Results Fitness - 10 Days to a

Better Body (2008)

Cindy Whitmarsh's goal for you with this Results Fitness interval training workout is to improve your cardio endurance and efficiently burn calories by quickly alternating 1-minute cardio intervals with 1-minute strength training sets. Upper and lower body are worked separately in two 35-minute workouts, which can be used on alternating days, or performed back to back on the same day for an intense challenge. Cindy works you hard, moving through the intervals quickly yet smoothly. Her friendly, upbeat one-on-one teaching style makes each workout enjoyable and effective.

Each workout alternates 13 strength building exercises with 13 cardio intervals. Since each strength exercise is done for a minute, the number of reps per set varies from 16 to 24. Cindy includes a few balance challenges and core exercises in each workout. Each cardio interval features one move that is repeated for the entire minute. Cindy starts with a low-impact version, then escalates to a higher-impact version that usually involves jumps and hops. You can follow either one, or alternate between the two moves if you're getting tired.

The lower body workout is based on compound exercises that use multiple muscle groups simultaneously -- you'll be doing three types of squats, three variations on deadlifts and two types of lunges. For these strength sets you'll be holding your heavier weights. Since you're using the same large lower body muscles for both the cardio and the strength intervals, the lower body workout is more intense. Although your heart rate may drop when you switch from cardio to weights, and raise again when you return to cardio, this difference probably won't be as dramatic during the lower body workout as during the upper body workout, where you'll stop moving your feet and focus on working smaller muscle groups.

In the upper body workout, each muscle is targeted individually, although a couple of sets work shoulders and biceps together. The back gets three exercises, shoulders get four, biceps and triceps two each, and chest one -- a set of push ups.

Who's it for?
This workout is aimed at intermediate exercisers who are comfortable with squats, lunges, and deadlifts. Beginners could give it a try, but may need to move at their own pace and do fewer reps for the strength sets. Advanced exercisers who don't do high impact cardio may find the lower impact cardio version too easy, as the music tempo is 128 bpms, pretty low for floor cardio.

Equipment
Cindy suggests using a minimum of two sets of weights: light (2 to 5 pounds) for upper body and heavy (8 to 10 pounds) for lower body. However, you may want to keep more sets of dumbbells ready since Cindy does a quick preview of the upcoming exercise which allows you to choose a heavier weight if you can handle it. You'll need a floor mat for a few ab exercises at the end of the lower body workout.

Best features
The variety of strength exercises, easy-to-follow cardio moves, and Cindy's carefree, good-natured teaching style make this one of the best workouts of 2008.

What needs improvement?
Chapter markers within each workout would allow you to focus on either cardio or strength by skipping over intervals that you didn't want to do that day. Better yet, a strength premix that alternated upper and lower exercises without any cardio would have been a great option.

How's the instruction?
Cindy is an excellent instructor. She previews each exercise quickly (which allows you to pick up an appropriate weight), cues very well, and offers form pointers and encouragement as each interval progresses. She's demanding, but in a pleasant, easygoing, non-bullying way (unlike bootcamp instructors Jillian Michaels and Jackie Warner).

Rating
The variety of strength exercises, easy-to-follow cardio moves, and Cindy's carefree, good-natured teaching style make this one of the best workouts of 2008.

Set & Crew
Cindy is working with you one on one, on the same set that was used for Jillian's 30 Day Shred workout and Jackie's One on One workout.

Workout Details

Lower Body Cardio Interval Workout - 35 minutes

Warm-up (2 min.)
step touches with arm sweeps, elbow strikes, elbows to hips, hops with arm swings
plie with torso twists, alternating single jabs, double jabs
brief stretches of chest & upper back

13 pairs of strength & cardio intervals - 1 minute each

lat row 8x, 8 pulses
heel digs or hopping heel digs

rear shoulder flies with optional one-legged balance
alternating heel lifts or high knees jump rope

triceps kickbacks - both arms
alternating backward lunge taps or ski lunges with forward punches

horizontal upper back row (arms are parallel to floor at shoulder level), then lift forearms until they are perpendicular to floor (to work rotator cuff)
alternating backward lunge taps or plyo lunges

single arm biceps curl R & overhead shoulder press - add one-legged balance
alternating side taps or jumping jacks

single arm biceps curl L & overhead shoulder press - add one-legged balance
plie hops or football run & hops

overhead triceps press
rotational ski hops or lateral hops

biceps curls and rotator cuff sweep
step touches with elbow strikes or double lateral hops with elbow strikes

alternating one-arm front shoulder raises and lateral raises
repeater knee lifts (all on R leg)

push-ups
repeater knee lifts (all on L leg)

alternating lat rows while holding push-up position (8 on knees, 8 on toes)
narrow squats or squat jumps

v-sit with alternating cross-body punches
plank jacks - alternating toe taps side to side or hopping both legs out & in

upper lower combo crunch (hand behind head or reach hands to feet)
mountain climbers - alternating knees to chest slow or fast

stretch (3 min.)
oblique abs, upper back, chest, shoulders, triceps, biceps

Lower Body Cardio Interval Workout - 35 minutes

Warm-up (2 min.)
v-steps, mambos, jumps, pivots, wide marches, lateral lunges with inner thigh stretches.

13 pairs of strength & cardio intervals - 1 minute each

squats
step-touches or hopping laterally over dumbbells

deadlifts (two tempos, no pulsing)
wide marches or fast-feet football run with feet wide

alternating reverse lunges
alternating toe taps to the back or hopping taps

plie squats
blow-outs (hands on floor, walk feet back & forward or hop feet back & forward)

deadlift with legs wide and toes turned out
alternating toe taps to the side or jumping jacks

one-legged squat (R leg) optional ham curl at bottom for balance challenge
bouncing heel lifts or one-legged hops (R leg)

one-legged squat (L leg) optional ham curl at bottom for balance challenge
bouncing heel lifts or one-legged hop (L leg)

curtsy lunge (R leg) optional L knee lift at top for balance challenge
skaters lunges or hopping skaters lunge

curtsy lunge (L leg) optional L knee lift at top for balance challenge
alternating knee lifts or front kicks

low lunge - hands on floor, R leg bent 90°, tap L leg out & in
bob & weave or boxer's shuffle

low lunge - hands on floor, L leg bent 90°, tap R leg out & in
bob & weave or boxer's shuffle

squat & alternating cross-body punch at top
squat & alternating lateral toe taps or squat & alternating side kicks
floor

upper/lower combo crunch (lying on floor, with 1 heavy weight)
mountain climbers (hands resting on dumbbells)

stretch (2 min.)
inner thighs, hip flexors, hamstrings (3 way)

DVD features

Main menu has three choices:

Play Upper Body Cardio Interval Workout (35 min.)
Play Lower Body Cardio Interval Workout (35 min.)
Play All - plays both workouts back to back, including warm-ups, starting with upper body

No chapter markers within a workout.

Using a step for cardio intervals
If you don't like to do high impact cardio, and the low cardio intervals don't challenge you enough, you have a couple of options to raise the intensity yet keep the impact low.

Since the music tempo is 128 bpms, a good speed for stepping, pull out your step for the cardio intervals. Doing simple knee repeaters, or alternating knees, Charlestons or turn steps for a full minute should elevate your heart rate quite nicely. You can try to mimic what Cindy's doing on the floor, or just build a simple combo that you can repeat for the full minute. I've used a few of the cardio blasts from Katina Hunter's Step Party 2.

If you have a rebounder, hop aboard for the cardio intervals. Again, mimic what Cindy's doing on the floor, or just do your favorite rebounder hops.

strength sets
Cindy often opens a strength set with full range of motion reps, then switches to pulsing reps. If you don't like pulsing or your weight is too heavy to do so smoothly, you can continue on with full range of motion reps, or try low-end or high-end reps.

For squats or lunges: instead of lowering and pulsing 1, 2, 3 then standing up, you would lower down on count 1, come half way up on count 2, lower again on count 3 and stand up on count 4.

For lat rows or triceps kickbacks, instead of lifting and pulsing 1, 2, 3 and lowering the weight, you would lift on count 1, lower half way down on count 2, lift again on count 3, and lower to the starting position on count 4.

alternating one-arm front shoulder raises and lateral raises
These long-lever lifts can be hard on the shoulder joints if your weight is too heavy and/or your arms are long. Lighten up, because a shoulder injury can take a long time to heal and puts you out of commission for most upper body exercises.

You can do both moves with your arms bent at 90°. For front raises, start with your forearms parallel to the floor, with your palms facing up, then keeping the 90° bend in your elbows lift your arms forward until your upper arms are parallel to the floor (shoulder level). For lateral raises, start with your forearms parallel to the floor, with your palms facing each other, then keeping the 90° bend in your elbows lift your arms out to the side until your upper arms are parallel to the floor (shoulder level).

push-ups
To make these easier (or harder depending on where you place the ball), do these push ups on top of your stability ball and you'll work your core too. Increase the intensity by walking your hands forward. The closer the ball to your feet, the more body weight you're lifting and the harder your core will work.

alternating lat rows while holding push-up position
Add more core challenge by doing these on top of your stability ball too. Keep both feet on the floor (the wider apart your legs the more stable you'll be) and walk forward enough that you can clear the ball with the dumbbells. Be sure to use squared off dumbbells that won't roll.

v-sit with alternating cross-body punches
Doing this v-sit on your stability ball works the core well, and makes it much easier on your lower back when you lie back and sit up again.

plank jacks & mountain climbers
You can rest your hands on your step to make both of these exercises a bit easier.
For a different feel, slide your feet in and out by using your Gliding discs (or paper plates on carpet).

curtsy lunge
If this exercise doesn't agree with your knees, substitute a lateral lunge (step wide to the side, toes facing forward, glutes pushed backwards like you're sitting in a chair.) or a narrower sidestep squat with an outer thigh lift at the top.?