The Women's Health Big Book of 15-Minute Workouts: A Leaner, Sexier, Healthier You--In 15 Minutes a Day! (58 page)

B

• Keeping your shoulders level, hips pointed forward, and both legs straight, use your glutes to raise your right hip upward.

• Then lower the leg. Return to the starting position. That’s 1 rep.

REPS:
Do 12 to 15, then switch sides and repeat.

TRIATHLON WORKOUT

True to its design, the triathlon—swimming, biking, and running—puts every muscle to the test. This routine does it all with explosive moves to develop power for your run; core stabilizing moves to hold yourself strong on the bike; and full body strength and stretching moves to keep you slicing long and strong through the water.

START HERE:

Do the routine as a circuit, performing the prescribed number of each move and then immediately moving to the next. Rest a minute, then repeat the circuit again. Go through the entire routine three times.

Hindu Pushup

A

• Start in a pushup position, lift your hips, and move into the downward-facing dog pose, keeping your legs straight and pressing your heels into the floor.

B

• From that position, drop your hips toward the floor as you simultaneously sweep your torso forward and up, raising your chest and shifting your weight forward into upward-facing dog.

• Reverse the movement to return to the starting position. That’s 1 rep.

REPS:
Do 10.

Switch Lunges

A

• Lunge forward with your left thigh parallel to the floor.

B

• Swinging your arms for balance and momentum, jump up and switch leg positions.

C

• Land in a lunge with your right foot forward.

• Repeat to return to the left-leg forward position. That’s 1 rep.

REPS:
Do 12 to 15.

THE 15-MINUTE TRIATHLON

Give yourself a mini-triathlon in the gym and get a swimmer’s cut shoulders, a cyclist’s toned legs, and a runner’s lean physique, says Karl Scott, a trainer at The Sports Club/LA in New York City.

HOW TO DO IT:
Pedal a bike at a moderate pace—an effort level of 5 or 6 (you’re working hard but can still carry on a conversation)—for 5 minutes. Next, run either outside or on a treadmill for 5 minutes, again at an effort level of 5 or 6. Last, head to a rowing machine, which approximates the upper-body demands of swimming, and put in 5 minutes at the same effort level.

Deep Chop

A

• Grab a 5- to 10-pound medicine ball and stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your knees slightly bent. Raise the ball above your left shoulder.

B

• Raise the ball one last time, then bend your knees at least 45 degrees and lower the ball to the outside of your right ankle. Repeat to the other side. That’s 1 rep.

REPS:
Do 10 to 12.

INSTANT UPGRADE:

SWIM YOURSELF SLIM

If you have time to get to a pool, there's nothing like a swimming workout for slimming down. The body-shaping benefits of swimming come from muscle recruitment and calorie burn. An easy swim burns around 500 calories an hour, while a vigorous effort can torch about 700. Because water is nearly 800 times more dense than air, each kick of the legs and pull of the arms is like a resistance workout for your core, hips, arms, legs, shoulders, and glutes. So in additional to blasting calories as you swim, you build lean muscle, which ignites your metabolism so that you burn more calories once you've showed and dried off.

Hip Hinge and Rotate

A

• Stand tall with your left hand resting on a chair back or other support, your right hand on your hip.

B

• Keeping your right leg extended, slowly hinge forward from the hips, tipping your torso forward toward the ground while extending your right leg straight behind you, foot flexed, until your body forms a straight line from your head to your heel.

C

• Stop when you’re parallel to the floor. Then rotate your body to the right before returning to the starting position.

REPS:
Do 10, then switch sides.

CYCLING WORKOUT

Your legs might seem like the only thing moving when you ride, but cycling is a full-body event. With each revolution, your upper body acts as a platform for your legs to push off of. Your arms and shoulders help you leverage power going uphill and your hips keep you stable in the saddle. This routine hits the whole cast of characters.

START HERE:

Do the routine as a circuit, performing the prescribed number of each move and then immediately going to the next. Rest a minute, then repeat the circuit twice more for a total of three circuits.

Spider

A

• Holding a lightweight dumbbell in each hand, kneel on all fours with your back straight, hands directly beneath shoulders (weights should run parallel with body) and knees directly beneath hips.

B

• Raise your left arm straight out to your side while simultaneously lifting your bent right leg out to the right. Return to the starting position. Repeat to opposite side. That’s 1 rep.

REPS:
Do 10 to 12.

Scoop Squat

A

• Holding 10- to 20-pound dumbbells at your sides, palms facing your thighs, stand with your feet hip- to shoulder-width apart.

B

• In one smooth motion, bend your knees and hips and drop your butt back as if sitting in a chair.

• Immediately push back to start, bending your elbows and curling the weights to your shoulders as you do.

C

• As you reach the standing position, immediately press the weights overhead.

• Lower the weights back to your sides and repeat.

REPS:
Do 12 to 15.

INSTANT UPGRADE:

GET YOUR HEAD IN THE GAME

Brain training is an essential part of any sports warmup. “Preparing your central nervous system for activity is just as important as preparing your muscles,” says Vern Gambetta, former director of conditioning for the Chicago White Sox. That’s because your central nervous system tells your muscles when to contract. Try standing on one leg while you squat down and touch the floor in front of it with your opposite hand. Do 2 sets of 10 to 12 repetitions with each leg.

Balance Dip Extend