First and foremost: my feet. LOL. I mean, I have larger feet, but this camera angle is just not doing me any sort of favors. While making this pictorial I was like ohmygod are my feet as long as my shins?? They aren’t. I promise. Anyway…

You guys may remember that my New Year’s resolution was to regularly practice yoga, so I thought a fun way to check in with my progress on that would be to share how I finally nailed a headstand without a wall. Some weeks are better than others, but so far 2015 has marked a huge turn in my yoga practice (namely, I’m actually practicing haha).

There’s a hot yoga studio (H.Y.P.) on ClassPass that has a class right after I’m done teaching at Btone Wellesley on Tuesdays, so at the very least, I practice yoga once a week. In addition, I’ve done some new client specials at studios by my apartment, so some weeks I’ll practice up to four times. Those weeks are awesome because I really notice a difference in how deep I can get into the poses and the increased ease with which my body is moving. I think the key to consistency will be incorporating some shorter at-home yoga sessions into my week. Let the YouTube searching begin!

I’m a morning person and usually love early workouts, but I’ve found that I actually prefer practicing yoga at night. I’m not as stiff and that calm, relaxed post-yoga feeling makes for a great night’s sleep. Anyone else feel that way?

How I Get into Headstands without Using a Wall

Inversions scare the living sh*t out of me. It’s not so much holding them—I think I have the upper body and core strength to do that—it’s getting into them. Being tall is awesome and all, but when it comes to flinging your limbs into the air and sticking an upside-down balance, it’s a disadvantage. Or maybe I’m just a chicken. Either way, there is a reason why gymnasts are short!

There are lots of ways to get into a headstand, but I find the key for me is to keep my limbs as close to my center of gravity as possible. Rather than kicking up into the pose or lifting straight legs into the air, I start with bent knees close to my torso and extend straight up from there. 

I’m not a trained yoga instructor (or even all that good at yoga), but here are some tips to go along with the pictures based on my personal practice and the advice certified teachers have given me in class:

• Place a blanket/towel underneath your head. The added padding makes it a lot more comfortable.
• Hands should be shoulder-width apart. The tendency is to plant the hands out wide, but that wider base actually isn’t as supportive as having the hands aligned with your shoulders. As a matter of fact, in looking at the pictures in this post, I think I could have had my hands in a little closer to each other.
• Once your knees are balanced on your elbows, squeeze the elbows in towards each other. One of the yoga teachers at Back Bay yoga gave me this tip—it’s a small adjustment, but you’ll feel a huge difference in stabilization if you actively squeeze the elbows in as you lift the knees off your arms and into the air.
• To hit a straight line with your body, you’ll need to pull the legs back a few degrees passed your perceived midline. If you’re a beginner like me, the scariest part of the inversion is the last few inches of pulling your legs up and back to form a vertical line with your body. Taking these pictures actually helped me a lot because I could look back on my form. When I thought I was in a straight line, my legs where actually slightly in front of my body. I had to go to a point that felt like I would topple over backwards to achieve that straight alignment—engaging my back (rather than just my abs) to get there. Your entire core needs to work to stabilize, not just your front body.

Ok, next up: handstands. Eeek.

WEARING: tank: Lululemon (old) // leggings: c/o Eddie Bauer // sports bra: c/o PUMA (old)

And a big thanks to Nomadix for the printed towel—isn’t it gorgeous?! One of my college BFFs introduced me to guys behind the brand, and I instantly fell in love with the bright prints and their message: Own less. Do more. I use my towel for yoga (usually on top of my mat during hot yoga), but it can also be used at the beach, picnics, hiking, etc. It’s made from 100% recycled material and is lightweight so it’s easy to pack and fit in a bag. Pictured is their Zig Zag Towel.

Yogis/yoga teachers—I would love for you to share your headstand tips in the comments section! 

There are endless exercise possibilities based in a plank or side plank position. Simply holding the static pose is great for the core (especially obliques), but you can also switch it up by adding movement, dumbbells, ankle weights and sliders. Try incorporating some of these fun side plank variations into your next workout!

5 Side Plank Variations to Try

Scroll down below for full exercises descriptions. 

Toe Tap Side Planks

Start in a side plank position with top arm reaching straight up towards the ceiling and top leg lifted up at a high, straight 45-degree angle. This is your starting position. From here, bend the top knee, pointing your toes as you bring them down in front of your bottom base leg and lightly tap them to the floor. Don’t shift your bodyweight into the foot—it’s just a light tap. Straighten the knee, returning to your starting position. Bend the knee once more, pointing the toes and bringing them behind your body this time; again, lightly tapping them to the floor before extending the leg back up to your starting position.

Breaststroke Kick Side Planks

Think of your kick while swimming the breaststroke. I’m wearing ankle weights while doing these for an added challenge, but you can also perform them without the added resistance. Start in a side plank position with supporting hand stacked underneath your shoulder. Hover your top leg (the goal is to not rest it on the ground the entire duration of the exercise). This is your starting position. Crunch the top knee in towards your chest. Next, kick that top foot straight out in front of you (as if you were trying to kick yourself in the face). From here, sweep the leg straight back into the starting position. That’s one rep: bend, kick, sweep. Try not to let your hips sag while doing these; engage the bottom oblique to keep hips lifted.

Thread-the-Needle Pikes

This exercise is another megaformer favorite that I’ve adapted to be done off the machine. Start in a forearm plank position with your feet on a dishtowel (or sliders). You’ll want your top foot staggered in front of your bottom foot. Your shoulders should be stacked over the bottom elbow and your top arm is reaching up towards the ceiling. This is your starting position. From here, you’re going to “thread the needle” by wrapping your top arm around your torso, weaving in between your body and floor (like giving yourself a one-arm hug). As you do this, twist your chest towards the ground and pike your hips up towards the ceiling, keeping your legs straight and sliding the feet in. Slowly return to your starting position by sliding the feet back out and untwisting your torso, reaching your top hand back up towards the ceiling. 

Star Crunch Side Planks with (Optional) Hand Weight

Start in a side plank position, bottom hand stacked underneath your shoulder, top arm stretched up towards the ceiling holding a weight (optional). I also like to wear ankle weights during these for an added challenge, but these are optional as well. Hover your top leg a couple feet up from the bottom supporting foot. The goal is to never rest this top foot down on the floor during the exercise. From this starting position, you’re going to crunch your top limbs, bending the top knee and top elbow and pulling them towards each other while keeping your hips lifted in a strong side plank. Extend the top leg and arm back out to starting position.

Sliding Breakdance Side Planks

For this side plank variation, your top leg is the base leg. Start with your bottom hand stacked underneath your shoulder and the bottom foot on a dishtowel or slider. That bottom foot will just lightly slide across the floor; don’t shift your bodyweight into it (top foot and bottom hand support your bodyweight). Top hand is lighting behind your head, elbow bent. Start with the bottom foot slid forward in front of your body. From here, slide the bottom foot back behind your body and as you do, crunch your top elbow down towards the floor, twisting through the waist so that your chest faces the floor. As you open back up and untwist from the torso, slide the foot forward again.

WEARING | tank VS Sport (old but similar here) // sports bra c/o Puma (old but similar here) // leggings c/o Eddie Bauer

SHOP A SIMILAR LOOK:

What’s your favorite way to side plank? Have you tried any of these five variations?

P.S. Sorry it’s been so quiet on the blog this week! Sometimes life gets in the way of … everything. It’s been one of those weeks! 
Before I end this post, I just wanted to let you guys know that ClassPass is running another of their referral deals. If you sign up using THIS LINK before March 24th, you’ll get $25 off your first month. I love CP and it’s expanded to a ton of cities throughout the US (and Canada!). Last time they did one of these refer-a-friend deals, several of you were bummed to miss the sign-up deadline, so just thought I’d pass along the news again this time around!

I’ve been getting a lot of requests for beginner workouts, and I keep thinking of the saying, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” I could give you a beginner workout or I could teach you how to modify exercises so that you can turn all the workouts I post into beginner routines. I’m going to do both. Today, I’m going to go over the general rules for how to make exercises easier, and then later in the week I’ll post a beginner workout. Instead of writing off an exercise as “too hard,” use the following rules to modify it.

Change the Angle of Your Body

You can make an exercise harder or easier by changing the angle of your body. Exercises done in a plank position are the best example of this. Doing a plank with your hands on a chair or wall is a lot easier than doing a plank with your hands on the floor. Dropping your knees down (changing angle!) also makes it easier. Another example of this is boat pose. If your legs are straight, it’s harder; if you change the angle of them by bending your knees, it gets easier.

Reduce the Impact

This is a modification I always stress for clients with knee or other joint issues. Take jumps, hops, leaps and bounces out of the equation. Instead of a jump squat, keep your feet planted on the ground and do a regular squat.

Instead of hopping side to side during alternating lunges, step your feet side to side. Similarly, when doing plank jumps, step your feet out and in rather than jumping them together.

Reduce the Range of Motion

If you’re doing exercises with a stepper or bench, simply don’t use one as high. Maybe you just step up onto the bottom stair of a staircase rather than onto a tall chair. In addition to using smaller equipment to make the range of motion of an exercise smaller, you can simply not move your body as far during bodyweight exercises.

In a side leg lift, for example, it will be harder if you lift your leg up to hip height. If you only lift it a few inches off the ground, it will be easier. For squats, if you only lower down a couple inches (vs. bringing your booty to the floor), the exercise will be easier. For push ups, if you only lower down a couple inches (vs. bringing your chest to the floor, they’ll be easier.

Increase Stability

If doing an exercise on one leg is too hard, make it easier to balance by using both. You can also increase the stability of an exercise with equipment. Stability balls, bosu balls and balance plates all create an unstable environment. To make the exercise easier, use steady surfaces instead (the floor, a chair, etc.).

Reduce Speed

Power walk instead of run. Do 10 burpees during an interval of work instead of 15. Spin at a lower RPM. Going slower doesn’t always make things easier (in Lagree Fitness, for example, slow = hard), but for the sake of the workouts I post on P&I, speed typically makes things more intense and challenging.

Reduce Time or Number of Reps

Hold a plank for 30 seconds instead of a minute. Do 10 bicep curls instead of 20. If I ever post an interval workout that looks too hard, just shorten the work interval (if I say do 45 seconds of work and 15 seconds of rest, maybe you change it to 30 seconds of work and 15 seconds of rest).

Reduce Load/Weight

I’m not trying to insult anyone’s intelligence by including this point; just want to cover all my bases! Use lighter kettlebells, dumbbells or medicine balls. You can modify further by using no added weight at all—just your bodyweight.

Combine Them!

Let’s combine some of these rules and look at potential modifications for a burpee with a push up at the bottom. As you’ll see, there are so many ways to make each part of it easier that everyone, regardless of fitness level, can do the exercise in some capacity.

REGULAR BURPEE

1. Squat down and place hands on ground by feet.
2. Jump feet back into plank position.
3. Do a push up in plank position.
4. Jump feet back up towards hands.
5. Jump straight up in the air with arms overhead.

MODIFIED BURPEE

1. Squat down slightly, bringing hands onto the seat of a chair or bench.
2. Step feet back one at a time into an incline plank position.
3. Do a push up in this incline plank position or, if it’s too hard, modify by dropping down to your knees for it.
4. Step feet back up towards chair/bench one at a time.
5. Stand upright.

Hopefully this post was helpful! Also, if there are specific exercises you aren’t sure how to modify, let me know and I can put together a more detailed tutorial for those moves.

WEARING | leggings: c/o Reebok / sneakers: New Balance / hoodie: New Balance c/o Kohl’s // tank: Athleta

I got a reader request for a tutorial on how to use a Gymboss Interval Timer and thought now would be a perfect time to post it because Gymboss recently sent me their new miniMAX to try out (I’ve included a guide to both models in this post).

As a heads up, all the Gymboss links in this post are affiliate links (if you go to Gymboss from P&I and buy a timer, I get a small commission), but I’m by no means trying to be a salesman here. There are free smartphone apps that work great for interval timing as well, I just personally love the Gymboss—and it comes in especially handy when I’m teaching group fitness classes (students don’t want to see you walking around the studio with your iPhone). For those of you with a Gymboss or wanting to buy one, here’s a basic set-up guide:

How to Use a Gymboss Interval Timer

There are three modes: clock, stopwatch and interval timer. To change modes, hold both the up and down arrows at the same time. I’m going to focus on the interval timer mode.

1. Press any button to turn it on.
2. Press SET. The work interval will start blinking (top number on the right). Use the up and down arrows to adjust the number to your desired length of time.
3. Press SET again. The rest interval will start blinking (bottom number on the right). Use the up and down arrows to adjust the number to your desired length of rest. If you don’t want a rest period (for example, just want the timer to beep every minute), bring this number down to zero.
4. Press SET again. The number of rounds will start blinking (number in bottom left corner). Use the up and down arrows to adjust to the desired number of rounds.
5. Press SET again. The type of alarm beep will start blinking. BH = beep high BL = beep low V= vibrate. Use up and down arrows to change the type until the one(s) you want is blinking. I usually just keep mine on BH.
6. Press SET again. The alarm duration will start blinking. You can choose 1, 2, 5 or 9 seconds in length, using the up and down arrows to scroll through the options until the one you want is blinking. I keep mine on 1.
7. Push SET one final time to exit setup mode. You’re now ready to begin your workout.
8. Press START to begin.

If you need to pause it during the workout, hit the START button three times quickly in a row. To stop and reset the timer, hold the START button down for three seconds.

How to Use the Gymboss miniMax

The buttons and general instructions I went over above apply here as well; the miniMax just has some extra features. Instead of just one INTERVAL mode, you have four options:

• 1 interval
• 2 intervals
• 3+ intervals (up to 25)
• Multi (2-25 intervals with the option to repeat certain interval or groups of intervals)

Hit SET and then MENU (use the arrows until the pointer is at MENU then hit SET) to chose your desired mode. For the 1, 2 and 3+ interval options, you’ll follow the same steps as with the regular Gymboss timer (Hit SET and then SETUP to begin). For the 3+, once you’ve entered the desired number of intervals, put 00:00 for the next one and it will stop prompting you to add more.

Setting Up Multi Interval Mode

Let’s go through an example on the Multi Interval mode because this is probably the most complicated.

Let’s say you wanted your running workout to look like 3 rounds of this:

• A 5-minute jog
• Tabata intervals of sprinting and walking (8 rounds of 20 seconds of sprinting and 10 seconds of walking)
• A 5-minute jog

When entering this into the Gymboss miniMax, we think of it as 4 intervals: 5 mins, 20 secs, 10 sec, 5 mins. Just like I outlined anove with the regular Gymboss, you use the SET button as an “enter” and the arrow buttons to adjust the time. Keeping that in mind, you enter the following:

• 5:00 x1 – a 5-minute interval
• 0:20 x8 – 8 rounds of 20 seconds of work
• 0:10 xP – 10-second rest intervals alternating with the previous interval (push the down arrow from 0 to get the P option when entering in number of rounds)
• 5:00 x1 – a 5-minute interval

The timer will prompt you to enter in another interval, just leave it at 00:00 and press SET so that it knows you’re done. It will then ask you how many rounds of the above routine you want to complete. For this particular example, you’d use the arrows to bring the number to 3 and then hit SET. You’ll then be prompted to select alarm type and duration of alarm, as outlined at the beginning of the post. When you’re finished, your screen will look like this:

When you’re ready to start your workout, hit START. This is what your Gymboss will look like in progress:

Other Gymboss miniMax Features

You also have the option to save a workout configuration for future use so that you don’t have to go through the process of setting up each interval again. Once you’ve entered all your intervals:

1. Hit SET to bring up the menu.
2. Use the arrows to scroll to SAVE. Once your pointer arrow is next to it, hit SET.
3. Chose preset 1 (P1) or preset 2 (P2). Hit SET.

To open a saved workout, hit SET to bring up the menu and scroll to RECALL. It’s important to note that you have to be the in the same mode as the workout you’re trying to open. For example, you can’t bring up a saved 3+ interval workout if you’re in Multi mode.

I hope that was helpful! This post is super long, but hopefully it doesn’t make using this timer seem more complicated than it actually is (it’s easy–I swear!). If you have any other questions about Gymboss timers, let me know in the comments section.

Before I sign off, I wanted to let you all know that Women’s Health Magazine and Exhale Spa are teaming up for Fusion Fest today and offering free core classes at Exhale locations across the country. If you have one in your area, sign up for a free class! Details HERE.

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, you can’t deny that burpees are effective. The infamous exercise targets the major muscle groups while getting your heart rate up, and can be customized and tweaked a million different ways. To target different muscle groups, I like to add in side jumps, knee tucks, crunches, push ups—you name it, and I’ve probably tried to incorporate it into a burpee.

I rounded up 10 different burpee variations—eight that you’ve probably seen around P&I before and two new (to the blog) burpee exercises that I’m looking forward to throwing in the mix soon. Burpees are brutal enough without adding boredom to the mix, so try some of these fun (questionable adjective choice?? haha) variations during your next workout.

Side Burpees

HOW TO DO IT

This is a traditional burpee except you’re jumping your feet laterally out to the side instead of back into a plank position. Full sequence is: squat down with hands on ground, jump both feet out to the side in a lateral plank position, jump both feet back in, stand back up into squat position, jump up with hands overhead.

P&I WORKOUTS USING IT

• Double Ladder Workout

Jump Tuck Burpees

HOW TO DO IT

Regular burpee, only instead of jumping straight up with arms overhead, jump up, tucking your knees up mid-air to touch your hands. Sequence looks like this: squat down, hands on mat, jump feet back into plank position, jump feet back up towards hands into a deep squat position, power up, tucking knees to slap hands mid-air, land back in that deep squat position.

P&I WORKOUTS USING IT

• 20-Minute Burpee Workout

Starburst Burpees

HOW TO DO IT

Squat down, place hands wide apart on floor, jump back into a plank position with legs spread apart. Do a push up. Jump legs back up into squatting position. Jump up into the air with arms and legs outstretched.

P&I WORKOUTS USING IT

• 30-Minute Workout of Exercises I Hate
• 15-Minute Bodyweight Challenge
• 236-Rep Workout

Competition Burpees

HOW TO DO IT

In this burpee variation, you lower yourself all the way down to the ground instead of a plank position, and then you push up, springing to your feet in one fluid motion. Imagine the way a surfer goes from laying on the board to on his feet—it’s that same kind of fluid jump movement. So the full burpee looks like this: squat down, hands on floor, jump back into plank position and immediately lower chest onto floor, spring back up into low squatting position, jump up with arms reaching overhead.

P&I WORKOUTS USING IT

• Quick Power Wheel Workout
• Dexter Workout

Med Ball Burpees

HOW TO DO IT

This is a regular burpee, only holding on to a medicine ball the whole time. Squat down, placing medicine ball on the ground in front of you, carefully jump back into a plank position, jump back up to squatting, then stand up and jump with your arms (and medicine ball) in the air.

P&I WORKOUTS USING IT

• Medicine Ball Tabata Workout
• 10s Med Ball Workout
• Full-Body Pyramid Workout
• Medicine Ball Interval Workout

Side Burpees with Knee Tuck

HOW TO DO IT

Squat down, hands on mat, jump both feet out laterally to the side, crunch top knee up towards elbow, jump both feet back in towards hands, stand up into squat position, jump up with arms overhead.

P&I WORKOUTS USING IT

• 30-Minute Bodyweight Interval Workout
• 15-Minute Bodyweight AMRAP Workout
• 20-Minute Burpee Workout

One-Leg Burpees with Lateral Jumps

HOW TO DO IT

This is a regular burpee, except you do it on one foot and jump laterally instead of up. Sequence looks like this: stand on one foot, squat down, hands on ground, jump one foot back into plank position (keeping other foot raised), jump foot back up towards hands, stand up into squat position, put raised foot back on ground and jump (with both feet) to the side, as if you’re jumping laterally over an object. When you land, do the same thing, but alternate the leg which you do it on, and when it comes time to jump, jump laterally in the other direction.

P&I WORKOUTS USING IT

• 20-Minute Burpee Workout
• Hotel Room Workout (no lateral jump)

Burpees with a Push Up

HOW TO DO IT

This is a traditional burpee except that you’ll complete a pushup when you’re down in the plank position.

P&I WORKOUTS USING IT

• Bodyweight Pyramid Workout
• 30-Minute Interval Workout
• 20-Minute Burpee Workout

Yoga Flow Burpees

HOW TO DO IT

A burpee-Vinyasa hybrid move. One yoga flow burpee rep looks like this: squat down, place hands on ground by feet, jump feet back out into high plank position. Lower slowly into low plank position, keeping elbows in tight to sides. Come to upward dog. Push back into downward dog. Return to high plank. Jump both feet up towards hands, stand up and jump up with arms overhead.

Can’t wait to add this bad boy in a workout soon!

P.S. Refrain from laughing at my form—I’m still a yoga newbie!

Walking Burpees

HOW TO DO IT

After you’ve jumped your feet back into a plank position, you’ll walk your hands and feet laterally to one side then back in the opposite direction. So the full burpee sequence looks like this: squat down, place hands on ground by feet, jump feet back out into plank position, lift right hand and foot off the ground, stepping them out to the side. Bring your left hand and foot in to meet them. Lift left foot and hand off the ground, stepping them out to the side. Bring your right hand and foot in to meet them, returning to your original plank position. Jump both feet in towards hand, come up onto feet in a squat position, and finish by jumping up with arms overhead.

Be on the lookout for this one in upcoming workouts!

• 300-Rep Time Challenge
• 30-Minute Cardio Interval Workout
• Quick HIIT Workout
• True Blood Workout

Ok now I want to hear from you—what other burpee variations have you done in workouts? What’s your favorite way to do a burpee? Which variation do you think is the hardest?

Tomorrow I’m going to share with you guys an awesome workout I did a couple weeks ago that incorporates the Turkish Get-Up exercise. Since this move requires a bit of choreography, I thought I’d throw up a quick post breaking down how to do a proper Turkish Get-Up. I use a 15-lb kettlebell when I do it, but a dumbbell also works just fine. Adjust the weight to your fitness level, and if you want to start out with just your bodyweight until you master the motion, that’s fine, too!

• Step 1: Start on your back, right arm extended perpendicular to the ground holding the weight, right knee bent with foot flat on the ground, left leg extended on the ground.
• Step 2: Using your left arm for support, push yourself into a seated position, right arm still straight up, left hand flat on the ground.
• Step 3: Lift your butt off the ground, supporting yourself on your left hand and right foot. The majority of your weight should be off your left leg. Again, adjust right arm so that it is always staying perpendicular to the ground throughout the whole exercise.
• Step 4: Bend your left leg, bringing it back under your butt, knee on the ground.
• Step 5: Push off that left leg and hand to bring yourself into a kneeling position.
• Step 6: Stand up, bringing your left foot in line with your right, posture should be straight, right arm still fully extended holding the weight.
• Step 7: Reverse the movement back into the starting position.

Once you’ve got the move down, I would encourage you to use a weight that really challenges you—if you can do five Turkish Get-Ups in a row without a bit of struggle, increase the weight! I know a lot of people (by “people” I really mean “girls,” but I’m trying this whole politically correct thing) worry they’ll look bulky if they do weight training, but I promise that unless you’ve adopted the training style of a bodybuilder, use crazy heavy weights and are supplementing with Creatine, using a heavier kettlebell for your Turkish Get-Ups will be a-OK . 15 pounds isn’t exactly anything to write home about, but  I started with a 10 and was happy I traded up.

If you’re a newbie to this move, practice it a couple times. Tomorrow’s workout is a doozy!