Fitness – Vertical

Good morning everyone! Today I thought I would let you in on some fitness tips to help maintain your fitness levels.

Even though we are in quarantine, we have to maintain our fitness! It is so important to be fit, bit just to look good, but to be healthy. And yes I know being healthy is hard! Just yesterday was my dad’s birthday, and being sugar free, I couldn’t have cake. Self control is a huge part of being healthy and keeping yourself fit. In the beginning, it was harder to not eat sweets, but now it comes naturally. If you guys stay away from artificial foods, you will be fitter easier!

Drinking infused water is a great way to maintain abs or a flat stomach. It can also help you recover quicker from a hard workout. I like to put lemons and limes in my water, but there are so many great flavor combos out there!

Healthy eating is a huge part of staying fit. I’m not saying that you have to or should go full-on paleo or keto, but you should monitor your sweets intake. You won’t see as many results if you are eating McDonald’s burgers and ice cream every day. Just make sure you’re not subbing out sugar in recipes for artificial sweeteners like stevia. I prefer to use dates and fruit instead. Some other sweet replacements are eating fruit for dessert instead of a Chip-wich.

This should come without saying, but working out is a huge part of being fit! Don’t go out and run 7 days a week, but if you want to have abs you should be getting in 10,000 steps a day. To stay fit, you should work out between 4 and 6 times a week. For reference, I run 5 days a week and run a 5:50 mile.

Having a mantra, or a motivational saying, is a great idea. When I run and I hit a rough patch, I tell myself to “be stronger than the pain.” Yeah, I know I somewhat quoted the Icy-Hot commercial, but it sticks in my head. Anything can be your mantra! You can find some great ones on Pinterest ( search Motivational Quotes ).

Stretching is one of the most important parts of your workout. If you don’t like stretching, you better start! When your muscles get tight and sore, it is hard for them to recover and for you to get stronger. If you don’t stretch, you will not be able to play whatever sport you do because eventually, you will break or tear something.

So there are some great workout tips for you guys! Please stay home and healthy during these times! I wish you all the best! Remember to like this post for more exercises and recipes!

– Darby 🙂

Core Workout

Your core is one of the most important parts of your body. Without it, you wouldn’t be able to walk, and as an athlete, you want it to be strong.

From baseball to track, a strong core will help you hit the ball further and run faster. Now, I’m not saying that this workout will get you abs- that’s a whole different topic- but it will work them. Here are some exercises you can preform to help strengthen your core.

P.s.- these work for beginners to advances athletes! Enjoy 🙂

Planks are one of the best exercises to help tone and strengthen your core. Hold the position like the image above for at least 30 seconds. If you are more advanced, try for a minute or more! Planks are one of my favorite exercises because there are so many types and they require no equipment.

V-ups are a strength based exercise that are great to isolate the core area. They target your abs and are great to challenge your core. They also help strengthen your back and works your quads and hamstrings. I like to do these in sets of 20, but I’d you are a beginner I would do 10-15. They are also great for HIIT workouts! Just follow the picture above to complete your sets.

Another great core exercise are flutter kicks. They are great for so many reasons, one being that they burn off belly fat like crazy! They also can help reduce lower back pain and make your legs stronger. To do them lay on your back and try to keep your back pressed against the ground. Move your legs up and down on both legs to complete one rep. I usually do these in sets of 20 kicks on each leg.

Plank jacks are one of my favorite exercises because they burn so many calories! One minute of plank jacking can burn around 5 calories! They can be done on your elbows ( see above image) or on your hands in a push up position ( high plank). I like to do around 20 of these.

6 inches is another core exercise that tones your core and legs. It is also good for lower back pain. When doing it make sure you keep you back pressed against the ground. Unlike the picture above, keep your hands behind your head and not under your but!!! Keeping hands under your but defeats the whole purpose of the exercise. I hold this exercise for a minute, but if you are just starting out I would try for 30 seconds.

With dead bugs, you won’t feel them as much in your core as you would some of the other exercises. They are great to help work some of the parts of your core that you don’t see. This improves core stability. These are best done slower than some of the others. To do them, lay on your back and extend your opposite arm and opposite leg. Repeat with the other side. I like to do twenty on each side.

So there they are! These are six of my favorite core exercises to include in my workouts. They are great to tone and strengthen your core. Remember, if you include these exercises in your workout, upload a pic to the comments! Have a great day and stay safe during Covid-19.

– Darby 🙂