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Intensify Your Yoga Practice With the Dolphin Plank

Blog, Core Workouts, Fitness, Yoga /

Intensify Your Yoga Practice With the Dolphin Plank You’d be hard-pressed to find a yoga class without at least a few downward facing dog, and upward-facing dog poses, and that’s for a good reason. Appropriately done, foundational poses help fire up your whole kinetic chain, making them ideal bodyweight exercises. But if you’re looking to spice up your foundational poses, throw in a dolphin plank to intensify your down dog and upward facing dog during chaturanga dandasana. Here’s how to get seaworthy. Dolphin Plank: Step-by-Step Instructions Start on your hands and knees, placing your knees directly below your hips, and your wrists directly below your shoulders. On an exhale, lower your forearms to the mat, keeping them parallel and aligning your elbows below your shoulders. On an inhale, tuck your toes, and lift your hips toward the ceiling. Keeping your shoulders over your elbows, gently let your head drop, walking your toes slightly forward. Eventually, lower your heels closer to the mat. Work on making this a dynamic move by walking your feet back so you’re in a forearm plank and then walk back in to a dolphin plank, making sure to keep abs engaged throughout. Try not to allow your shoulders to go forward past your ears, suggests yoga teacher and trainer Samantha Parker, E-RYT, CPT. If your shoulders are too far up toward your head, it can cause the shoulders to rotate and stress the tissue in the rotator cuff, she says. Another way to avoid misalignment is to keep the weight of your body shifted back toward your legs and heels. Benefits of the Dolphin Plank Pose In addition to perks like stronger shoulders, back, and core, the dolphin plank also brings the advantages of getting you a little upside down, in what yoga teachers call an “inversion.” According to Parker, inversions are beneficial because of their: Improvement to your circulation, especially in terms of blood flow to the brain. Stimulation to the endocrine and nervous system. Improvement of vestibular stimulation, which gives you a better sense of balance. Boost to proprioceptive abilities (being more aware of how your body is operating), which allows your muscles and joints to work more effectively together. Increased traction (create space) in the cervical spine. Increased traction in the cervical spine is excellent because overtime gravity and the weight of the head help decrease distance between the vertebrae in the neck. Ability to help you relax. The activation of the parasympathetic nervous system enables you to feel better. Even though your body is working super hard, you are still countering stress. Dolphin is also considered a prep pose for progressing into forearm stands, headstands, and handstands. You’ll be building the balance and flexibility you need to draw your legs up eventually. This plank variation isn’t just for yogis, either. It’s a great move to incorporate some big-time muscle building into any routine, according to Parker. “Dolphin helps to stretch the shoulders, spine, legs, hamstrings, and calves, but also helps to strengthen the same muscles, especially the shoulder and abdominals,” she says. Dolphin Plank Variations There are a few ways to make the pose easier and build up to more advanced versions, as well as dial-up the challenge level. Here’s an idea for each: Modify: In a move called the puppy pose in yoga, you can bring forearms to the ground but keep your knees in contact with the floor. Lift your hips toward the ceiling. Feel the deep stretch in your arms and shoulders. In this position, Parker suggests drawing knees closer to elbows to build strength slowly. Increase the challenge: From your dolphin plank, work on raising one leg while still keeping the hips level. Lifting one leg will fire up your core even more as it engages to keep you stable. You can also do dolphin plank taps for an added core strengthening challenge. For dolphin plank taps, step one leg out about a foot to the side, tapping the mat with your foot. Pull your outstretched leg back in, and then repeat the motion on the other side. The post Intensify Your Yoga Practice With the Dolphin Plank appeared first on BODi. You’d be hard-pressed to find a yoga class without at least a few downward facing dog, and upward-facing dog poses, and that’s for a good reason. Appropriately done, foundational poses help fire up your whole kinetic chain, making them ideal bodyweight exercises. But if you’re looking to spice up your foundational poses, throw in a […] The post Intensify Your Yoga Practice With the Dolphin Plank appeared first on BODi. Kayne Toyosato{authorlink}https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/dolphin-plankBODi BODi is a Health Esteem platform to help you embrace the person you are today so you can take action to achieve all your health and fitness goals. https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bod-blog/assets/vendor/beachbodydigital/wordpress-core-plugins/beachbody.png

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Kick Your Way to a Stronger Core With These 4 Moves

Blog, Core Workouts, Fitness, Leg Workouts /

Kick Your Way to a Stronger Core With These 4 Moves The benefits of having a strong core go beyond posting hot mirror selfies of your washboard abs on Instagram (though that is a plus). Building a strong core can help improve balance and stability, alleviate back pain, give you better posture, and make everyday tasks easier. If you’ve ever had really sore abs after a workout — the kind where just getting up from a chair makes you feel like you’ve been punched in the gut — then you know firsthand that your core muscles support almost every movement you make. And one of the best ways to improve your core strength is with targeted kicking exercises that’ll give you optimal results. How Can Kicking Exercises Strengthen Your Core? “MMA kicks are such a great way to strengthen your core without realizing you’re even working your core,” says Elanit Sellers, executive director of fitness development at BODi. “Kicks require so much core engagement because they require a lot of balance. When you put your body in a position of instability, your core must be engaged to kick and stay balanced doing it. In return, strengthening your core.” The Best Kicking Exercises for a Great Core Workout Here are four basic kicks that can form the foundation of your core workout. 1. Front kick Front kicks not only work your core, but they also work your quads, hamstrings, and glutes, says Hutyrova. Start in a fighting stance, with your supporting leg slightly bent in front. (The clip above starts in a runner’s lunge for an extra challenge.) Engage your core, shift all your weight to your supporting leg, and lift your opposite (kicking) knee up in front of you, around hip height. Keeping your toes flexed, thrust your kicking foot forward as if you’re trying to strike a target with the ball of your foot. Return to starting position. 2. Side kick Start in a fighting stance, but with your supporting leg in back and your kicking side facing the target. Pivot your supporting foot. “Instead of having your foot face forward, you want to have it facing away from your target,” Hutyrova says. Lift the knee of your kicking leg diagonally across your body toward your chest, then extend your leg with your heel up and toes down, as if you’re trying to strike a target with the outside of your foot. Return to starting position. 3. Hook kick Hook kicks start similarly to a side kick, but you’ll extend your leg slightly to the left of your target (if you’re kicking with your right leg), then quickly snap your heel back to hit your target. Bring your heel to your butt before setting it down. “You kick out, around to a round kick chamber, so it really works the whole range of your muscles,” says Hutyrova. 4. Back kick In addition to your core, back kicks also work your glutes and lower body. For proper form, Hutyrova says, your toes should be facing down on your kicking leg, and your supporting leg should be facing away from your target. “And always look where you’re going!” she adds. How Can You Add Power to Your Kick? A tight core will give the stability you need for a more powerful kick, so stay focused on keeping your core engaged. If you want to learn how to kick higher, Friedman recommends you “incorporate flexibility training into your routine. Increasing your flexibility will allow for more height.” Take things slow, however. “You want to make sure your form is really good before you try to kick higher,” says Thekla Hutyrova, stunt performer and Rough Around the Edges trainer. When you’re focused on kicking as high as possible, it’s easy to lose sight of your form, thus putting you at higher risk for injury. Hutyrova recommends the following tips for proper form during a kick: Keep the knee on your “kicking” leg pointed in the direction you want to kick. Keep your “standing” foot flat on the ground — don’t lift up on your toes. And avoid sickling your feet, a ballet term for turning your toes inward. When you’re doing side kicks, keep that booty down to maintain proper alignment. The post Kick Your Way to a Stronger Core With These 4 Moves appeared first on BODi. The benefits of having a strong core go beyond posting hot mirror selfies of your washboard abs on Instagram (though that is a plus). Building a strong core can help improve balance and stability, alleviate back pain, give you better posture, and make everyday tasks easier. If you’ve ever had really sore abs after a […] The post Kick Your Way to a Stronger Core With These 4 Moves appeared first on BODi. Chelsea Frank{authorlink}https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/kicking-exercises-for-stronger-coreBODi BODi is a Health Esteem platform to help you embrace the person you are today so you can take action to achieve all your health and fitness goals. https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bod-blog/assets/vendor/beachbodydigital/wordpress-core-plugins/beachbody.png

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Best Lower Abs Workout For Women: 15 Toning Exercises

ab workout, Blog, core exercises, Core Workouts, Fitness, lower abs, lower abs workout, Training Advice, WORKOUTS /

Best Lower Abs Workout For Women: 15 Toning Exercises The benefits of a strong core extend way beyond toned abs—it can improve your daily life, too! Our lower abs workout for women is a great way to help build that necessary core strength. Whether you bend, lift, twist, or stand, your core is essential for maintaining balance and stability. (Not to mention, it can also alleviate lower back pain.) You may have weak abdominal muscles if you live a more sedentary lifestyle (i.e., lots of sitting and not enough activity), struggle with a lower belly pooch, or if you’ve given birth or have a condition called diastasis recti, in which the ab muscles begin to separate during pregnancy.  By adding our lower ab exercises to your overall core workout routine (while maintaining a healthy diet), you’re bound to see improved stability, less back pain, and more defined lower abs. Related: The Best Core Exercises for Seniors How Can I Tone My Lower Abs? The best way to tone your lower abs is by targeting the transverse abdominal muscle that extends between your ribs and pelvis. It is the deepest of the six ab muscles, and its fibers run horizontally, wrapping around your trunk from front to back like a corset.  The transverse abdominis (highlighted in green in the below photo) plays a key role in stabilizing your core and preventing lower back pain. Photo Credit: Kenhub You can locate this muscle by placing your hand on your lower abs and coughing a few times. That contracting muscle you feel? That’s your transverse abdominis. You can also think of it as a low-slung belt that holds your core in tight and promotes stability. What Exercise Works the Lower Abs the Most? Some of the best exercises for lower abs include planks, leg drops, v-sits, and bend-extend ab tucks. To target the transverse abdominis in particular, research has found that side bridges (or planks) are a great way to activate the muscle.  Low-impact pilates exercises are also incredibly effective at engaging the transverse abdominis. Pilates moves like bird dogs, bicycles, and full-body roll-ups will definitely challenge your lower abs. Of course, the best way to create more ab definition overall—including your lower abs—is to target your whole core. When you combine lower ab moves with exercises that target other areas (such as the upper abs and obliques), you’ll get the best results. Bottom line? All of your core muscles work together simultaneously to give you that chiseled look you work so hard to achieve! Related: What Muscle Groups Do I Workout Together? Effective Lower Abs Workout for Women: 15 Moves to Strengthen and Tone Each of these lower stomach exercises can help tone and strengthen your core, reduce lower back pain, and keep you feeling fit, strong, and energized.  Be sure to take your time and maintain good form (these are not about speed!), and remember to breathe. Here are the 15 best lower abs exercises to incorporate into your workout routine:  1. Plank The plank is a staple of most ab workouts because it recruits the entire core! How to perform a plank: Begin kneeling on all fours with your hands directly under your shoulders and toes on the mat. Tighten your abdominals and raise your body up off the floor, lengthening your legs behind you. Hold your entire body tight, and remember to breathe. 2. Bird Dog Bird dogs strengthen the lower back and abdominals while promoting stability and balance. How to perform a bird dog: Kneel on the mat on all fours. Reach one arm long, draw in the abdominals, and extend the opposite leg long behind you. Repeat on the other side. 3. Forearm Side Plank Forearm side planks don’t just target your core—they also strengthen your shoulders and upper back. How to perform a forearm side plank: Being lying on the floor with your forearm on the mat and your shoulder stacked over your elbow. Legs are long, with your feet stacked on top of each other. Lift your body into a side plank position, keeping your lower knee on the floor and your abdominals engaged. Try not to let your hips rise or drop. Repeat on the other side. Related: The Ultimate 8 Minute Plank Challenge 4. Bend-Extend Ab Tuck Bend-extend ab tucks are great for working your lower abdominal area and protecting your lower back. How to perform a bend-extend ab tuck: Start seated on the mat with arms behind you, hands on the mat, and fingers facing your backside. Sit back on your hands and lift up your feet off the mat, keeping the knees bent. Keep abs tight, press your legs out long, and your lower back down slightly (you should feel your lower abdominals working). Push yourself back up and pull your knees in to return to the start position. 5. Bicycle Crunch Bicycle crunches help build coordination and a strong core. How to perform a bicycle crunch: Start lying on your back with your feet off the floor and legs in a tabletop position. Hands are behind your head, and your head, neck, and shoulders are flexed off the mat. Bring one knee in and to the opposite elbow, reaching towards it. Repeat on the other side in a crisscross motion working the obliques. 6. Toe Reach Toe reaches focus on core engagement and really target the transverse abdominis. How to perform toe reaches: Start on your back with your legs long-reaching towards the ceiling. Bring your head, neck, and shoulders off the mat and reach your arms up towards your feet. Return to the tips of the shoulders and repeat. 7. V-Up V-ups are one of the best lower ab workouts for women! How to perform v-ups: Lie flat on the floor and extend your arms behind your head. Keep your feet together and your toes pointed. Keep your legs straight and lift them up as you raise your upper body off the floor. Keep your core tight as

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Strengthen Your Core and Lower Body With Switch Kicks

Blog, Core Workouts, Fitness /

Strengthen Your Core and Lower Body With Switch Kicks An exercise with a name like “switch kicks” probably makes you think that the focus is on the legs and butt. And although the switch kick will fire up every muscle from your hips down to your toes, it also strengthens your core, explains Rebekah Miller, MS, CSCS, NASM-CPT. “In the switch kick movement, the lower body is being targeted, as well as the abdominals,” she says. As you draw the kicking leg up toward your waistline, the abs fire up to flex your hip and stabilize your standing leg. So, if it feels like you’ve already worked your way through every crunch and plank variation, the switch kick may help bring new energy to your ab routine. Switch Kicks Exercise: Step-by-Step Instructions Stand with your feet about hip-width apart and fists at shoulder height, drawing your elbows in toward your rib cage. Bracing your core, shift your weight to your left foot, lift your right knee to hip height, and quickly kick your right leg forward. (Think about kicking an opponent’s midsection with the ball of your foot.) Draw the right foot back toward your body and shift your weight, hopping onto the right foot. As you switch feet, lift the left knee to hip height and quickly extend the leg, snapping the left foot forward and drawing it back toward the body. Continue to hop and kick with alternating feet, keeping the chest up, the core tight, and the shoulders back. How to Make the Switch Kick Easier Are switch kicks too advanced for your current level of fitness or experience? You can dial back the difficulty of switch kicks (but still get a great workout) by taking out the kick, and instead just lifting your knees. Hop from foot to foot, only bringing the knee to hip height, without extending the leg. You can further modify switch kicks by dropping the hop and stepping from foot to foot, bringing your knee up each time. Crab Kicks: How to Make the Switch Kick Harder Believe it or not, switch kicks can be made even more difficult. You can either pick up the pace, or take the standing switch kicks exercise to the floor. “The crab kick movement adds in shoulders and glutes, as you hold a reverse tabletop position,” Miller says. Here’s how to do crab kicks: Start off in a seated position with your knees bent and your feet on the floor. Place your palms on the floor about one foot behind your butt, with your fingers pointing toward your butt or slightly to the sides. Lift your butt off the ground and move into a reverse tabletop position. From this position, lift your left leg so that your knee is directly above your hip. Extend your left leg with a kick, then return it to the starting position. Repeat the movement on your right leg and alternate back and forth. Just note that if you have any joint pain or instability in your shoulders, elbows, or wrists, crab kicks may not be the best option for you. “This will apply quite a bit more pressure into the upper body to ensure stabilization,” Miller explains. Benefits of Switch Kicks First off, switch kicks work a number of big muscle groups: Core Legs Glutes Additionally, it’s also a very adaptable exercise. “You have control over the intensity,” explains Rachel Fiske, NC, NASM-certified personal trainer and advisory board member at Healing Daily. Fitness rookies can easily modify the switch kick by omitting its hopping movement, or removing the kicks, and instead just doing high knees. As you become more adept at switch kicks, you can amp up the intensity by increasing your speed, changing your position, or tacking on movements. It only takes a few seconds of switch kicks to get your heart pumping, making switch kicks an excellent option for HIIT or at-home cardio circuits. And because the switch kick requires you to hop from one foot to the other, it can also help improve your balance and coordination. The post Strengthen Your Core and Lower Body With Switch Kicks appeared first on BODi. An exercise with a name like “switch kicks” probably makes you think that the focus is on the legs and butt. And although the switch kick will fire up every muscle from your hips down to your toes, it also strengthens your core, explains Rebekah Miller, MS, CSCS, NASM-CPT. “In the switch kick movement, the lower body is being targeted, as […] The post Strengthen Your Core and Lower Body With Switch Kicks appeared first on BODi. Kayne Toyosato{authorlink}https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/switch-kickBODi BODi is a Health Esteem platform to help you embrace the person you are today so you can take action to achieve all your health and fitness goals. https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bod-blog/assets/vendor/beachbodydigital/wordpress-core-plugins/beachbody.png

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Get Your Core Rocked With the Double Leg Lifts Exercise

Ab Workouts, Blog, Core Workouts, Fitness /

Get Your Core Rocked With the Double Leg Lifts Exercise The double leg lift is a classic Pilates exercise. And like most (if not all) Pilates exercises, it can help you build massive abdominal strength, getting you closer and closer toward sculpting an enviable taught midsection. But the double leg lift does more than tighten and define your abs — it teaches you valuable skills that transfer to other exercises and activities. “The double leg lift is a way of teaching you how to control and differentiate movement between the legs and pelvis, which is a movement skill required for walking, deadlifting, etc.,” says Nikki Naab-Levy, B.S., a certified Pilates instructor and fitness educator in Tacoma, Wash. By training your lower body to work independently of your pelvis, the double leg lift can also help you build pelvic stability, which can help you strengthen and protect your lower back. Learn how to do the Pilates double leg lift correctly with these step-by-step instructions. Double Leg Lift Exercise: Step-by-Step Instructions Lie on your back and extend your legs up to the ceiling with your toes pointed and heels together. Place your hands behind your head and keep your elbows wide. Engage your abs to press your lower back into the floor. Lift your chest up to bring your shoulders off the floor. Inhale and lower your legs down with control. Only lower your legs as far as you’re able to without letting your lower back lift off the floor, or your abdomen popping up. Once you’ve reached your end range of motion, exhale and lift your legs back to starting position with control. Repeat for all reps in the set. Throughout the whole move, keep your elbows wide and your lower back pressed into the floor. Avoid craning your neck; the curl of your upper body should come more from your ribs than from jutting the head forward. Pilates Double Leg Lift Variations To make it easier: Only lower one leg at a time, or keep one leg on the ground. To make it harder: Extend your arms straight overhead, squeezing your ears with your arms. What Muscles Do Double Leg Lifts Work? Add this move to your routine and watch your strength soar. 1. Core muscles Double leg lifts strengthen your entire core — from your superficial ab muscles (e.g., the rectus abdominis and obliques) to your deep abdominal muscle (known as the transverse abdominal muscle, or TVA) to your hip flexors (the muscles that bring your legs toward your torso). 2. Supporting cast You’ll feel your inner thighs and glutes engage during this exercise. The double leg lifts exercise even works the small stabilizing muscles in the fronts and sides of your neck known as your neck flexors. “Your neck muscles need to engage to hold up the weight of your head,” Naab-Levy says. The post Get Your Core Rocked With the Double Leg Lifts Exercise appeared first on BODi. The double leg lift is a classic Pilates exercise. And like most (if not all) Pilates exercises, it can help you build massive abdominal strength, getting you closer and closer toward sculpting an enviable taught midsection. But the double leg lift does more than tighten and define your abs — it teaches you valuable skills […] The post Get Your Core Rocked With the Double Leg Lifts Exercise appeared first on BODi. Kayne Toyosato{authorlink}https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/double-leg-liftsBODi BODi is a Health Esteem platform to help you embrace the person you are today so you can take action to achieve all your health and fitness goals. https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bod-blog/assets/vendor/beachbodydigital/wordpress-core-plugins/beachbody.png

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How to Do a Forearm Plank for Beginners

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How to Do a Forearm Plank for Beginners Some fitness trends burn hot for a while and then go cold, which is why it’s helpful to focus on foundational, tried-and-true exercises that give you reliable fitness results. The forearm plank is one that will always have a place because it targets many muscle groups at once and offers tons of fun variations. “The forearm plank is a deceptively simple move because you’re just holding a position and not moving,” says Aaron Leventhal, C.S.C.S., trainer, and owner of Minneapolis-based Fit Studio. “But [a lot is] going on in your body when it comes to strengthening your core and engaging other major muscle groups.” Forearm Plank Exercise: Step-by-Step Instructions Many muscles comprise your core. Fire all of them at once with these simple steps for tackling a forearm plank. Assume a push-up position, aligning your shoulders over your wrists, and drop down to your elbows, resting on your forearms. Your arms should be parallel, with your palms facing down. Extend your legs behind you, engaging your hamstrings and quads. Balancing on the balls of your feet, push through your heels to further activate your leg muscles. Press through your shoulders to dome your upper back. This move will protect your joints. Avoid arching your low back by pulling in your belly to engage your core. Squeeze your glutes. Isometrically pull your elbows toward your toes. Take deep breaths to oxygenate your muscles so that they can work hard to hold your body in a static position. Alternate between holding and resting for 10-30 seconds. Repeat 3-5 times. You can modify your forearm plank with different variations like the forearm side plank, and forearm side plank with reach, forearm plank with a row, forearm plank with a lift — the list of modifications is long! What Muscles Does a Forearm Plank Work? Holding a forearm plank longer than a few seconds should have you shaking like a Chihuahua. As you shake, your muscles work to keep your body in position. Here’s what is working: Rectus abdominis (your six-pack) The ab muscle located at the front of the abdomen. It is responsible for bending your body forward and even side-to-side. Obliques Two muscles — internal and external — make up this muscle group. Found on the both sides of the rectus abdominis, the obliques run from the hips to the ribcage, helping you twist your torso and assist in anti-extension (overextension). Transverse abdominis (TVA) Layered below the above muscles on the front and sides of your body, your TVA muscle helps you stabilize the spine and hips by compressing the ribs and internal organs. Erector spinae These muscles that trace each side of your spine extend, laterally flex, and maintain the correct curvature of the spine. Quadriceps (quads) A larger group containing four muscles, your quads form around the front of your femur (thigh bone). Quadriceps are the extensor muscles of the knee. Pectoral Muscles (pecs) The pecs are on the front of your body on your upper chest. They stabilize your shoulders and upper body to keep you from dropping to the floor. Forearm Plank Benefits Surprisingly, you can get a lot from so little movement. 1. Core strength The forearm plank is an isometric exercise that focuses on spinal strengthening and stabilization by working your core muscles. These muscles tend to contract isometrically, and the forearm plank mimics this contraction so that your core muscles work to stabilize your spine in everyday life. 2. Improved posture Isometric moves strengthen the spine to keep you from hunching over while standing or sitting. 3. Help with other activities Stronger core muscles help protect your spine so that you can perform other forms of exercise from kettlebell swings and deadlifts to HIIT workouts and safer running. “When you regularly practice forearm planks, you’re creating a base for other movements,” Leventhal says. “It allows you to have much better form in everything you do, even when you’re not working out.” The post How to Do a Forearm Plank for Beginners appeared first on BODi. Some fitness trends burn hot for a while and then go cold, which is why it’s helpful to focus on foundational, tried-and-true exercises that give you reliable fitness results. The forearm plank is one that will always have a place because it targets many muscle groups at once and offers tons of fun variations. “The […] The post How to Do a Forearm Plank for Beginners appeared first on BODi. Kayne Toyosato{authorlink}https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/forearm-plankBODi BODi is a Health Esteem platform to help you embrace the person you are today so you can take action to achieve all your health and fitness goals. https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bod-blog/assets/vendor/beachbodydigital/wordpress-core-plugins/beachbody.png

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