This week’s “Train-hard Tuesday” tip is all about the Biceps. Your body adapts to doing the same exercises all of the time, so be sure to switch it up next time with this exercise that isolates the biceps, big time!
Try this exercise with lighter weight than you would normally curl and perform 12-15 repetitions, 3 times. Be sure to keep your shoulder planted firmly on the bench to keep from using momentum to curl the weight. Comment below and let me know how it goes!
This week’s click and print workout is the Ultimate Booty Boost. You will be targeting the glutes with three different exercises: Single leg glute bridge, single leg box squats, and bench step ups. These three exercises combined will fire up all areas of the glutes and have your tush feeling tight.
Click on the photo below to see a larger version! 
Ultimate Booty Boost Workout Plan:
• Single Leg Glute Bridges- Perform 3 sets of 20 repetitions of this exercise.
• Single Leg Box Squats- Perform 3 sets of 10 with or without weights.
• Step Up with a Kick Back- Perform 3 sets of 15 with or without weights.
Have a great workout and be sure to leave me feedback on how it goes!
Can you believe that Spring is just a few weeks away! You know what that means…Time to start working on your summer body! The following workout will get your core tight and toned in time for Spring. You can even click and print the workout!
Don’t forget to report how your workout went over at my Facebook page, where I post motivation, tips, and workouts!
The Bosu is one of my favorite, versatile workout tools. For today’s workout, give these three exercises a try and feel your core being targeted too! Click on the workout below to get the full size, printable version!
And of course, don’t forget to post your workout results and feedback on my Facebook group motivation page! If you are not already a fan, you can join HERE.
With the 2012 Olympic Games in full effect, we are all getting wowed by the amazing athleticism that is gracing our television screens daily. If you are not already involved in a structured workout routine, it is quite possible that watching these high caliber athletes compete is going to motivate you to get off the couch and take action. So how do you get started?
I am going to show you several different exercises that I have used with 2008 Medalists and 2012 Olympic hopefuls that you can try yourself. (Even from the comfort of your own home.) Give these exercises a try between commercial breaks while cheering on your favorite team or country!
Plank
1.) Plank – Trust me, all athletes are doing this exercise. The plank is a fairly simple exercise that most anyone can do. Try holding the position (pictured above) for 30 seconds to start. Olympic athletes will hold this position up to two minutes! Be careful not to let your back arch and hips sag or have the hips to high in the air. You want to aim for a straight line, although our curves can get in the way 
Chest Press on a Ball
2.) Chest Press- Everyone wants flab free arms and pecs like the Olympic Swimmers and chest press will help you achieve this. Try this exercise on a balance ball (as pictured above) starting with 5-10 pound weights. Perform 3 sets of 10-15 repetitions of this exercise.
Hamstring Stretch
3.) Hamstring Stretch- Impressed by the Gymnast’s incredible flexibility? Try this basic hamstring stretch (pictured above). Don’t be frustrated if your leg doesn’t get very high. Consistency pays off with this exercise so don’t give up!
Tricep Push-Ups
4.) Tricep Push Ups- Want terrific triceps like the rowers? Try these tricep dips (pictured above) for 3 sets of 15-20 repetitions. Be careful not to put too much weight into your feet, keeping the focus on the elbows bending. Be careful with this exercise though…it is not meant for those with weak wrists.
©Nikol Klein All photos used in this blog are copyright protected. The removal or use of any information including photographs is strictly prohibited by law without the permission of Nikol Klein.
I want to share with you an exercise that I designed a few weeks ago for my clients who are looking to cinch a sexy waist for summer. The exercise is called “Spider Abs” and will directly target the oblique abdominal muscles and the waist. I have been using this exercise with both my San Diego personal training clients and my Ballet Strength clients. Add this exercise to your next workout!
The New Year is here and it’s time for a fresh start. While it is impossible to erase the mistakes or over indulgences of 2011, the New Year is the perfect time to make positive changes and add healthy choices to your lifestyle. It can seem overwhelming at first so be careful not to implement too many changes into your life all at once. Here are a few simple habits that you can add to your daily routine for a healthier year.
Eat your veggies- Eating more veggies means better digestion. Try snacking on some raw carrots or celery instead of reaching for the convenient granola bar and you will notice a big difference in your tummy. With better digestion comes less bloat!
Spend less time online- If you’re self-employed, chances are you use social media for marketing, but sometimes valuable marketing time can turn into personal use. Monitor your time on websites like Facebook and Twitter and save personal interactions for after work hours.
Exercise more- Whether you choose to work with a personal trainer or test your luck on your own, exercising more will leave you feeling energized in 2012. Working out is a great way to relieve stress, improve overall mood, and of course improve cardiovascular endurance and muscular appearance.
Ditch soda- I know you hear this one all of the time but you really do need to be drinking water and nothing else. The average person should be consuming half of their body weight in ounces of water each day!
Have fun- This is the most important thing to try to do more of this year. If you’re not enjoying life or feel stuck in the “daily grind,” you need to find someway to fix it. I am a true believer that you should always love what you do.
If you have a busy travel schedule you know just how hard it is to find time to workout. Sure, hotel gyms are nice but sometimes you just want to relax in the comfort of your own room. Here is a butt boosting exercise that you can do anywhere, no equipment required.
Chair Hip Bridges – This is an easy yet highly effective glute, hamstring and inner thigh exercise that can be done virtually anywhere.
Start lying down with your heels resting on the edge of a chair.
Start as pictured above with your heels resting on the edge of a chair. Keeping your hands planted firmly on the ground, begin to lift (or bridge) your hips upward until you reach a point where your hips are high enough to be in a straight line with the knees. Return to the start position and repeat. Perform this exercise at a moderate to fast pace in sets of 20 for maximum benefits.
Bridge the hips up as high as you can.
Try three to four sets of this exercise for an extra booty boost while you are traveling next time or even over the holiday! You’ll feel the burn most certainly.
Eating Made Simple- For the Working Woman
If you are like most San Diego Women these days you work, take care of the kids, enjoy the company of friends, travel or all of the above. We all know that eating healthy is about planning and preparation. Not all of us have the time to prepare a healthy meal each night, so we often fall short of our nutrition goals by eating out. The following is an idea that I have developed to help you set up an entire week of healthy eating in advance! It’s called the Sunday Pre-Pack.
The Sunday Pre-Pack is setting aside 3 hours or so every Sunday to write out your menu for the week, shop for the week, and prepare your meals for the week. Once you have decided which meals you will be having (your trainer can help you with this), hit the grocery store. Make sure you get enough because this grocery list will have to cover 7 days. When you return home, start cooking!
Lunch, daytime snacks, and shakes often present the most problems, so they should definitely be made in advance. You can cook all of the meat and chop up all of the fruits and veggies that you will need for those meals on Sunday. Have them ready in storage containers so that you can grab them in the morning before heading out to work regardless of the kind of day your boss may have in store for you.
If you don’t have a blender set up at work, check out hand held blenders like The Magic Bullet. This way you can make your protein shakes on-the-go. If this isn’t ideal, you can even pre blend your shakes at home and store them in the fridge at work.
The Sunday Pre-Pack will ensure that you do not go hungry or skip meals during the day. With a few hours of preparation and careful planning you will be sure to reach your weight loss goals!
First off, I want to say that I am having so much fun testing out the Easy Tone shoes! Yesterday’s workout video already has over 150 views on YouTube and Reebok has even watched it! I hope to continue representing their product in a positive way. So here’s how the last two days went with the Easy Tones…
Friday morning I woke up sore from yesterdays workout. I could be looking too far into it, but I think the Reebok Easy Tone shoes contributed. I work out pretty much all day as a San Diego Personal Trainer, so I have a pretty high tolerance when it comes to muscle soreness. The most noticeable soreness was in the backs of my knees or the gastrocnemius and plantaris muscles. Today my glutes are a bit sore particularly in the area surrounding my tail bone.
Tomorrow I conduct my La Jolla Boot Camp and I am hoping to try out my Reebok Easy Tones at the beach. The jogging portion of my Boot Camp will be a sure test as to how effective these shoes are for running. I’m just super bummed that I will have to get them all sandy and messy to test this part out! I would love to have multiple pairs of Easy tones to experiment with, but they are so darn hard to find. (Reebok, if you’re reading this, I would love the opportnity to test out your running and training prototype shoes)
Looks like Kendra Wilkinson likes the Easy Tones too!
So cross your fingers that San Diego is rain-free tomorrow so that I get a chance to try out my Easy Tones at the La Jolla Beach Boot Camp!
Stay tuned for more…
