Healthful Bites

The title refers to what your fellow gym-goers will be saying when they see you completing this unique, fun routine! Alternating side shuffles with walking intervals is a fantastic way to bust boredom and target your leg muscles from different angles. We all spend so much time moving on a forward plane that we sometimes forget to go side-to-side—like back in grade school when we would gallop! Plus, shaking up your routine may be just what you’re looking for if you’re struggling with a plateau.

This description is based on a treadmill workout, but you can also try this outdoors. (Note: Alter the speed and interval length to suit your fitness level.)

You may get a few extra looks, but it’s well worth it! What’s the strangest workout you’ve seen someone do at the gym? Have you ever stolen those ideas after the fact?

This Saturday, I joined some co-workers to take part in the Fifth Avenue Mile event. It’s exactly what it sounds like—Fifth Avenue is shut down from the Upper East Side to Midtown for runners to make their way from about 80th to 60th Street. Considering I’m not a consistent jogger these days (I’m more often found in a spinning studio or my apartment trying a new workout DVD) I didn’t have huge expectations. I was thinking a sub-8-minute mile would be decent, so I was pretty pumped when I crushed that goal by nearly one minute!

I credit interval routines, like this one below, for keeping my pace in check. Since it involves short, quick bursts of running separated by longer bits of walking, this routine is doable yet effective. Tweak according to your current fitness level (perhaps you can make the walking intervals 3.2-3.5 MPH and decrease the jogs by 1.0-1.5 MPH each). Once you reach that last run, rev up your speed, while staying under control, and give it all you’ve got! It’s the end of the workout, so you might as well, right? :)

Do you think more about your quickness, endurance or both while training?

I was lucky enough to spend this past weekend in Colorado—prime hiking territory! In fact, I think it’s safe to say I did my longest-ever trail trek. (We did this path with a little extra tacked on to the end. It was six miles of fantastic views, chatting and exercising!) That event inspired today’s Good for You Moves post, which involves a quick indoor hiking routine!

You’ll need a treadmill to follow this plan in the simplest way (since you’ll be able to easily monitor your speed and incline) or free-form a similar hike at a hill near you.  There’s no reason why you have to run to get a great sweat going while toning up your lower half. Simply print out this program and follow the speed and incline prompts for a nice, hilly workout!

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(Note: Please listen to your body and if this is too fast or too steep, take it down a notch.)

What type of machines or workouts would you like to see in similar posts in the coming weeks? Or perhaps you would prefer an equipment-free at-home workout? Do tell!