No matter what your outdoor sport is, you’ll benefit greatly from doing high intensity functional training — exercises that are dynamic, practical, functional and use many different planes of motion. Here is a 30-minute workout with some complexes that will do just that.
With high intensity functional training, focus first on your form. Once you’ve got the hang of it, work on increasing your range of motion. After you have mastered both, then increase the speed of the exercise to add intensity. If you are intermediate or advanced, take fewer or shorter breaks.
Warm-up
- 5 minutes on the spin bike or jogging
- 20 alternating reverse lunges
- 10 side lunges each side
- 10 walkouts
- 20 Spiderman mountain climbers (legs to the side)
The Workout
Repeat the following exercises 3-4 times. At the end of each round, make the workout more metabolic by adding some high intensity cardio, such as 20 double-unders, or a 1 minute sprint.
A. Slammer into Breakdancer
10 reps each side
Part 1: From squat, jump and lift a slam ball. As you land back into the squat, slam the ball down to the floor.
*Keep your chest up and butt down.
Part 2: From the squat base position, place your left hand on the floor in front of the ball, and pull your left leg through to the right side of the room. Drop your hip. You are left balancing on your left hand and right foot. Reverse the steps to get back in to your squat base position.
*Squeeze your obliques and push in to that left arm.
B. Counterbalance Squat into Overhead Wood Chop Lunge
10 reps each side
Part 1: Start in a wide sumo squat stance holding a ball at chest level. Press your arms out as you lower your hips into a squat. Pull the ball back in towards your chest as you come up.
*Keep your shoulders down, and your core and glutes tight the whole time.
Part 2: From this wide stance, press the ball up overhead and pivot on the balls of your feet into a lunge stance. As you lunge down, squeeze your core tight and lower the ball towards your hip. From the bottom of the lunge, squeeze your glutes and core and, as you come up, stay strong and swing the ball back up as you pivot your feet back to the front.
*Brace your core and obliques. Keep your knees behind your toes and line up your knees to your second toe the whole time.
C. Single Arm Plank with One Armed Row
10 reps each arm
Part 1: Place your hands on a flat elevated surface like the end of a hexagon dumbbell or the edge of a step. Have your feet hip-width apart and rise up into a plank. Keep your hips parallel to the floor and find your balance on one arm.
* To help with hip stability, place a band around your legs above your knees. You can regress this exercise by doing the plank from the knees. Keep a micro bend in the supporting arm.
Part 2: From this one-armed plank base position, pull your other arm back into a row, bringing the weight with you.
*Keep your neck long as you bend your arm and pull your elbow back toward your hip. Think of pulling your shoulder blades in toward your spine.
