Upper Body and Abs Super Circuits

Equipment: Weighted Objects (water bottles, gallon jugs, dumbbells, etc), Elevated Surface.
Format: Perform each exercise for the prescribed time/repetitions and repeat each circuit for 2-3 rounds.

Circuit 1

Move 1: Down Dog to Plank (0:45)

• Begin in a tall plank position with your core engaged and your shoulders stacked over your hands.
• Come into a down dog position by pressing away from your hands and shifting your hips back and up toward the ceiling to end with your head in line with your arms. (Your weight should be evenly distributed between your palms, and your heels should reach toward the floor.)
• Shift back to your tall plank position, engaging your core and flattening your hips. 
• Return your leg back to start in your plank position and repeat the full movement, alternating each knee for a side crunch.
• MOD: Place hands on an elevated surface (chair, couch) or perform from a kneeling position.
• Optional: As you press back into your down dog, float one leg up so it’s in line with the rest of your body from your toe to your hand. 

Move 2: Squat to Back Pull Row (0:45)

• Start standing with your feet wider than hip distance. Allow your feet to turn out naturally.
• Hold your weighted objects in your hands, arms hanging straight down in front of you with your shoulders back and down to counter balance the weights pulling you forward.
• Send your hips back behind you, pulling your belly button in and up to engage your core, keeping your chest up tall (don’t bend forward), weight back in your heels and knees tracking in line with your toes.
• As you come back up to standing, drive through your heels and squeeze your glutes while pulling your elbows and weighted objects up (keeping the weights close to your body) and back evenly for a high pull row (leading with your elbows).   
• MOD: Squat down to a chair or bench.
• Optional: As you come out of the squat, powerfully jump up as you perform the back pull row. 

Circuit 2 

Move 1: Wall Isolated Biceps Curls (8-12)

• Begin standing with your back supported against a wall. 
• Holding your weighted objects with your palms facing you, pull your shoulder blades back and down with your core engaged. 
• Keeping the upper arms stationary, perform a bicep curl with both arms by curling the weights up to your shoulder while contracting your biceps (palms facing you). 
• Reverse the movement to return to your starting position and repeat. 

Move 2: Squat thrusts (8-12)

• Begin standing with your core engaged and chest up tall.
• Bend your knees and place your hands on the floor or elevated surface in front of you.
• Step or jump your feet back to a tall plank, keeping your core tight and back flat, gaze about 6 inches in front of you for a neutral spine.
• Jump or step your feet back to your hands, loading your weight in your heels and use your momentum to power up into a jump.
• MOD: Perform this movement with your hands on an inclined surface, like a chair, couch or ottoman. You can also take the impact out entirely by stepping back and forth rather than jumping, and coming up to a body squat rather than a jump.

Move 3: Reverse Flyes (8-12)

• Stand with your core engaged, chest up and weights in hand.
• Hinge forward at the hips, pull your shoulder blades down and back so they’re not rounding forward, allow your dumbbells to hang beneath your chest and keep your gaze neutral.
• Brace your core and lift both arms out to the side, maintaining a slight bend in the elbows and squeezing your shoulder blades together.

Circuit 3 

Move 1: Floor Wipers (8-12)

• Begin lying on your back holding your weights straight over your chest and palms facing your feet and legs out straight. 
• Tuck your pelvis and engage your blueberry spine by gently pressing your lower back into the floor. 
• Brace your core and lift your legs up toward your weights and to the right. 
• Slowly lower your legs back down and repeat on the left. 
• Keep your hips on the floor the entire time so you’re not rocking your hips up.
• MOD: Keep your legs bent as you lift your legs.

Move 2: Reverse Burpees (0:45)

• Begin standing with your core engaged and chest up tall.
• From a standing position, shoot your hips back to squat down as you sit on the floor and roll back onto your back with your knees coming back towards your chest.
• Using momentum, swing your body forward and rock to your feet and back up to a standing position to finish with a jump (watch that your knees don’t buckle in as you stand).
• MOD 1: When you’re learning this move, keep your hands down at your sides to support you on the jump to stand OR use a chair or elevated surface to help you stand up.
• MOD 2: If you start to get winded take the jump out and roll back to stand or just roll back and sit back up. Either way you are getting a great core workout! 

Move 3: Standing Triceps Kickbacks (10)

• Stand with your core engaged, chest up and weights in hand.
• Hinge forward at the hips, pull your shoulder blades down and back so they’re not rounding forward, allow your dumbbells to hang beneath your chest and keep your gaze neutral.
• Pull the weights to your sides, keeping your elbows close to the body and squeezing your back muscles like you’re pinching the base of your shoulder blades together.
• While in this row position perform a tricep kickback by kicking your arms straight back.
• Bring your weights back down to the row position and repeat the tricep kickback for the prescribed repetitions.