B Strong, Build Stability: Gliding Arm & Core Burner

Ohhhh man!! Working your arms & chest with gliders is a sure fire way to improve stability in your shoulders & get a serious, sweaty burn. I love this combination because it works hard-to-target muscles that are responsible for protecting your shoulders & spine, both while working out & in general, 24/7!

If you don't have a LYNX board, you can use gliders, and if you don't have gliders, use hand towels on a smooth surface.

Here's the series:
A. 1 Inch Worm (feet front-back) + 1 Glide Out Push-up x 5-8 reps
B. Alternating 1 Arm Gliding Push-ups x 10-20 reps (5-10/arm)
Alternate between A & B w/ as little rest as possible for 2-4 sets.

FORM:
***During every moment of every exercise, your lats MUST be engaged --- pull your shoulders away from your ears, keep your neck long and shoulders braced in such a way that they are not covering your neck.***
[Plank Inch Worm]
- Begin in push-up position w/ lats engaged, legs straight, glutes & core squeezed tight
- Keeping arms straight & legs straight, tip toe feet toward hands as you lift your hips toward the ceiling
- Only go as far as you can w/out bending your knees a ton, then tip toe your feet back until you're in your beginning plank position
[Glide Out Push-up]
- Begin in push-up position w/ hands on gliders, lats engaged, legs straight, glutes & core squeezed tight
- Keeping abs tight, pelvis neutral, spine straight, arms straight, lats engaged & shoulders away from ears, glide hands straight forward in front of shoulders until you lay on your belly
- Don't bend your knees, otherwise they'll drive down into the floor & that won't feel amazing...
- Glide your hands back under your shoulders, tuck your toes, keep your elbows close to your body, then push up off the floor
[1 Arm Glider Push-up] --- can be done on knees or on toes
- Keeping pelvis neutral & spine straight, 1 arm bends like a standard push-up while the other stays straight & glides diagonally, (to "1:30 or 2 o'clock")
- Press the gliding hand down into the floor as you pull it back under your shoulder as you press back up to your starting position
- Repeat w/ the other arm gliding & continue alternating each rep

Get ready to feel those laughing muscles tomorrow! Tell me when you understand what I mean ;-) on FB/IG/TW @cassiebstrong!

B Strong,

Cassie B.

B Strong, Build Stability: Stability Ball Shoulder & Core Burner

The stability ball should be a staple tool for those of you who generally workout at home and have a small budget for equipment - this thing is KILLER!

This exercise is fantastic for improving the stability of your shoulder joint and your core, while strengthening your chest, triceps, deltoids and abs. I'll warn you, it's not easy, so if you need to begin with just the walk & roll that's totally fine! You will definitely feel the burn in your shoulders & abs. Once you're feeling confident enough, add the push-up, and again, once you feel good about that, make it an atomic push-up... BOOM!

FORM:
- Lay pelvis on stability ball w/ hands & toes resting on floor
- Squeeze glutes to lift straight legs up behind you & squeeze ankles together
- Engage lats by pulling shoulders away from your ears
- Walk hands forward so ball rolls down body until it's supporting your shins, (the farther down your legs you go, the harder it will be)
- Keep your glutes squeezed tight & abs pulled in tight to keep your pelvis and spine neutral
- Do a single push-up, pushing explosively on the way up as you crunch your knees into your chest
- Immediately extend legs back to plank w/ glutes & abs squeezed tight
- Keeping your body stiff as a board, walk your hands back toward the ball so that it rolls back up your body until it is supporting your pelvis

Perform 10-15 reps for 2-4 sets; 45-90sec rest between sets OR incorporate into a circuit of exercises.

How do those shoulders feel?! Tell me on FB/IG/TW @cassiebstrong!

B Strong,

Cassie B.

B Strong, Build Stability: TRX Shoulder Stability Drill

The TRX is an incredible tool for developing core and joint stability. If you find your balance and stability need improvement, or if you simply wish to recruit as many muscles as possible into your exercises, I highly recommend grabbing this tool.

These exercises focus on strengthening the muscles that stabilize and protect your shoulders while working your core and strengthening your shoulders, chest and upper back. This will absolutely challenge and stress your shoulder joints if you aren't mindful of the resistance you're creating with the angle of your body. Whether you're facing toward or away from the TRX, if you walk toward the anchor point, you will increase the resistance. In short: too easy? walk your feet closer to the anchor point. Too hard? Walk your feet away from it.

Here's the drill:
- Alternate between 1 "Alligator" Shoulder Raise & 1 Reverse Fly
- Alternate between 1 Roll Out & 1 Chest Fly
- For each combo, alternate until you've performed each exercise 10x.
- Alternate between each combo until you've completed 2-4 sets of each.

FORM:
***For every exercise below: focus on lat engagement. Shoulders actively pulling downward to lengthen neck and lock shoulder joints in place.***
[Alligator Shoulder Raise]
- Lean back off of the TRX, arms straight, top hand palm down, bottom hand palm up.
- Keeping arms straight & elbows soft, pull top hand toward ceiling & bottom hand toward floor with equal force.
- Pull until arms are nearly aligned parallel to your body.
- Make sure the straps are pulled tight - if you're standing upright and the straps have slacked off... well, I'll just say it's not really the straps that are slacking ;-)
- As you lower your body back & bring your hands back toward one another, do so with control - don't let your body fall back just because you know the strap will catch you!
[Reverse Fly]
- Pinch your shoulder blades together before your arms start to open side.
- Arms are straight & elbows soft. If you need to bend your elbows, take a step back until you can do it with your arms straight.
- Pull until you're arms are open wide & you're making a T shape with your body.
- Same deal as above: when your arms are as wide as they're going to get, make sure the strap is pulled tight. And when you lower your body back, do it with control.
[Roll Out]
- Begin standing on your toes and with your fists directly in front of your shoulders. Palms face the floor.
- Keep your arms straight & elbows soft as you raise your hands up overhead and lean forward.
- Squeeze your core tight and avoid letting your lower back arch - squeeze your butt so that it doesn't happen!
- Pull your shoulders down as you push your hands down toward the floor to return back to your starting position.
[Chest Fly]
- Begin standing on your toes and with your fists directly in front of your shoulders. Palms face each other.
- Keep your arms straight & elbows soft as you open your hands and lean forward to a T shape.
- Squeeze your core tight and avoid letting your lower back arch - squeeze your butt so that it doesn't happen!
- Pull your shoulders down & squeeze your chest tight as you push yourself back upright & bring your hands back toward each other.

You'll feel your core more than you anticipate! Tell me how your shoulders feel after trying this one on IG/FB/TW @cassiebstrong!

B Strong,

Cassie B.

B Strong Greatest HIITs 2017: Battle Rope Russian Twists + Lunge Drill

Day 16! This drill works your body head to toe, and you don't stop moving until it's done! That's right, no built in breaks!! You're performing each exercise for a full 60 seconds, alternating between the 2 with no rest in between.

Here's the drill:
- 60sec of battle rope windmill russian twists
- 60sec of 5sec lunge holds + switch jumps (hold lunge for 5sec, jump & switch, hold on other side for 5sec, continue for 60sec)
- Perform for 3-5 rounds; 6-10min work

FORM:
[Battle Rope Windmill Russian Twists]
- Sit back with belly tight, lumbar spine slightly tucked, and cervical spine long
- You can dig your heels into the floor, or lift your feet up to a table top position if you'd like to challenge your core more
- Elbows soft, arms straight, one arm chases the other up and over
- Twist your entire torso side to side as you windmill your arms
[Lunge Hold + Switch Jump]
- When holding lunge, both knees are bent; shin of back leg is parallel to floor
- Front foot is flat, back foot only the ball of your foot is on the floor
- Pull your belly tight and drive through your front heel as you spring up for your switch jump
- When you land, be sure to land softly so that your knees don't experience too much impact

What burned more? Your shoulders? Your abs?? Your legs?! Tell me on IG/FB/TW @cassiebstrong!

B Strong,

Cassie B.

B Strong Greatest HIITs 2017: Landmine Legs & Shoulders Drill

DAY 8!

Improve your leg, shoulder and core strength and stability with alternating 1-Arm Thrusters to a Reverse Lunge with an Overhead Hold, then spike your heart rate with Quick Feet moving front to back over the bar. In short, this drill will build strength, improve stability and burn fat.

Here's the drill:
2 movements
45sec work; 15sec rest
A. Landmine Alternating 1-Arm Thrusters to a Reverse Lunge with an Overhead Hold
B. Quick Feet front to back over the bar
Alternate between A & B, (with 15sec rest after each exercise), for 3-5 rounds; that's 6-10 minutes of work.

If the bar is too heavy, you can totally do this exercise with a dumbbell in each hand instead! If the bar is too light, throw a plate on there to up the weight and the challenge. NOTE: With Thrusters, your legs do the majority of the work, so make sure it's heavy enough that you couldn't do an isolated shoulder press with it more than 3-4 times. This will ensure that you need to drive through your legs with serious power to get that weight up there.

FORM:
[Landmine Thruster + Reverse Lunge]
- When you squat, both hands are holding the bar, spine is straight, and core is super tight.
- The bar grows longer the lower you get, make sure you start with your feet slightly behind you when you're standing so that you don't fall over backward when you get to the bottom of your squat ;-)
- As you thrust upward and out of your squat, think about pushing the floor down away from the bar. Keep your heels on the floor and actively push them down.
- As you thrust upward, let go of the bar with one hand and drive it up over the shoulder of the hand you're holding with.
- Pull your shoulder down away from your ear as you press the weight upward, (lock in your lats!).
- Keep lats and core locked in place while you stabilize the weight overhead as you step your leg back to a reverse lunge, (the hand holding the weight up is the leg that steps back).
- As you lunge, be sure you load up your front heel with your body weight, then drive downward through that heel as you stand up.
- Alternate sides with each rep.
[Quick Feet]
- Keep your knees bent to improve your agility.
- Watch yourself! Don't step on that bar!! You could take a nasty spill or roll your ankle.
- Pump your arms and move as fast as you can!

Try this as a finisher to a total body workout and tell me how many rounds you get through on IG/TW/FB @cassiebstrong!

B Strong,

Cassie B.