Bench Taps

First off, I would like to apologize for not having a post out on Thursday, again. Something seems off with my Thursdays, but I promise to get it together :) To make up for it, I will be doing another post on Sunday! It is still up in the air whether the post will be a This Week in Workouts, or something completely different. Either way, I hope you enjoy it and have an absolutely wonderful weekend!

This weekend the hubs and I are going to see The Hunger Games and I can seriously not wait! Ahh, there is so much excitement in me that I just want to shake a table!!! Who is team Peta+Katniss? I am!!

Before the movie we are going to one of my favorite restaurants downtown that I have not been to in about a year. I honestly did not think we could get in since we are going with a large group of friends, but they were able to take us at the right time when all other places had NOTHING available. Yes, season has definitely struck our little vacation town.

My plan right now is to do about 500 of this bench tap challenge before we go to dinner since they have ridiculously good lobster mac n' cheese. I am sure half the portion is more fat than one should eat in a week, and let's not even start on those carbs. Bench taps are so, so great for the core, the upper thighs, and the bum- pretty much every area us ladies like to work on the most. They are also a massive cardio and plyometric workout. Seriously. My goal today is to complete, at least, 50 reps per leg (100 total) after my morning jog. It will be intense, but so is that lobster mac n' cheese ;)

If you are not sure how to complete a bench tap, this has a great illustration. Pretty much, it is just knee-ups but you stand in front of a bench and tap the elevated foot on the bench top. Simple, not easy!

How many can you do?

Do You Like Biking?

Funny, the hubs and I like biking on vacations but do not actually own bikes back home. We have talked about getting bikes a few times since we live so close to a few different parks with great biking paths, but we have never gone far enough to buy the things. I think if we lived here though, that would be completely different. Isn't this bike path incredible?

A night bike ride through this park would almost seem magical when the path comes to life. The bike path was recently unveiled by Studio Roosegaarde and is based on Vincent Van Gogh's The Starry Night painting. The Gogh-Roosegaard Bicycle Path using both LEDs and special paint that gathers light during the day and reflects it at night.

The lit bike path serves a double purpose since it is safer to use at night and the pain make lighting it more energy efficient. I am stunned by how beautiful a bike path can be and, in honor of its opening, found some pretty great cycling intervals for all you bike lovers out there!

And just to sweeten the deal, one hour of riding a bicycle can burn anywhere from 200 calories on a leisurely ride to over 1,000 calories at a racing speed! Chances are that you will burn between 500-600 calories an hour doing any one of the workouts below.

Bicycling is also a great way for those with knee, hip, or back issues to get in a great workout. There is almost no impact on joints but the repetitive motion helps lubricate and ease movement.

PopSugar has created a great 30-minute bicycle workout for the novices and bike professionals alike. I cannot wait to try this one out!

This 30-minute ride from Shape is a bit easier than PopSugar's, but will give you a great workout all the same :)

This HIIT workout promises to torch 200 calories in 20-minutes. That is time management at it's finest.

If you are looking for a challenge, this one is an hour long advanced workout for those who want to sweat and, probably, burn upwards of 800 calories!