Hi all, happy Sunday!

Here’s the At-Home program for the last week of August. Let’s get into it.

Day 1 

Week 3 of 6 of the Shoulder-to-Overhead strength cycle!

• Mobility

  • 10 Arm Circles (10 per direction)

  • 10 Arm Swings (10 per direction)

  • 10 Bird Dogs w/ 2-second hold at top (5 per direction)

  • 10 Thread the Needles (5 per direction)

• Warm-up - complete 4 rounds of…

  • 16 Light Single DB Strict Press (8 per arm)

  • 8 Single DB Goblet Squats

  • 8 Tuck-ups

  • 8 Side-to-Side Lunges (4 per direction)

• Strength:

  • In 24 minutes, complete 8 rounds of:

    • 2 Dbl DB Strict Press + 4 Dbl DB Push Press (with 5-second descent)

  • Off-time - Inverted Plank Hold (:20 / :30 / :40)

  • Intended Stimulus - increase weight throughout as form allows (core stays braced, you can show control in the full lock-out with bicep next to ear, you can maintain the 5-second descent). 5-second descent applies just to the Push Press. Really tap into the legs ONLY on the Push Press.

• Stability:

  • Accumulate as many quality rounds as you can in remaining time (at least 4 rounds):

    • Bottom of Push-up Hold (<10 seconds / 10 seconds / 15 seconds+)

    • :30 Dbl DB Front Rack Hold (<20s / 35s / 50s+)

    • 10 Unweighted Single Leg Romanian Deadlift (5 per side)

  • Intended Stimulus - Hover chest just off the floor on the bottom of push-up hold (can also do these from your knees). The Single Leg Romanian Deadlifts (RDLs) should be SLOW as molasses. Slow down and slow up, at least a three count per direction at a minimum.

  • Log weight used on the Dbl DB Front Rack Hold, adding in the note the number of rounds completed.

• Recovery

  • Floor Angels with Lax Ball - 3 min. per side

Day 2

• Mobility

  • Cossack Squats

  • Deep Squat with arm rotation overhead

• Warm-up - 5 minutes, continue to cycle through…

  • 10 Reverse Jackknives (5 per side)

  • 10 Air Squats

  • 10 Dbl DB Romanian Deadlifts

  • 10 Half Burpees

• Strength:

  • In 18 minutes, complete 6 rounds of:

    • 10* Dbl DB Suitcase Forward Lunges (5 per leg) (<20s / 35s / 50s+)

      • Every round, increase the reps by 2 (one more per leg)

  • Off-time - 8 Box Dips (toe-assisted / heel-assisted / no legs)

  • Intended Stimulus - Can also opt to do walking lunges at the same rep scheme if you desire. Slow and controlled, with the lead foot taking 80% of your weight. Step back out of the forward lunge by driving off of your lead heel. Legs shaky and taxed by the end of each round. Only ascend in weight if you can keep the back knee from collapsing into the floor (gently touch knee the ground if you can get that low on the lunge). Dips always stay at 8 reps.

  • Log weights used for the sixth (and final) round of forward lunges.

• MetCon:

  • AMRAP12

    • 20 Scissor Kicks (Left + Right = 1) (hands under tailbone / no hands / weight over head)

    • 15 Push-ups (from knees / from toes / Hand-Release)

    • 10 Dbl DB Front Rack Squats (<15s / 25s / 35s+)

  • Intended Stimulus - Slow and controlled on all three movements. Slight pause to show control in the top and bottom of the Push-ups and Squats. Aim to minimize time standing around, but instead try to build in rest time via your PACE. Stretch goal is 5 rounds.

  • Log rounds and reps. Add your push-up variation and weights for Front Squats in your notes.

• Recovery

  • Couch Stretch - 1 min. per side

  • Foam Roll Quads - 2 min. per side

Day 3

Rest Day

• Try and fit in two to three walks of 1.0-1.5 miles apiece.

• Another good option is a light jog / Stand-up paddle board / hike / slow bike / etc.

• Mobility and/or restorative yoga are other great options on rest days.

• Some is better than none.

• Getting outside in any capacity is encouraged!

Day 4

• Mobility

• Warm-up - 5 minutes, continue to cycle through…

  • 10 Single DB Windmills (5 per arm)

  • 8 Single KB Push + Pulls (4 per arm)

  • 6 Jumping Lunges (6 per leg)

  • 4 Burpees 

• Strength:

  • In 12 minutes, complete 6 rounds (in the following rep scheme) of Single DB Seated Strict Press (Z-press) (per arm)

    • 10-9-8-7-6-5

  • Intended Stimulus - Use the first two rounds as a continuation of the warm-up and to jump up in weight each time, continuing to build in weight throughout as form allows. Brace core and squeeze quads, working to keep the torso completely vertical. Take note of any imbalances between one arm and the other when pressing.

  • Log DB weight used in the round of 5 reps per arm.

• MetCon:

  • EMOM20 (Every Minute on the Minute for 20 minutes)

    • Minute One - 6 Renegade Rows + Push-ups (<25s / 35s / 50s+)

    • Minute Two - :40 Dbl DB Farmer’s Carry (<25s / 35s / 50s+)

    • Minute Three - 12 Dbl DB Push Press (<25s / 35s / 50s+)

    • Minute Four - As Many Jump Rope Skips as Possible

    • Minute Five - Rest full minute

  • Intended Stimulus - Fast then rest! Get your heart rate up each round and try to finish each movement within 40 seconds (except the jump rope - which is a full minute). Pick a weight on the Push Press where you really want to take a break during the set of 12 but can still make it through all 12 reps with solid form. One rest per round on the Push Press is OK, try to limit it while still pushing the weight, though!

  • Log total number of jump rope skips completed across all 20 minutes. Note the weights used on the DBs in the notes.

• Recovery

  • Child’s Pose with thread the needle - 2 min. per side

  • Pigeon Stretch - 1 min. per side

  • Frog Stretch - 1 min.

Day 5

• Mobility

  • Bootstrappers

  • Side-to-side Lunges

  • World’s Greatest Stretch + Arm Rotation to Sky

  • Scorpions

• Warm-up - 6 minutes, continue to cycle through…

  • 10 Reverse Lunges (5 per leg)

  • 10 Sit-ups

  • 20 Mountain Climbers (10 per leg)

  • 20 Plank Shoulder Taps (10 per arm)

• Longer Workout Day!

  • AMRAP32 (In 32 minutes, complete as many rounds and reps as possible of):

    • 12 Dbl DB Suitcase Deadlifts (<30s / 40s / 50s+)

    • 24 Jumping Lunges (12 per leg)

    • 12 Lateral Burpees over Target

    • Run for distance (200m / 300m / 400m)

  • Intended Stimulus - switching up the longer workout day to Day 5 instead of Day 6 this week to keep things fresh. If jumping lunges are too intense, you’re encouraged to switch them out for forward or reverse lunges. Three of the four movements are high heart rate, so use the time during your run to assess your heart rate, slow it down, and recover (slower pace run). Shoot for 6+ rounds.

  • Log rounds and reps completed.

• Recovery

  • Legs up the wall - 3 min

  • Foam Roll Bottom of foot with Lax Ball - 2 min. per side

Day 6

• Warm-up - 5 minutes, continue to cycle through…

  • 6 Tuck-ups

  • 12 Forward Lunges (6 per leg)

  • 6 Burpees

  • 12 Single DB Goblet Squats 

• Capacity

  • In 15 minutes, complete as many QUALITY rounds and reps as possible. Take time to rest throughout.

    • 2* Dbl DB Bent Over Rows (<20s / 30s / 40s+)

    • 2* Push-ups (from knees / from toes / Hand-release)

    • 2* Dbl DB Front Rack Squats (<20s / 30s / 40s+)

  • ***IMPORTANT: Ascend the reps by ONE rep every round. Second round would be threes, third round would be fours, etc., etc.

  • Intended Stimulus - Build in your own rest. On the push-ups, try to do a more challenging variation than you are used to (if you usually do knee push-ups, try as many from the toes as you can before moving to knees). This one will be a slog toward the end of the 15 minutes, so pace yourself early! Success looks like not having to stop to catch your breath during the later part of the workout because you paced really well at the start!

  • Log the number of rounds and reps completed. Note push-up variation in the notes and when you switched to a different variation (if you switched).

• Accessory - 3+ rounds

  • 12 Bent Over Flys with light weights (2.5s / 5s / 7.5s)

  • 12 Unweighted Split Squats with 5 second static hold at the bottom (6 per leg)

  • 12 Single DB Weighted Goodmornings (<15 / 20 / 25+)

• Recovery

  • Pec Smash on Orb or Lax Ball - 1.5 min. per side

  • Massage Gun Glutes - 2.5 min. per side

Day 7

Rest Day

• Try and fit in two to three walks of 1.0-1.5 miles apiece.

• Another good option is a light jog / Stand-up paddle board / hike / slow bike / etc.

• Mobility and/or restorative yoga are other great options on rest days.

• Some is better than none.

• Getting outside in any capacity is encouraged!