl your straight arm until the hand is at your shoulder while firmly resisting with the opposing arm.
• Step-ups - 6 minutes
  Step up and down continuously on a sturdy chair, step, or box, alternating which leg leads on each rep.

Basic:
(Rest as necessary during each circuit)

• Knee or Countertop Push-ups - 1 minute
• Crunches - 1 minute
• Self-Resistance Arm Curls - 1 minute/each arm
  With one arm held straight and slightly in front of your body, grasp your wrist with the opposing hand. Slowly curl your straight arm until the hand is at your shoulder while firmly resisting with the opposing arm.
• Step-ups - 6 x 30/30 (30 seconds work, 30 second rest)
  Step up and down continuously on a sturdy chair, step, or box, alternating which leg leads on each rep.

You can find more of John Peterson's training ideas in his books, including Pushing Yourself to Power, Miracle Seven, and Isometric Power Revolution.

Post results to Comments.

Sunday 9 March 2008: REST DAY

REST DAY

Saturday 8 March 2008: RUN FOR DISTANCE

RUN FOR DISTANCE

Advanced:
Run for twenty minutes.

Intermediate:
Run-walk for twenty minutes.

Basic:
Powerwalk for twenty minutes.

Post results to Comments.

No S Diet: The Book

NO "S" DIET: THE BOOK

We have previously written in praise of the No S Diet, a simple set of rules to encourage sensible, disciplined eating. Now Reinhard Engels, the creator of No S and several other Everyday systems we like, has written a book about the No S Diet that is available now at Amazon.com and (theoretically) your local bookstore.

While I haven't read the book yet, since it just became available, and I wouldn't usually recommend a book unless I had read it, judging by what I know of Reinhard and the quality of his online work, I trust this is a purchase worth making. While the No S website will remain available, having the diet explained in a hard copy format will doubtless prove convenient, inspirational, and mobile. It will also facilitate spreading word of this common sense approach to friends.

Reinhard has done a great deal of work for free. His websites offer exceptional content and support at no charge. Purchasing the No S book may be one way some of us can give back and thank him for the good work he has done. To that end, if you decide to purchase the book through Amazon, click through Reinhard's site so that he can benefit both as an author and as an Amazon affiliate.

-Joel

ALTERNATE PULL-UPS AND PUSH-UPS
ON THE MINUTE

Perform a set of pull-ups or push-ups at the top of every minute for twenty minutes. Perform pull-ups on the odd numbered minutes (1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17,19) and push-ups on the even numbered minutes (2,4,6,8,10,12,14,16,18,20). You will perform ten sets of each exercise. The alternating pattern will allow you to do more reps and/or more challenging reps in each set than you could do in superset fashion.

Advanced:

• Pull-ups or Chin-ups
• Push-ups, Dips, Handstand PU, or other challenging variation

Intermediate:

• Partial, Assisted, and/or Jumping Pull-ups
• Push-ups (go to your knees if necessary)

Basic:

• Bodyrows
• Knee Push-ups

Post results to Comments.

Thursday 6 March 2008: SPEEDPLAY

SPEEDPLAY (Fartlek)

Perform intermittent sprints of varying lengths and intensities during brisk walking and easy running (or jogging) for twenty minutes.

Today's workout involves random combinations of fast walking, easy running, and sprinting. After several minutes (~5 minutes) of powerwalking and/or easy running, begin performing intermittent sprints. Vary the length and intensity of each sprint (E.g. Sprint for twenty seconds, jog for 90 seconds, sprint hard for ten seconds, walk/jog for two minutes, etc.).

If you are unable to recover sufficiently by jogging, reduce your pace to a walk. Go slower at first than you think is necessary. It is easy to overdo it on this workout. Vary your pace every one to three minutes throughout the twenty minutes training session.

Ideas to incorporate in your workout:

• High intensity sprints of 8-15 seconds
• Medium intensity sprints of 15-30 seconds
• High/medium intensity running for 1-3 minutes
• Sets of Jumping Jacks, Burpees, Mountain Climbers, or Jump Squats
• Sets of Squats, Lunges, or Pushups
• Bear Crawling or Crab Crawling

Post results to Comments.

Wednesday 5 March 2008: PU OTM

PUSH-UPS ON THE MINUTE

Perform a set of push-ups at the top of every minute for twenty minutes.

Intermediate and Basic trainees should substitute Knee Push-ups as necessary.

Post results to Comments.

Check out Bryce's Bodyweight page or Coach Ron's Push-ups page for ideas on advanced variations.

Tuesday 4 March 2008: ONE EXERCISE_SQ-THRUST

ONE SIMPLE EXERCISE

Squat Thrusts

Do as many Squat Thrusts as possible in twenty minutes.

Suggestions:

• A set at the top of every minute
• 30/30 style (30 seconds work, 30 second rest)
• Boxer Rounds (2-3 minutes work, 1 minute rest)
• Descending sets (20, 19, 18, 17, 16, etc.)

Post results to Comments.

Monday 3 March 2008: PFT

Enough sitting around. Back to work.

PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST

Advanced:

• Max Pull-ups in 1 minute
• Rest 1 minute
• Max Sit-ups in 1 minute
• Rest 1 minute
• Max Push-ups in 1 minute
• Rest 3 minutes
• Run 12 minutes for distance

Intermediate:

• Max Partial or Assisted Pull-ups or Body Rows
• Rest 1 minute
• Max Sit-ups or Crunches in 1 minute
• Rest 1 minute
• Max Push-ups in 1 minute
• Rest 3 minutes
• Run-walk 12 minutes for distance

Basic:

• Max Body Rows in 1 minute
• Rest 1 minute
• Max Crunches in 1 minute
• Rest 1 minute
• Max Knee Push-ups in 1 minute
• Rest 3 minutes
• Powerwalk 12 minutes for distance

Post results to Comments.

WODs TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED

Due to a family medical emergency, the Twenty Minute Fitness Solution's "workout of the day" has been temporarily suspended. The archives remain accessible, and we encourage you to check back often for updates. We hope to resume posting new daily workouts within 1-2 weeks.

Thank you for your patience.

Joel

Wednesday 13 Feb 2008: DO IT ALL

DO IT ALL

Complete the following circuit five times:

• 30/30 Pull-ups
• 30/30 Sit-ups
• 30/30 Push-ups
• 30/30 Squats

30/30 = 30 seconds work, 30 seconds rest

Substitutions

• Pull-ups: Partial, Assisted, or Jumping Pull-ups or Body Rows
• Sit-ups: Crunches, Flutter Kicks, Leg Levers
• Push-ups: Dips, Knee Push-ups
• Squats: Squat Jumps, Half-Squats

Post results to Comments.

Tuesday 12 Feb 2008: CONDITIONING INTERVALS

CONDITIONING INTERVALS

Today's workout uses 30/30 intervals (30 seconds work, 30 seconds rest, repeat for time allotted).

Advanced:

• 5 x 30/30 Jumping Jacks or Jump Rope
• 5 x 30/30 Burpees
• 5 x 30/30 Mountain Climbers
• 5 x 30/30 Squats

Intermediate:

• 5 x 30/30 Jumping Jacks or Jump Rope
• 5 x 30/30 Squat Thrusts (add push-up if possible)
• 5 x 30/30 Mountain Climbers
• 5 x 30/30 Squats

Basic:

• 5 x 30/30 Jumping Jacks or Jump Rope
• 5 x 30/30 Half-Squats or Squat Thrusts
• 5 x 30/30 Mountain Climbers
• 5 x 30/30 Half Squats

Post results to Comments.

Monday 11 Feb 2008: ON THE ROAD #1

Today's workout is adapted from John Peterson.

ON THE ROAD #1

Perform two of the following circuits in twenty minutes.

Advanced:

• Atlas II Push-ups - 1 minute
  Perform push-ups with each hand on a sturdy chair seat or blocks and the feet elevated to the same or a greater height on a third chair or block.
• Sit-ups - 1 minute
• Self-Resistance Arm Curls - 1 minute/each arm
  With one arm held straight and slightly in front of your body, grasp your wrist with the opposing hand. Slowly curl your straight arm until the hand is at your shoulder while firmly resisting with the opposing arm.
• Step-ups - 6 minutes
  Step up and down continuously on a sturdy chair, step, or box, alternating which leg leads on each rep.

Intermediate:
(Rest as necessary during each circuit)

• Atlas I Push-ups - 1 minute
  Perform push-ups with each hand on a sturdy chair seat or blocks and the feet on the floor.
• Crunches - 1 minute
• Self-Resistance Arm Curls - 1 minute/each arm
  With one arm held straight and slightly in front of your body, grasp your wrist with the opposing hand. Slowly curl your straight arm until the hand is at your shoulder while firmly resisting with the opposing arm.
• Step-ups - 6 minutes
  Step up and down continuously on a sturdy chair, step, or box, alternating which leg leads on each rep.

Basic:
(Rest as necessary during each circuit)

• Knee or Countertop Push-ups - 1 minute
• Crunches - 1 minute
• Self-Resistance Arm Curls - 1 minute/each arm
  With one arm held straight and slightly in front of your body, grasp your wrist with the opposing hand. Slowly curl your straight arm until the hand is at your shoulder while firmly resisting with the opposing arm.
• Step-ups - 6 x 30/30 (30 seconds work, 30 second rest)
  Step up and down continuously on a sturdy chair, step, or box, alternating which leg leads on each rep.

You can find more of John Peterson's training ideas in his books, including Pushing Yourself to Power, Miracle Seven, and Isometric Power Revolution.

Post results to Comments.

Sunday 10 Feb 2008: REST DAY

REST DAY

4-9 Feb 2008: WEEK OF WODs

A WEEK OF DAILY WORKOUTS

Monday 4 Feb 2008: PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST

Tuesday 5 Feb 2008: B-CIRCUITS

Wednesday 6 Feb 2008: PULL-UPS OTM

Thursday 7 Feb 2008: SPRINT PYRAMID

Friday 8 Feb 2008: 90/30 CALISTHENICS

Saturday 9 Feb 2008: RUN FOR DISTANCE

Post results to Comments for this post.

Sunday 3 Feb 2008: REST DAY

REST DAY

Saturday 2 Feb 2008: RUN FOR DISTANCE

RUN FOR DISTANCE

Advanced:
Run for twenty minutes.

Intermediate:
Run-walk for twenty minutes.

Basic:
Powerwalk for twenty minutes.

Post results to Comments.