Badass weight workout #3

Badass weight workout #3

1. Power move: dead lift

5 sets of 5 reps

As much recovery as you need between sets

Again, do some experimenting to see how much weight you can handle -- this should be at the very edge of what you can manage for 5 sets of 5 reps. Start by holding the bar at your hips with straight arms and an overhand grip. Hands should be about shoulder width apart, feet a bit wider than shoulder width. Rotate your hips back, bend your knees, slide the bar along your thighs and down over your knees (keep it close to the body) and drop into a squat that's as low as you can manage and still get back up. Keep your back flat, your chest out and, needless to say, your weight in your heels. Push back up through your heels with a flat back until you're back at standing. For reference, I'm doing 20 pounds on each side plus the bar, which weighs 45 pounds: 85 pounds altogether. Husband is doing 135 pounds altogether.

2. Mini circuit: one-leg side squats, one-leg overhead press, reverse grip pulldown

4 sets of 10 reps each

30 seconds of recovery between sets

• One-leg side squats

These are just like the single-leg squats from the first workout -- but instead of putting the other leg on a bench behind you, you put it on a bench on your side. Well that, and you only hold one weight (I use a 17.5, hub uses a 25). Try to keep all the weight on the standing leg. Your posture should be upright, straight up and down, as if you're standing on two legs, your standing foot directly below your hip. Drop down into a squat, bringing your hip back and keeping weight on your heel -- not toes. Your knee should be somewhere between your ankle and your toes, not over your toes. Keep your abs tight the whole time. In addition to working out your butt and quads, you'll feel a nice stretch on the inner thigh of the resting leg. Do all ten reps on one side first, then switch to the other.

• One-leg overhead press

A nice simple one. Grab a couple weights that are challenging but manageable (I use two 17.5s, hub uses two 25s). Stand one one leg. Holding the weights, raise your arms into "goalpost" position, with your elbows bent at 90º and at shoulder height. Slowly raise the weights overhead and touch them at the top of the motion, then bring them back to goalpost. Swap the standing leg on each set.

• Reverse grip pulldowns

Similar to the lat pulldowns from workout #1, but this time you do it with your fingers facing toward you, so you can check out your nails while you do the motion. Again, choose a weight that feels challenging but doesn't impact good form. Like the other one, this is a tricky move because it's easier to let your arms do all the work. Hands should be about shoulder width apart on the bar. Before you start pulling the bar down, rotate your shoulders down and bring your shoulder blades together. You should feel the movement primarily along your back and lats before you bend your elbows. Bring the bar to your collarbone, bringing your chest out to meet it.

3. Cardio meltdown: dumbbell chops and split jumping jacks

5 sets of 30 seconds each (10 sets altogether)

15 seconds of recovery between each set

• Dumbbell chops (aka "golf swings")

Grab a dumbbell in a decent weight -- something you're going to feel, but not too much (I use a 20, hub uses 25). With your legs straight and shoulder width apart, hold the weight in both hands at one hip and face forward. In one swift motion and with relatively straight arms, bring the weight up and across your body, raising it to shoulder height and straightening the top arm as much as possible. Don't lift or rotate your feet, but do rotate your hips and upper body as much as you can, so you're facing sideways as much as possible at the top of the movement. Bring the weight down WITH CONTROL so you're not swinging the motion too much; stop it at your hip. Repeat as many times on one side as you can in 30 seconds. The next set, do the other side. Yes, this means you'll do 3 sets on one side and two on the other, but that's OK.

• Split jumping jacks

I actually find these pretty easy -- but after slogging through the other two workouts, getting a little break feels nice and kind of deserved. They're just like regular jumping jacks, but instead of moving your feet side to side, you move them front and back. Do as many as you can in 30 seconds.