AWSC’s 15 Day Fitness Challenge
Spring is officially in the air. The weather is starting to warm up more and more; so much so that it is almost time to pull out our swimsuits and shorts. The thought of doing this is more difficult for some people due to the fact that the COVID-19 quarantine has treated us all differently. Some of these summer clothes may not fit due to the unwanted “quarantine fifteen” that has snuck up on most of us. But there is no need to panic and go out and buy all new summer clothes, we still have a few more months to get our bodies back into shape just in time for the beach or pool. Here at AWSC, we are doing a 15 day fitness challenge starting on April 15 and ending on April 30! This fifteen day challenge is easy enough to squeeze into even the busiest of days, but also hard enough to get you to break a quick sweat while doing it. With this fitness challenge under your belt you are giving yourself a solid foundation to build your body into bathing suit shape!
Starting on Thursday, April 15 we are asking everyone reading this to commit to completing…
- 15 burpees
- 15 lunges
- 15 squats
- 15 jumping jacks
- 15 pushups
…everyday all the way until Friday, April 30!
Mind you, this challenge can be modified per person. Maybe you can not bring yourself to completing 15 burpees at first, then you can do as many as possible and then finish off with a plank or another exercise that you are comfortable with. Others may find this challenge too easy compared to their daily workout, if that is the case take this as an additive to your workout and complete two other sets of the circuit. We understand that everybody has a different body and their capabilities can be different from the next, so take your capabilities into account and modify as needed. Not to mention, it is important that we listen to our bodies! If you are completing your 15 squats and are beginning to feel pain in the knees, listen to the signal and stop doing that exercise. If we ignore those cues that are bodies send us we can end up causing ourselves even more pain and further injuries. Simply stop the exercise and swap out with a less intense version.
Now that you’ve heard about the challenge, how do you get started? How do you prepare your body? When do you complete these exercises? These are all valid questions and they have rather simple answers. There are many ways to prepare for a challenge such as this. One of the main things you want to do is to complete a few stretches before hand. You want to wake up your muscles and let them know that it is time to work. Without stretches and just diving into such a workout you actually increase your risk of injuring yourself. So be sure to carve out some time to warm up your body! Now, when it comes time to completing your exercises you may ask, when is the best time? This answer really depends on the person. If you only have time to complete your workout first thing in the morning, then that is the time that I recommend for you. The only thing that I suggest is that you complete your workout during the same time each day. By doing that you are actually going to develop a new habit and soon it will be second nature for you do complete a workout at “x” time. The goal when completing this challenge is to find a time that doesn’t make the activity feel like a chore. We want you to enjoy moving your body and how your body reacts to such movement!
With all of that being said, we hope that you take part in this 15 day challenge with us. You will be surprised how beneficial even a little bit of exercise can be. Exercise, even in the slightest, delivers our bodies with a number of benefits: positive mood, clearer mind, more energy, and a healthier body. However, these amazing benefits only come when partnered with the right things. You can not complete this challenge and then chow down on a fast food burger and a cola. Not only will you feel sluggish and oversaturated, you will prohibit any of those positive effects that come with working out. So for the next 15 days try out this exercise regime in addition to limiting your consumption of sugary, carb focused, inflammatory foods. The combination of steady exercise and clean eating is too great to come back from. That being said, get a jump on summer and start AWSC’s 15 day fitness challenge. Your mind and body will thank you immensely!
