Maybe I’m pretending to smile. Or maybe I’m not. Photo credit: Bree-Ann Merritt Photography

Last week I shared the first of several Fit Story posts that will making an appearance on the Carrots and Cake blog. My good friend and personal trainer Chinwe Asagwara shared insights on her company HEAL, her personal food philosophy and other good stuff. If you didn’t have a chance to read through it, click here! This time around Chinwe’s sharing a quick workout routine that requires very little in the way of equipment (and time)!

The luxury of this workout is you can effectively complete it AT HOME. Be sure to move at your own pace and get help with proper form. When it comes to any change, you want to work at it slowly and celebrate your progression. For those of us that find it difficult to schedule in activity this type of quick and minimal-equipment workout 2 – 3 times a week will become as much a part of our day as brushing our teeth or showering.

Now, I’ll let Chinwe do the talking:

Hi! *insert waves* Let me show you how you can easily get a great workout done right at home! All you will need is a water bottle, mat or towel, added resistance from a resistance band or large soup cans and your own body weight. If you are unfamiliar with any of the exercises you can research them on Youtube for demos. Let’s start by getting warmed up!

Warm Up:

Complete exercise A through H one after another. Complete 10 repetitions of each exercise.

1. Arm Circles
2. Alternated Forward Lunge
3. Standing Knee Pulls
4. March/Walking in place (side to side = 1 rep)
5. Alternated Backward Lunge
6. Jogging in place
7. Butt Kickers
8. Jumping Jacks

Now the fun part… The workout!

Complete 3 sets of 15 repetitions for each group of exercises A, B and C.

A1. Body Weight Squats to Weighted Shoulder Press
A2. Jumping Jacks
A3. Sit Ups

B1. Bent Over Rows with weight or resistance band
B2. Push Ups
B3. Jump Squats

C1. Lateral Jump Squat
C2. Standing Lateral Raise with weights or resistance band
C3. Superman

Great work! Now lets finish up with a cool down…

1. Standing Toe Reach – Standing tall and upright, reach overhead with both hands. Bend forward reaching for your toes. Hold for 20-30 seconds. Then release the movement standing back upright.
2. Cobra Stretch – Lying face down on your towel or matt in a push up position, push yourself up to your hips. Hold the position for 20-30 seconds. Release the movement by coming back down to your matt or towel.
3. Kneeling Lunge – Come up onto both knees. Place your right foot in front, and kneel forward. Release the stretch and compete the same movement on the opposite side.
4. Complete your cool down with a few long deep breaths (in through the nose and out through the mouth) and shoulder rolls.

HIGH FIVE! You are done!

Now that you’ve caught your breath, be sure to visit Chinwe’s website!

– With Love, Carrots and Cake,