Hand Weights/Dumbbells

15-Min Interval Workout (No Jumping) + lululemon Gift Guide

December 10, 2018 by Nicole Leave a Comment

This post was sponsored by lululemon in partnership with Shopping Links and contains affiliate links. All opinions—as always!—are my own.

Maybe you have a baby sleeping in the next room. Maybe you live in an apartment complex and your downstairs neighbors have had enough of you thumping around doing burpees above them. Maybe jumping bothers your joints. Whether it’s noise-related or mechanical, sometimes a “quiet” workout is needed. Today’s quick interval workout includes some explosive movements to get the heart rate up, but without the jumping around.

While this workout definitely isn’t easy, it’s not *as* challenging as some of the other interval workouts I’ve posted in the past. It’s a great one to try if you’ve felt that some of my others are too intense. And if you use light weights and slow down the pace during your work intervals, it can be 100% beginner-friendly.

lululemon Gift Guide & Outfit Details

I’m excited to be teaming up with lululemon, so before we break down today’s workout, I want to show you the new pieces I selected for myself, as well as some that would make great holiday gifts for others on your list.

In this outfit, I’m wearing the Wunder Under High-Rise Tech Mesh Pant, the Scuba Hoodie Light Cotton Fleece and the Stash ‘N Run Bra. I’ve had these leggings in black for years now, and every so often lululemon will come out with other colors for a limited time. So excited to have a second pair—I wear these all the time! The mesh is fun and stylish, but they’re functional and have a supportive compression fit with a high waist.

The hoodie is warm and cozy, and the high neck is crucial on these windy, freezing Boston winter days. For the bra, I always go with one with thick straps for more support. I love the shade of blue this one is!

Lastly, I’m holding the The Reversible Mat 5mm. The 5mm (versus the 3mm) is a good option if you want a little extra padding for your knees during yoga. I’ve found this mat holds up well when you use it for non-yoga workouts as well, which I do all the time.

In the roundup below, I’ve included these items as well as some other picks for women, men, girls, and even a few stocking stuffer ideas.

1. Scuba Hoodie Light Cotton Fleece ($118) – This zip-up hoodie comes in lots of colors. I love the high neck! So cozy.

2. The Reversible Mat 5mm ($68) – The 5mm mat is a good choice if you want a little extra padding for your knees during yoga and other workouts.

3. Stash ‘N Run Bra ($58) – This medium-support bra has a built-in pocket for storing a credit card or key.

4. Wunder Under High-Rise Tight in Brushed Full-On Luxtreme ($98) – Wunder Unders have a supportive feel. These are soft and stretchy but really hold everything in. Love this burnt rose color (called Misty Merlot), but there are other options as well!

5. Wunder Under High-Rise Tech Mesh Pant ($118) – I’ve owned a pair of these in black for years now and am pumped to have them in another color as well. The mesh panels give these a unique, trendy look while still being functional.

6. Girls Rhythmic Tight High Low Tech Mesh ($72) – These leggings are like the girls’ version of the previous Tech Mesh pants.

7. Sculpt Tank II ($58) – I love a looser-fitting tank. This top is flowy without being shapeless, has some stretch to it, and cute mesh back detail.

8. Get Rolling Yoga Mat Bag ($68) – This is a great gift for the yogi in your life and comes in several colors and prints.

9. Align Pant II ($98) – In comparison to the Wunder Unders listed above, the Align leggings have more of a lightweight feel and fit.

10. All Sport Bra III ($58) – I love this bra. It’s supportive but comfortable.

11. Apres Your Way Jogger ($108) – These look so cozy and also come in black and a light blue-gray.

12. Girls Reach New Heights Scrunchie ($8) – Can’t go wrong with a good scrunchie! Lots of color options (and style options for adults, too! See below).

13. Uplifting Bow Scrunchie ($12) – Scrunchies aren’t just for young girls! Love this bow version and it comes in a bunch of colors. It would make a great stocking stuffer!

14. Show Me The Sherpa Earwarmer ($58) – How cute is this knit earwarmer? And it’s lined with sherpa fleece to make it extra warm and cozy. Perfect as the temperatures drop!

15. It’s A Tie Tank ($38) – This fun tank can be tied in back or wrapped around your waist and tied that way.

16. 5 Year Basic V ($58) – Joe has a couple of these and will wear them alone or sometimes even as undershirts. They’re a great wardrobe staple.

17. Mens ABC Pant Slim ($128) – Joe has a couple pairs of these and loves them. They can be dressed down or paired with a button-up and jacket for a business casual outfit. Joe likes the slim fit but there’s a whole ABC shop with other options.

15-Min Interval Workout (No Jumping)

In this workout, we’ll use an interval structure of 15 rounds of 45 seconds of work and 15 seconds of rest. You’ll have five exercises (really just three because two are repeated on right and then left), and you’ll go through them three times total.

As with all workouts, make sure you’re properly warmed up beforehand and always listen to your body, modifying or stopping as needed.

Equipment I Used:

Single medium weight (I used 10lbs) – You might want two different options to go lower for the squat slams and heavier for the other two exercises.
Exercise mat – I’m using the lululemon Reversible 5mm mat

Interval Workout (No Jumping) - If you need a quiet workout with no loud jumping around, this 15-minute interval workout is for you! Video included. #workout #fitness https://pumpsandiron.com

Workout Breakdown

See 02:30 in the above video for preview of the exercises.

Low Squat to Back Lunge Step with Hammer Curl
Woodchoppers
Squat Slam Stops – like an overhead slam, but stop the dumbbell at chest height at bottom of squat
(other side) Low Squat to Back Lunge Step with Hammer Curl
(other side) Woodchoppers

OUTFIT DETAILS: Wunder Under High-Rise Tight in Brushed Full-On Luxtreme / Sculpt Tank II / Scuba Hoodie Light Cotton Fleece

Hope you enjoy the workout! Let me know what your favorite lululemon pieces are!

xo Nicole

Filed Under: Full Body, Hand Weights/Dumbbells, Interval Training, Video, Workouts Tagged With: fitness, interval training, lululemon, workout

Upper Body (Back) Workout – Strength + Endurance

October 22, 2018 by Nicole 1 Comment

Today I’ve got an upper body workout for you focusing on the back (shoulders and arms will feel it, too). It’s not the best videography or lighting on my part, but hey, you all should be used to that by now (lol).

Before we dive into this back workout, I want to prepare you all for a possible lull in workouts the next few weeks. I’m going to do my damnedest to keep up with them, but I’m working on a big project that’s going to consume a lot of my time through mid November. I’ll share more details as it comes together, but basically I’m creating a series of full-length, group-fitness-style workouts. You have no idea how excited I am about this! The first day of shooting is actually today, so you can follow me on Instagram if you want to get a little sneak peek. 🙂

Upper Body Workout (Focus on Back) – Strength + Endurance

This upper body workout combines high-rep, low-weight exercises with low(er)-rep, high(er) weight exercises for a taste of both endurance and strength. The focus is on back but you’ll feel your shoulders and arms working as well.

First you’ll do a 3-minute sequence with light weights (2-5lbs) and small, high-rep movements to fatigue the target muscle group. You’ll then grab your heavier dumbbells (8-15lbs) for a circuit of three exercises using a 30 seconds of work / 10 seconds of rest interval structure. You do that twice.

As with all workouts, make sure to warm up beforehand. I have a warm up on the blog or you can do your own. Listen to your body and modify as needed, stopping altogether if something doesn’t feel right. A proper cool-down is important, too! Take some time to stretch after this workout.

WORKOUT BREAKDOWN

Endurance – 20 seconds each x3 (no rest)

See 02:02 in above video for preview of exercises

High Row Pulses
W Pulls
Newspaper Pulses

Strength – 30 seconds work / 10 seconds rest x3

See 06:17 in above video for preview of exercises

Single-Arm Row (right) – use both medium weights or one heavy one
Single-Arm Row (left)
Wide Grip Row

Endurance – 20 seconds each x3 (no rest)

See 13:05 in above video for preview of exercises

Rev Fly Rotations
Bent Fly Pulses
Bent Newspaper Pulses

Strength – 30 seconds work / 10 seconds rest x3

See 16:54 for preview of exercises

Rev Fly (+Row as needed)
Upright Row
Bent Overhead Raise (use single weight)

If you like this workout structure, I have two more using the same format but with different focus. Check out Biceps/Triceps and Shoulders.

xo Nicole

Filed Under: Hand Weights/Dumbbells, Upper Body, Video, Workouts

Tabata Stepper Workout (Lower Body)

October 1, 2018 by Nicole Leave a Comment

Hope you all remembered to say “Rabbit rabbit” this morning. (Anyone else try to do that on the 1st of every month?? I started as a kid thanks to Nickelodeon and now I’m 30 and can’t stop.) I’ve been posting a lot of leg workouts recently, so if you’re dismayed at seeing another one today, just know that the next several weeks are upper body, core, full-body. We’ll switch it up! But in the meantime, try this lower body tabata stepper workout. It’s short but tough!

Before we get to the workout, just a reminder: WELL Summit is THIS Friday & Saturday in Brooklyn, NY and there’s still time to get your tickets if you’re interested in attending! The code WSNicole will get you $75 off your ticket. Let me know if you’re going so we can meet up! 🙂

Tabata Stepper Workout (Lower Body)

EQUIPMENT I USED:

Stepper
1 medium dumbbell (10 lbs, use whatever works for your fitness level) – option to have a heavy one or two mediums for certain exercises

This workout is broken up into three tabata supersets. For each tabata, you’ll complete 8 rounds of 20 seconds of work and 10 seconds of rest. You alternate between the two exercises as you go. Rest for 30-60 seconds between supersets. With rest, this workout will take you just under 15 minutes to complete (12 minutes of tabatas).

As with all workouts, make sure you’re properly warmed up beforehand. I have a 5-minute warm-up on the blog, or you can do your own. Always listen to your body, modifying or stopping as needed. In the video above, I demonstrate modifications for each exercise.

Exercise Breakdown

Tabata 1

See demo of the exercises and how to modify them in the above video @2:14

Squat Jacks to Stepper with 2 Pulses – Hold the wide squat on the floor and the narrow squat at the top of the bench for two small pulses in between jacks. Do these holding the weight if possible.
Knee Drivers – Alternate target leg each interval. Use the weight during these and if you want a challenge, go heavier with the weight or use two mediums.

Tabata 2

See demo of the exercises and how to modify them in the above video @6:53

Squat Jump to Step Jump – No weight for this one, just bodyweight.
Split Lunge Hops – Alternate target leg each interval. No weight for this one either. But if you’re modifying and pulsing instead of jumping, you might want the weight.

Tabata 3

See demo of the exercises and how to modify them in the above video @11:29