Grab Two Heavy Weights and Do Two Sets for 30 Minutes of Work

If you subscribe to our emails, you know that I love the birthday season and today just happens to be my birthday. I embrace a birthday workout and look at it the same way I look at a Monday. It sets the tone for the rest of the year, just like a Monday workout sets the tone for the rest for the week.

Today’s workout is my birthday workout (along with my morning workout with buddies) and you can act like it’s your birthday too. I mean it. Read what I mean if you didn’t get a chance to read our morning email today.

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Here’s your workout:

After doing a 5-minute dynamic warm-up, set a timer for 10 minutes and do these two AMRAP (as many reps as possible) sets. Your first set will use a set of heavy weights and your second set will only use your bodyweight. With your rep count of just 12, you can go a little heavier with your weights, but be prepared to scale down if you need to. In 10 minutes, if you’re focusing on good form, aim to go through the set about four times or more.

For your second set, move quickly, with good form, aiming to get through the exercises about five or six times total.

10 minutes:

  • 12 squats
  • 12 Push presses
  • 12 bent over rows

Between sets, take 60 to 90 seconds to regroup and prepare for your second set, which will be a heart-rate raiser.

10 minutes:

  • 12 plank walks
  • 12 burpees
  • 12 Russian Twist

Here are your moves: 

Squats: With your heavy weights racked at your shoulders, keep your weight in your heels as you sit down and back, aiming to get your seat down to knee-level. As you stand back up, squeeze your glutes at the top of your range of motion.

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Push presses: With your heavy weights in your hands racked at your shoulders facing each other, dip down by bending your knees and simultaneously propel your weights up as you stand up. Return to your starting position and continue this movement.

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Bent over rows: With your feet planted hips-width distance apart and your knees bent slightly, hinge from your hips, keeping your core engaged and your back flat. Hold your body in this position for the duration of this exercise. Start with the weights in front of you and your palms facing each other. Maintaining that same palm position, pull your elbows up, keeping them narrow and pull your shoulder blades together behind you. Lower down for three and pull up for one.

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Plank walks: Starting in a full plank, with your hands under your shoulders and your shoulders, hips and heels in a straight line, keep your hips as steady as possible as you drop down to your right forearm, then left forearm and then come back up to your left hand then right hand. Going down and then back up is one rep.

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Burpees: Squat down, placing your hands on the ground and jump back into a plank. From there, lower down to the ground with your body in a straight line. Push back up, jump back forward and stand or jump at the top.

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Russian twist: Sitting on the floor with your heels planted, lean back to engage your core, keeping your back flat and shoulders rolled back. Twist gently to the right and hold for a beat and then back to the left and hold for a beat.

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(Disclaimer: This workout is not intended for the treatment or prevention of disease, nor is it a replacement for seeking medical treatment or professional nutrition advice. Do not start any nutrition or physical activity program without first consulting your physician.)

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About Jeana Anderson Cohen

Jeana Anderson Cohen is the founder and CEO of asweatlife.com a premiere wellness media destination that creates content and community to help womxn live better lives and achieve their goals. Before founding health-focused companies Jeana earned a degree in Journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison - and fresh out of college she worked on the '08 Obama campaign in Michigan. From there, she created and executed social media strategies for brands. aSweatLife fuses her experience in building community and her passion for wellness. You can find Jeana leading the team at aSweatLife, trying to join a book club, and walking her dog Maverick.