12 Days of Fitness Workout

On the first day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank

On the second day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks

On the third day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers

On the fourth day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers
• 4 Donkey Kicks

On the fifth day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers
• 4 Donkey Kicks
• 5 Push Ups

On the sixth day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers
• 4 Donkey Kicks
• 5 Push Ups
• 6 Tricep Dips

On the seventh day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers
• 4  Donkey Kicks
• 5 Push Ups
• 6 Tricep Dips
• 7 Burpees

On the eighth day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers
• 4  Donkey Kicks
• 5 Push Ups
• 6 Tricep Dips
• 7 Burpees
• 8 High Knees

On the ninth day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers
• 4  Donkey Kicks
• 5 Push Ups
• 6 Tricep Dips
• 7 Burpees
• 8 High Knees
• 9 Russian Twists

On the tenth day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers
• 4  Donkey Kicks
• 5 Push Ups
• 6 Tricep Dips
• 7 Burpees
• 8 High Knees
• 9 Russian Twists
• 10 Bicycle Crunches

On the eleventh day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers
• 4  Donkey Kicks
• 5 Push Ups
• 6 Tricep Dips
• 7 Burpees
• 8 High Knees
• 9 Russian Twists
• 10 Bicycle Crunches
• 11 Plie Squats

On the twelfth day of Fitness, my trainer asked of me:

• 1 Minute Plank with Donkey Kicks
• 2 Jumping Jacks
• 3 Mountain Climbers
• 4  Donkey Kicks
• 5 Push Ups
• 6 Tricep Dips
• 7 Burpees
• 8 High Knees
• 9 Russian Twists
• 10 Bicycle Crunches
• 11 Plie Squats
• 12 Skater Lunges

Demos:

Planks with Donkey Kicks

1. Begin in an elbow plank with elbows directly under shoulders, abs engaged toward the spine. Don't let the pelvis sag down or pop up.
2. Lift right leg off the ground, bending your knee so the sole of your foot is toward the ceiling. Keep pelvis square to the floor. Don't let your pelvis twist.
3. Press your right heel toward the ceiling as high as you can without moving your pelvis or lower back. The motion will not be huge but rather concentrated on the booty and hamstring.
4. Lower the bent leg slightly, and repeat.

Jumping Jacks

1. Assume an erect position, with feet together and arms at your side.
2. Slightly bend your knees, and propel yourself a few inches into the air.
3. While in air, bring your legs out to the side about shoulder width or slightly wider.
4. As you are moving your legs outward, you should raise your arms up over your head; arms should be slightly bent throughout the entire in-air movement.
5. Your feet should land shoulder width or wider as your hands meet above your head with arms slightly bent.

Mountain Climbers

1. Start the exercise by lying face down on the floor.
2. Straighten out your arms and then touch your knees down to the ground or floor.
3. Now you are ready to lift yourself up into position. When doing this, be sure that your hands are directly under your chest at a width that is slightly more than your shoulder length distance.
4. Once you have settled into position and checked the position of your hands you should be sure to keep your legs stretched out, ensuring that they are properly lined up with the rest of your body. Pay special attention to your knees as many people tend to create a gap here but that should be avoided. If the recommended position is uncomfortable for you, it is alright to modify it slightly as long as you maintain the correct posture.
5. Now you should stretch out your left leg for stability. Bend your right knee and bring it up in the direction of your right hand. At this point, you should be in a similar position to the one you would be in if you were climbing a mountain or tree (hence the name) except horizontal instead of vertical.
6. After bringing your right knee up, return it to the original position and do the previous step with your left leg. (Once again, bend the left knee and bring it up towards the left hand mimicking the actions of a mountain climber)

20 Donkey Kicks

1. Start on all fours, with your hands directly under your shoulders and your knees directly under your hips.
2. Keep your right knee at a 90-degree angle as you slowly raise your leg behind you until your thigh is almost parallel to the floor. Pulse your flexed foot toward the ceiling by squeezing your glutes. Your back should remain perfectly still in a neutral spine. The motion should be small and controlled with the muscle doing the work and not momentum.
3. Return to start position to complete one rep.

Push-Ups

1. Get into a plank position with hands planted directly under the shoulders (slightly wider than shoulder width apart). Ground the toes into the floor to stabilize the bottom half of the body. Engage the abs and back so the body is neutral. In other words, flat as a… plank (ah, now we get it!)
2. Begin to lower the body—back flat, eyes focused about three feet in front of you to keep a neutral neck—until the chest nearly touches the floor. (Note: Some experts say a push-up isn’t a push-up unless the chest actually grazes the ground). Don’t let the butt dip or stick out at any point during the move; the body should remain flat from head to toe all the way through the movement. Draw the shoulder blades back and down, while keeping the elbows tucked close to the body, so the upper arms form a 45-degree angle at the bottom of the push-up position.
3. Keeping the core engaged, exhale as you push back to the start position as explosively as possible without leaving the ground.

Tricep Dips

1. Position your hands shoulder-width apart on a secured bench or stable chair.
2. Slide your butt off the front of the bench with your legs extended out in front of you.
3. Straighten your arms, keeping a little bend in your elbows to keep tension on your triceps and off your elbow joints.
4. Slowly bend your elbows to lower your body toward the floor until your elbows are at about a 90-degree angle. Be sure to keep your back close to the bench.
5. Once you reach the bottom of the movement, press down into the bench to straighten your elbows, returning to the starting position. This completes one rep.

Burpees

1. Begin in a standing position. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart. Now, lower your body into a squatting position, placing your hands on the floor in front of you.
2. Kick your feet back so that you are in push-up position. Keep your hands firmly on the ground to support your body.
3. Lower your chest to do a push-up. Bring your chest back up.
4. Kick your feet back to their original position. Stand up, and then jump into the air while clapping your arms overhead.

High Knees

1. In basic high knees, you need to stand still with your feet hip-width apart.
2. Pull your right knee towards your chest and keep it there for 3 seconds.
3. Now move it back to the original position and then repeat the step.
4. Now do the same gesture with the left knee.

Russian Twists

1. Sit on the ground with your knees bent and your heels about a foot from your butt.
2. Lean slightly back without rounding your spine at all. It is really important, and difficult, to keep your back straight, but don’t let it curve.
3. Place your arms straight out in front of you with your hands one on top of the other. Your hands should be level with the bottom of your ribcage.
4. Pull your navel to your spine and twist slowly to the left. The movement is not large and comes from the ribs rotating, not from your arms swinging. Inhale through center and rotate to the right. This completes one rep.

Bicycle Crunches

1. Lie flat on the floor with your lower back pressed to the ground and contract your core muscles.
2. With your hands gently holding your head, lift your knees to about a 45-degree angle.
3. Slowly, at first, go through a bicycle pedal motion.
4. Alternately touching your elbows to the opposite knees as you twist back and forth.

Plie Squats

1. Stand with feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart with toes turned out, holding lighter dumbbells vertically in front of thighs.
2. Keeping abs tight and torso tall, bend knees 90 degrees; keep knees aligned between second and third toes and weight in heels.
3. Press back to start; squeeze your glutes.

Skater Lunges

1. Perform a reverse lunge with your back leg slightly at an angle.
2. Leap to the side and bring the opposite leg behind you, only tapping your toe to the ground.
3. Immediately jump back the other direction and continue alternating until you feel the burn.
4. Form check: Keep your knees bent and stay as low as possible to really work your quads.