AM Northwest Appearance

Friday, I made an appearance on KATU's AM Northwest to show people how they could create their own Boot Camp in their backyard or a nearby outdoor space. It was a lot of fun, as always. Helen and Dave are really great on and off camera.

Take a look a the segment.

It's always exciting, but just a little nerve racking I'm never sure which camera to look towards nor did I realize there was a big long handled garden tool in front of my face. ;) Didn't get to use the "mystery" chair, either. ;) Alas, getting the information out in six minutes was a real challenge. So, here's some more information to get you going:

The Idea: Use what you have to your advantage; no fancy equipment is required. Increase the fun by inviting a friend or family member to join you. Go down the exercise list 2-3 times according to your fitness level; rest as necessary and work at your own fitness level. Do each exercise for 30-60 seconds; beginners can do less, experienced exercisers can do more according to ability. Timing the exercises instead of counting reps can make it easier to modify the intensity. Finish with a relaxing stretch for 5-10 minutes.

First, survey your outdoor area to see what you can use such as:
• Patio chairs
• Deck, patio, or grassy area
• Stairs
• Low retaining wall

Many exercises can be done with body weight only, but for variety you can add things you may have around the house:
• Paint cans
• Long handled yard tools (LHYT) ie, a push broom, hoe, or rake
• Gallon bottles of water
• Buckets filled with water, dirt, sand, or small pebbles
• Bags of yard debris

If you’ve done any yard work you know that carrying and moving things around the yard takes some effort and muscle so add it to your workout. As for the buckets and water bottles, just remove or add enough water, sand, etc to make it appropriate for your level (beginners start light – you can always add more in later workouts, but you can’t take it back if you over do it!)

The Workout (begin with a brief warm up and light stretch for 5-10 minutes):

1. Bodyweight cardio options: jumping jacks, air jump rope, high knees, etc
2. Jumps over LHYT, rope, etc
• Forward/Backward
• Slalom
• Staggered
• Lay two or more down parallel to one another for a jump series
• Skip, run, or hop between parallel rows
3. Step ups (use a step or a chair, as appropriate)
4. Biceps curl w/paint cans or buckets
5. One-arm row w/paint cans or buckets
6. Plies w/forward raise (use a tree branch or a LHYT)
7. Pushups w/leg lift (use a low, stable retaining wall or patio chair)
8. Chair dips w/knee ups (option: a low, stable retaining wall)
9. Core/ab options: egg rolls, hover, side planks

This will get you started. We'll talk more about it tomorrow.

wildfire on instagram