A Better Way with Kersten Kimura

About a week ago, I released my second online course that helps you to beat gym boredom… because gym workouts can be boring, if you're doing them wrong! This Dumbbell HIIT course helps you to really make the most of your workouts, without getting bored at all. 

All workouts in this dumbbell HIIT course are done with two dumbbells and they last about 12-15 minutes. If you want to try out one right now, head over to the course and check out the free Workout #4 of the Beat Gym Boredom! course.

But here's a bit more about the course…

Why This Dumbbell HIIT Course?

I got the idea to put together this dumbbell HIIT course after a conversation with someone who regularly comes to my bootcamp. He told me that every time when he travels and can't come to the bootcamp, he tries to workout at the hotel gym, but those workouts never feel challenging enough.

He would go to the hotel gym, only to find that there's not enough equipment for him to put together a decent workout. And even if there was… he wouldn't really know what to do with it.

He would try and do something, but most of the time, end up just sitting around and not getting out much of the whole hour he spent there.

What a waste of time, right?

Save Your Precious Time on Quality Training

I work out with dumbbells quite a bit, but my workouts are pretty short. BUT, they're damn hard! You know, this kind of hard that your heart wants to jump out and you're pouring some serious sweat.

They're the kind of workouts that you want to do when you're traveling–something that saves your time but at the same time, is effective.

If you travel for work, you probably don't have hours between your conferences, client meetings and dinners. And if you're on a vacation, there's about a million and one other things to do than spend several hours at the gym.

And.. if you're impatient person like I am, then you just want to get the workout done and move on with your life, vacation or not. I'm busy all the time, I'm pretty sure you're too! Keeping your workouts short doesn't mean that you don't prioritize them. It simply means that you know how to workout smarter. 

[tweet_box design=”default”]Keeping your workouts short doesn't mean you don't prioritize them. It means you know how to workout smarter.[/tweet_box]

Why Dumbbells?

You may know that I use various workout equipment for my own workouts, for training my clients and also for teaching the bootcamp classes. But many gyms, especially smaller hotel gyms, don't have sandbags, tires or even kettlebells or medicine balls that I love to use so much.

But what most gyms usually have is at least a few sets of dumbbells. No matter how old or modern the gym is, there are some dumbbells. That's all you need for doing the workouts in this dumbbell HIIT course.

What's In This Course?

In this course, I show you 20 dumbbell exercises that are compound, full body, multi-joint exercises–you know, all the things that make a workout as efficient and useful as possible. Because who wouldn't love to get a ton done at once? We're talking about MED here–Minimum Effective Dose,

Similar to last two weeks, on Mondays let's talk about my Saturday morning bootcamp class and then about my own Saturday workout and the rest of the weekend.

This weekend was filled with work, workouts and more work, but it was a good one.

Saturday Bootcamp Workout III

For Saturday, I had planned a partner / team workout. Nine people showed up, so we ended up working in three teams, three people in each team.

After a warm-up at the park where we threw around some medicine balls on the lawn and got our feet super wet (I wasn't ready that the grass is so wet in the morning.. oh well!), we did the following Sprints and Bodyweight team workout:

The numbers of reps are per team. That means, each team does 30 push ups with mountain climber jumps, 60 triceps push ups etc. Each team member could do the same number of reps, but you can help your teammates out by taking some of their reps, if they're slower.

After each exercise, the team will run 200 meters together. No matter how fast or slow, you do the sprint always together. It's team work! And then, get to the next exercise.

My Saturday Morning Long Workout

I had a really good workout on Saturday myself as well. I usually workout just about 30 minutes, but if I have more time, I sure enjoy longer workouts too. In the weekends, I like to spend time outside and do longer workouts than usually.

So, Saturday was one on those days where I spent total hour on working out! I know that a full hour workout is nothing that spectacular for many people but it is pretty rare for me.

Here's my three-part workout:

1) 12 Minute Hiit Workout

After teaching the bootcamp, I headed to a nearby park and did 12-minute bodyweight HIIT workout using 12 Minute Athlete app. That's what it looked like:

3 rounds of 

30 seconds burpees, 10 seconds rest

30 seconds bodyweight squats, 10 seconds rest

30 seconds high knees, 10 seconds rest

30 seconds squat jumps, 10 seconds rest

30 seconds pistol squats, 10 seconds rest

30 seconds mountain climbers, 10 seconds rest

As always, also this 12 minute workout was tough. You really have to push yourself, or otherwise your time is wasted. I love and hate high knees, but I probably hate mountain climbers even more. I did modified pistols–here's a little sneak peek to where I am with them right now.

2) Hill Sprints

Next thing, I did some hill sprints at the park. It was unplanned, but the weather was nice and I was feeling great, so I decided to take advantage of these awesome hilly trails at the park.

I did only 5 short uphill sprints, and they took me about 10 minutes.

Here's how to do hill sprints:

Run up as fast as you can, then jog down, letting the heart rate slow down a bit. As soon as you're back to your starting line, sprint up again.

Your only rest will be the slow downhill recovery jog, but you don't stop at any point. Hill sprints burn your quads and glutes like crazy, go do them!

3) Kettlebell Front Squats and Swings

Once I got back home, I was ready for super short weight session. I pulled out my heaviest kettlebell–that's 60 lbs–for some swings and squats.

Here's what I did:

5 rounds of

* 8 Front Squats

* 10 Swings

I took plenty of rest between the rounds, because 60 lbs is still pretty serious weight for me,

This week, I'm headed to a short six days trip to Hawaii. In this post, I'm sharing what packable workout gear I put into my carry-on suitcase and how I plan to workout while on that trip. 

Some people take a complete time off from working out when they're traveling. I love to work out when I'm traveling, especially when going to a pretty place where I can enjoy outdoor workouts.

When I'm at home, I can workout at local parks and run on the trails I know every single day. So if there's a chance to explore something new, I'm in.

How I Workout When Traveling

I like to keep working out as simple as possible. I'm using pretty minimalist workout equipment anyway, also when I'm at home, but when I'm traveling, I keep it even simpler and bring only a few pieces of packable workout gear.

When I travel, there are usually two kinds of activities that I can always do: 1) run and 2) simple bodyweight HIITs.

Depending on the place, I check out other things too: This past winter when I visited Finland, we did some cross-country skiing, we always do some of water sports when in Hawaii, like stand-up paddle boarding or kayaking, and sometimes I check out a local yoga studio to try something different. It's a nice way to keep moving, without necessarily having to do regular workouts.

And, I pretty much always get in at least one run.

But the regular workouts like running and bodyweight (or minimal equipment HIITs) are always available, if you have some pretty basic packable workout gear with you.

Short Workouts When Traveling

If I have a lot of time in hand and if it's a true vacation trip, I may take time for longer runs. “Longer” nowadays means about 1 hour runs for me (years ago, that would have been average; long would've been anything starting from 90 minutes).

Other workouts though are mostly 20 minutes long, 30 at most. I want to do my workout and still have time to go do other fun stuff!

This upcoming trip will be mostly work though, so I probably won't be having too many long runs there. Therefore, short, up to 20 minute long HIITs will be my main way to go.

Packable Workout Gear for My Upcoming Trip

I'm used to travel very light and for most trips, bring only carry on suitcase. I've traveled a lot in my life, especially while I was studying in foreign countries and later when my now husband and I lived in different continents. These times really taught me how to pack just what I really need and not much else.

But I do bring some packable workout gear to use for my workouts. They take just a little bit room and are really light.

Here's my packable workout gear: The four things that I'm going to take with me.

Running shoes

I've had running shoes in my bag whenever I travel for as long as I remember. Even if there's tons of snow and cold degrees in the destination, I try to get in at least one run. I'm used to run in snow since I was little. In this trip though, snow won't be an issue 🙂

If I'm in a new place, I like to go out and explore my surroundings by running. And if the place is familiar already, I want to go back to see all that again 🙂

Of course, I will use the same shoes for my usual HIIT workouts.

Having said that, I hope I can squeeze in a few barefoot beach workouts on my upcoming trip. Jumping and running in the sand makes every workout so much harder.

Jump Rope

There's no smaller and easier piece of packable workout gear than a jump rope. It fits even into the smallest bag and it's very light. It's perfect for carry-on only travels.

Jump rope is great for HIIT workouts that I'm planning to do during the next six days. High Knees or Double Unders are my favorite jump rope techniques, but there are also

We've all been injured. We worked out too hard, didn't pay attention to our body, went too fast or too hard and got injured. It happens to all of us, also to fitness professionals. 

It happened to me the other day too. I was working out with weights, but didn't do a proper warm up. Maybe I went too heavy with the weights. Or maybe I was just rushing. Whatever it was, the next day I woke up with an incredibly sore back.

Of course, it's not the end of the world. Way worse thing happen. But it was bad enough to ruin my workouts for the next couple of days. I don't know how long it's going to last, but I'm pretty sure it's going to take another couple of days before I feel like my old self again.

I was so antsy to go and lift kettlebells today, but sometimes you really have to force yourself to listen to your body and be reasonable. It's like working out when you are sick–it's not too likely that you are going to rock your workout when you have a cold and fever.

So, a HIIT workout was not going to happen, because all the jumping and other explosive exercises would have made my back even worse.

There was no way I would have lifted any kettlebells or sandbags.

The repetitive bouncing of running would have hurt my back even worse. So, no running either.

Is there anything I could do?

All the Bad Things Are Good for Something – Even Injuries

But I try to think positive and after first frustration, I always come to a conclusion that all the bad things are good for something–even if I'm getting injured. That's how it usually goes. There are way bigger problems in the world than a little back issue that is probably gone in a few days.

But I want to move, because that makes me feel good and keeps me sane, so I had to find ways to do it. There are not too many exercises where you can avoid using your back, or at least not in the way that bothers me, but there are some things that I can do.

What I'm Doing When I Can't Do My Regular Workouts

So, here are some of the things that I have done when I haven't been able to lift heavy kettlebells, jump and run and do other explosive movements.

Yoga

I have a funny relationship with yoga. When I'm on this yoga “wagon”, I absolutely love it. I could go three times a week and enjoy every class. I usually go to Yoga To The People in Berkeley. If you are local you may want to check out this cute studio. They also have a studio in New York, where I two years ago had the best yoga class in my life. Seriously, on this day, everything was absolutely right–mentally, physically and spiritually. It was magical.

Nowadays I don't go to yoga all that often. Like I said, I have kind of fallen off the wagon. But when I go, I totally fall in love with it again.

Since last week, I have been to the class a couple of times now and it's been awesome. Besides, it is great for stretching, helping to lengthen my hamstrings and releasing tension in my hips. I am still stretching every night since I started my February stretching challenge, but going to a yoga class is way more different than doing my own stretching routine at home.

Bodyweight Training

My goals are to get better in pistol squats, chin ups and to be able to do a handstand. I have to say that I haven't been the most consistent person on Earth on working on those things.

One of the reasons is that I'm often short on time, so I tend to do my short 10-20 minute HIIT workout first and then spend a short 5-10 minutes on practicing one of those things if I have time. What I should be doing instead is to start with pistols, chin ups and handstands, practice those and then do the HIIT.

But when I don't have much time, I prioritize HIIT and the skill practice usually has to go.

When you are traveling, you may not be able to workout the way you usually do. But that doesn't mean that you should skip exercising altogether. Get creative, rethink the word “workout” and make sure to get some sort of moving in every day.

For the past two weeks, I was traveling in Estonia and Finland. We had a great time, but naturally, I wasn't able to do my much loved outdoor HIIT workouts there. Hey, it's not sunny California, it's chilly and snowy Northern Europe, just like in the picture above! But all that doesn't mean that I stopped working out altogether. I found a way to move almost every day, even if it was something as simple as walking.

And sometimes, I did snow burpees.

Many people stop exercising when they are on a vacation, because they want to enjoy their time at the fullest and not be bothered with working out. For me, moving makes a vacation even better. At times, I may even go a little overboard with it… But working out shouldn't be an annoying chore. Sure, we all get bored sometimes, but if it's always like that, it's time to change something.

But back to working out when traveling. What if you can't do the things that you are used to do? Instead of throwing in the towel, find ways how to still stay active.

Make Compromises when Traveling

If you are used to go to a gym but your hotel doesn't have one, what do you do? If you usually workout outdoors, but it's snowing and temps are freezing outside, then what?

To be able to keep up a workout routine, you need to make compromises. Because if you don't want to return from your travel feeling sluggish and slow, you've got to find ways to move.

For example, I am not usually a gym goer, but because the low temps and slippery roads outside, I went there a couple of times during my stay in Estonia and Finland. Some of the gyms were super small and had very minimal equipment, but you can always make it work. For example, in one gym I went to, the rowing machine was one of the few reasonable pieces or workout equipment, so I used that.

Also, if just a treadmill is all you have, you can still do a super simple interval workout without having to spend hours on the treadmill.

Rethink the Word Workout

Any kind of moving can be working out. The word workout is not limited to super sweaty HIIT workout, a hours long run or any other one single thing. For years, I used to think that running is the only way of working out, but I have now come to understanding that that's not the case at all.

You may want to rethink what the word workout means. For example, while I was traveling, some days I got my daily moving in by taking long walks with my friends or mom. That's totally okay! Plus, you get to catch up on life and spend some much needed friend and family time.

Other days I went cross country skiing. I've done that a lot in the past, but not recently. It was good to be back. Soaking up all the beauty of the nature while skiing on a frozen lake in Finland, followed by a hot sauna was so much more than just working out.

You won't be losing your strength and stamina if you can't do the exact same things that you have used to do. Go do something different that you have never done before, find ways to move and don't panic about missing your “real” workouts.

Activities To Do on a Vacation

Vacation is actually a great time to try out new things that you may not think of when you are at home. Sure enough, it depends where you are, but there are definitely ways to do something active in every destination. Take a look around you to see,

Are there parks or playgrounds? These are super fun.

Because it's cold here, a lot of my workouts lately have happened inside. A little nippy weather is okay, but if my hands are freezing or if it's raining, working out outdoors is hard. Equipment free workouts are easier, but doing kettlebell snatches or other movements with a weight overhead is not the best idea when it's slippery and wet outside.

So, I've been doing quite a bit of my workouts inside. Luckily, I don't need much space for them.

I've been loving some dumbbell workouts lately. There are so many things that you can do with a set of dumbbells than just triceps extensions or biceps curls.

Combining Movements Together

Sure enough, if your goal is to build triceps or biceps, you will need to do some isolation work. But for me, plain triceps extensions or biceps curls are just boring. I better combine these and other movements together into well-rounded, full body workouts.

I also add in some planks, rows and shoulder presses to get more out of my workout. It saves time, it's more versatile and it's more efficient in terms of building overall strength and also in terms of burning calories (even though I don't think about calories when I'm working out – not anymore!)

Keeping it Short and Sweet

Here's a dumbbell workout that I did the other day. You will combine six different exercises here: Plank, row, push up, jump, biceps curl and shoulder press.

You can do this workout as an independent workout if you are short on time, but it's also great for a quick finisher after your main workout. I did it after my handstand practice. My arms and shoulders were pretty done!

There are several ways on how to time this workout:

* AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) in one minute, then rest 15 seconds and repeat. Do three one-minute sessions. You can use Gymboss interval timer for that.

* AMRAP of 10 minutes. You just keep working until 10 minutes is up. Of course, you can always adjust the time according to how much time you have or want to spend on your workout.

* Put on a song of your choice – something that pumps you up! Work hard until the song is over. That's what I did yesterday and that's why I call it Pick Your Song Dumbbell Workout. 

Here it is: 

It's pretty simple, but not easy. Choose the weights that are actually challenging for you – otherwise there is no point! I use 20 lbs here.

How To Do This Workout

Get into a plan position, holding a dumbbell in each hand. Make sure your stomach is tucked in and that your hips are not up, but also not sagging. Your body should form a long line from head to toes.

Row with your right arm. Make sure that your arm mis moving close to your body and that your elbow is pointing directly back and not to the side.

Do a Push Up. Keeping hands on the dumbbells, do a low push up. Again, make sure that your elbows are not pointed out too much. Keep them close to your body.

Row with the left arm and do a Push Up. 

Jump the legs in and stand up. Keep your back nice and flat. Rounding the back can easily cause an injury, especially if you use heavy weights!

Do a biceps curl. Curl the dumbbells up so that they come close to your shoulders.

Do a shoulder press. Press the weights up from your shoulders. If the weights are getting too heavy and especially towards the end of the workout when you are getting tired, you can make it easier by doing a little dip with your hips and legs.

Conclusion

You can do a great dumbbell workout without having to leave the house. This one here takes very minimal space and also very minimal time. If you use weights that are heavy enough, you really don't need more than 15 minutes.

Last week I realized something: I am not as flexible as I thought. I always thought that I'm better than average person, but all that sitting and running has done it's job. This and next month, my goal is to get into the routine of stretching and by doing that, increase flexibility in my body. 

At this moment, I have three major fitness goals:

1) To be able to do a pistol squat. Right now, I can barely do one one a bench, meaning that my squatting leg is elevated. Like this:

2) Learn to do a handstand. At this moment, I can stay upside down for about five seconds, before falling back or over.

3) Do more than one proper chin ups. Here's where I am now: I can do one, and in a good day, maybe two.

I practice with and without the resistance band and I really hope to make some progression soon.

Why Can't I Do Pistols?

But back to pistols. One thing that keeps me from doing them properly is that I am not able to fully extend my one leg, e.g not the one squatting, but the other one. It seems that I just can't straighten it all the way, and even if I can for a second, I am not able to hold it like this for longer time.

There are also other problems like weakness, obviously 🙂

Also L-sits are incredibly hard for me for the same reason. I just can't get my legs straight and hold them that way.

While I know that all these bodyweight exercises require a lot of strength, I probably have tight hamstrings that prevent me from doing things like pistol squats and L-sits. Makes sense, because tight hamstrings is something that many runners deal with.

Even though I don't think about myself as that much of a runner anymore, I used to run a lot and stretch only whenever I had nothing to do (and I usually did. I'm never bored!). Running was my only form of exercise for about six years and my weekly mileage was about 37-55 miles, so there you go…

Total Eye-Opener – I Need To Increase My Flexibility!

Last week I had a chance to train with someone who was incredibly flexible. A lot of very strong and muscular people are usually not that flexible, but this guy was different.

He used to practice CrossFit for years and is now focusing on olympic weightlifting and calisthenics. This guy could do pistols, pull ups and various exercises on gymnastic rings like they were the easiest things in the world. But also his flexibility was impressive.

When I looked at him and many other students in the class, I realized that even though I do spend some time on stretching here and there, it's clearly not enough and I should do so much more. Especially if I ever want to get anywhere with my pistols or L-sits.

Improving Flexibility Takes Time

When you want to gain strength, it's usually pretty easy to hit new PR-s, at least at first. That's especially true with free weights, like dumbbells, kettlebells and barbells. In the beginning, it seems that you can add another plate to your bar pretty much every week.

Bodyweight strength seems to take longer. It takes a lot of work to do the first chin up – at least mine took a looong time.

Improving flexibility is similar to that. Flexibility doesn't improve overnight and it takes a lot of practice and dedication.

My Winter Challenge

I don't usually do challenges or give resolutions, but I've decided that stretching and improving my flexibility are something I just need to invest some time into if I want to get anywhere with my pistols.

So, I have decided to spend 30 minutes every day on stretching until the end of February. I started two days ago.

The end of February would be my first milestone, just to see how I feel by then. I know that there will be quite a bit of traveling and spending time at friends hous...

It's been rainy and foggy over here in the past couple of days. There is something cozy and comforting about hearing the raindrops falling down, no doubt about that. But it makes working out a little harder.

But let's not complain about it. There is no point of complaining about things that we cannot help.

We Have A Choice

We have a choice, always. We may skip the workout because it is raining, but doesn't it sound like a bad excuse? That's why I'm really happy to have my little home gym. It really is a mini gym, because it's set up right here in my living room.

I have all I need here, and I can put together a simple workout that uses only very basic equipment.

So, my latest workouts have happened either outside when there has been a 30 minute break from raining or alternatively, indoors, mostly using dumbbells or sandbag.

It's all doable, and when I look at the bright side of the story, I even save time when I don't have to go out. But of course, nothing beats working out outdoors.

A Quick Medicine Ball Tabata

Today I was lucky enough to wake up to only semi grey sky and surprisingly enough, it wasn't raining. I like to do my workout first thing in the morning anyway, so it was perfect.

I put together a quick medicine ball HIIT Tabata that consisted of four following exercises:

* Medicine Ball Jump Lunges

* Medicine Ball Squat + Toss

* Side Slams

* Medicine Ball Butt Kicks

Do it like this:

8 rounds

20 seconds work  

10 seconds rest.

You will be done in minutes – hopefully before the rain starts again!

It was still wet outside, so the slams were definitely a little challenge, but I made it.

Here is the video:

 

Give it a try and tell me how you liked it.

Lose Fat! High Intensity Medicine Ball Training Course on Udemy

Speaking of medicine ball workouts, please check out my new medicine ball course on Udemy. It consists of high intensity workouts that are great for fat loss and take you less than 20 minutes a each. Some of the workouts were represented also in this medicine ball tabata workout that you just saw.

The course is completely FREE!

Here's what you get when you sign up for the course:

* Use a medicine ball for fat-burning, high intensity workouts.

* Get stronger.

* Increase lean muscle mass.

* Improve endurance.

* Improve cardiovascular health.

* Build strength and through that, improve the quality of everyday life.

When you take this course, you will learn

* 14 high intensity exercises with medicine ball

* 4 fat burning workouts that are put together from these exercises.

If you have a chance, check it out! As said, the course is absolutely free, so what's to lose?

If you have any comments or questions, get in touch!

 

 

If you haven't worked out with sandbags yet, you should. I love to use my Ultimate Sandbag for various exercises, but especially for overhead movements.

It's probably one of the priciest pieces of workout equipment that I own, but it's absolutely worth its price. I use it every week at least couple of times and I also use it for training my clients. It's durable and nothing has happened to it even after throwing it around for several months.

Full Body Training

As always, I try to train the whole body in one workout. Even though today's workout focused a bit more on legs, my arms and core got definitely a good workout too. Every exercise that makes you hold your arms overhead, will also train your core.

For example, when you are doing overhead squats, you need to tuck the stomach in and keep the abs engaged all the time, because if you don't, you will simply drop the weight down. Core is truly your foundation and if you could put your hand on your stomach while doing overhead squats, you would feel how the abs are engaged.

And when you have ever painted a ceiling, you know what holding arms up for extended period does to the shoulders. They get really fatigue!

Leg Shaking Sandbag Workout

Here is the workout that I did this morning, using nothing else but a sandbag. I love to incorporate running into my workouts, so I finished each round with a 100 meters sprint (not filmed in this video).

 

What you should know about overhead movements: 

Make sure that you have a proper shoulder mobility before doing any overhead movements! Many of us are struggling with shoulder problems that may also be the reason behind elbow and neck pains. If holding straight arms overhead is hard for you, don't grab anything heavy and try to lift it overhead.

Instead of overhead squats, you can simply hold the weight on your chest level and do front squats. In squat and press, simply skip the pressing part. You will still get a good workout.

Enjoy!

 

 

As much as I love traveling and enjoy short and burning bodyweight workouts, I also love my kettlebells. I love kettlebells. No other piece of equipment is that close to my heart. I love their variety – there are so many different things you can do with them, while combining both strength and cardio.

It's been more than three weeks since I've touched kettlebells, and I was so ready to get back to them yesterday. Besides, the weather was gorgeous over here, which is a little exceptional. There has been a lot of rain lately.

I took a little bit of more time as I normally do to work out. I took my time to focus on technique and kept the pace lower. I think I needed that after all the (mostly) very high intensity workouts that I did on my 3+ weeks of vacation.

So, here my kettlebell workout for you from yesterday. As always, you will be done pretty quickly, even if you are not doing it for time.

Here is the video of the workout:

Hope you enjoy it!