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Mar 10 2015
5

Bow Extension Ab Workout

By | Train | No Comments

Our RAD trainer is working hard to help us get our body right with this summer workout plan. Abs are always a concern after our winter hibernation so Tess has us doing bow extensions; they’ll not only work our abs and obliques, but help tone our lower back and arms. You’ll want to do 3-4 sets of 10-15 reps on each side.

  1. Hold a dumbbell in both hands above your right shoulder and point your left foot out to the side.
  2. bowextension1In one motion, draw your elbows down to lower the weight as you bend your left knee toward your chest. Reverse the movement to return to start. That’s one rep. Perform the suggested number of reps, then switch sides and repeat.

bow extension 2

 

Do bow extensions 3 days a week and you’ll be seeing results in no time.

Feb 16 2015
10

Standing Twist Ab Workout

By | Train | No Comments

standingtwist

We’re still trying to get our torso tight without having to get our crunch on. Because our office trainer is sick of hearing us complain about our not ready bikini bodies, but hating sit ups she came up with a series of no sit up ab work outs. Tess tells us side bends are not only great for your ab’s, but you’re also going to be working your back and obliques with this full range of motion! Here’s Tess’s tips for perfect standing torso twists:

  • Engage your abs and stand with feet hip width apart with 5 or 10 lb. dumbbells
  • Keep your arms straight and pelvis stable while you slowly rotate from left to right
  • Keep your abs pulled towards your spine as you rotate from side to side
Feb 04 2015
9

Side Bend Ab Workout

By | Train | One Comment

side-bends

We get so tired of sit ups and curls, so we turned to our in house fitness pro Tess to help us work our pouch on our feet. Tess says, “This exercise will work your obliques and help you stretch at the same time. Do these reps slowly in a controlled motion.” 

  • Stand with your feet hip-width apart with 5 lb. dumbbells
  • Bend sideways to the right, squeezing your waist on the right side. Keep your neck as neutral as possible, looking forward not down
  • Pull the left ribs down to return to standing upright. This focuses the work on the left obliques
  • Repeat for a total of 12 bends to the right, then switch sides
  • Do three sets
Dec 08 2014
4

Holiday Plank Challenge

By | Train | 5 Comments

We get it, it’s the holidays; it’s hard to leave the house when there’s a fire roaring, treats on the counter, and family/friends gathered close. But be warned, the holidays are a month long! That’s 4 weeks for your body to go from taut to not. With our month plank challenge you can stay one step ahead of those New Year’s resolution makers.  It’s hard to believe the power of the plank until you try it. You’ll build a strong core with this deceptively simple exercise.

Here’s some tips from our RAD trainer Tess, to plank your way to perfection!
-Place your forearms on the ground and line up your elbows directly underneath your shoulders.
-Curl your toes under and lift your body off the ground.
-Squeeze your glutes and tighten your abdominals. Do not let your hips sag!
-Maintain a neutral neck and straight line from your head to your toe.

plankchallenge

Nov 18 2014
2

Full House Workout

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Remember when your mom thought you were so lazy, spending your days laughing with the Tanners? Well prove her wrong by incorporating an indoor workout to your regularly scheduled TV program. Follow the chart for an easy way to add some fitness into your day and get the body DJ Tanner dreamed about without eating only ice cubes.

full-house-workout

 

Nov 13 2014
1

Winter Workouts from the Comfort of Your Home

By | Train | One Comment

A wise man once said “Winter is coming.” and what he followed that up with “so get ready to workout inside”. Now that Jack Frost is back in town we’re looking for ways to spice up our workout routine, and trying not to get stuck with that extra holiday weight. Winter makes us so lazy we don’t even want to leave the warmth of our own home, so we’ve turned to fitness streaming and DVD’s.  These are our favorite workout programs that you can stream or do it the old fashioned way and pull out your DVD player.

The Bar Method 

We love fulfilling our childhood ballerina dreams with this DVD. The workout is great because it helps you get into positions that target specific muscles and work your way to that perfect dancers dent.  Can be bought here.

bar-method-DVD

Hula Hoop 

The hula hoop may not come to mind when you think about working out, but it should! Nothing helps us keep our muffin top in check like a weighted hula hoop. Whether you’re a hooping pro or a novice to the hula, you can do this. Full disclosure; the weighted hula hoop can make your torso sore for a couple of days, but that will fade. Check here for a full kit!

hula-hoop-workout

Dancing With The Stars: Sizzle and Groove Latin Dance 

Doing this workout is just like watching your favorite tv show, but with more sweat. We love this version because it promises to make us “sizzle” and we need to acquire all the heat we can in those winter months. Can be purchased here.

dancing-with-the-stars-DVD

Anyway you choose to sweat through winter, you’ll be ready to run RAD. Get on the email list, and be the first to know when your city opens!

 

 

 

 

Nov 06 2014
0

Drop It Like A Squat

By | Train | 3 Comments

In the world of working out, squats are the A list celebrities (coincidentally any celebrity rocking that booty got it with squat workouts). Squats are the perfect exercise. Not only are you strengthening your quads, hamstrings, and calves, but you’re building muscle throughout your entire body. Squats are also key for injury prevention and they’ll also help you maintain mobility and balance. Our office trainer Tess gives these tips for good squat form:

– Weight on your heels

– Chest up and chin lifted, looking straight ahead

-Bend your knees so they track over your toes and don’t cave in

– Keep your Core engaged

We’re on day 20 of this squat challenge and not only are we feeling overall stronger, but we finally feel like we’re the kinda girl Sir Mix-A-Lot would be singing about.

squat-challenge

 

Oct 22 2014
0

Breast Cancer Awareness and One Rad Runner

By | Blog, Hall of Fame, Train | One Comment

Meet Linda, a RAD runner from Hartford!

breast-cancer-awarness

Linda spent several years training as a long distance runner and was then diagnosed with breast cancer. Linda continued running through chemo and made it through 10 miles of a half marathon while in the midst of chemo treatments. In Linda’s own words:

 

I was diagnosed with breast cancer and used running to get me through chemo – I had signed up for a half marathon – I managed to get through the first 10 miles before the chemo kicked in. I have completed 2 – 10 mile races and a number of fun runs…  I am signed up for 2 half marathons the beginning of 2016 – I am going to cross the finish line…

 

This month we celebrate Linda and all other RAD runners by spreading the word about breast cancer awareness.

Oct 14 2014
1

Get a 6 Pack Without Sit Ups

By | Blog, Train | 3 Comments

Summer may be over, but that doesn’t mean we want our ab’s to bulk up with our sweaters. We reached out to our RAD fitness guru Tess who gave up ab work out tips and none of them are sit ups! Tess says, These 3 ab exercises will strengthen your core get you closer to a 6 pack by working different ab muscle groups.

Try to work up to doing 3 sets of all 3 exercises in the circuit.

six=pack-workout

Alternating Heel Touches – 25 times on each side.

Lie down with your back on the ground with your knees bent and feet spread shoulder width apart. Lift your shoulders off the ground. With straight arms touch your left heel and then right heel for 1 rep. Keep your back flat on the mat and neck relaxed while moving from one side to the other.

Reverse Crunch- Do 25

Lie on your back with knees bent 90 degrees. Tighten your core muscles and lift your feet off the ground until your knees are over your hips while maintaining a 90 degree angle with your knees. Slowly bring your feet back to the ground. This exercise is most effective when done in a slow and controlled manner and you will feel your lower abs working the hardest.

Tuck Ups- Do 25

Lie on the ground with your legs straight in front of you and arms straight above your head. Lift your legs and shoulders a few inches off the ground to achieve a hollow position. From this starting position, tuck your thighs up to your chest and sit up. Return to the starting hollow position for one rep.
Thanks to Tess we’re now mixing up our ab routine and feeling good all through fall! To never miss out on a tip from Tess, get on our mailing list!

Oct 03 2014
0

5 Ways to Keep Kids Moving

By | Blog, Train | One Comment

As summer temperatures cool into fall and kids head back to their desks at school it can take a little effort to make sure your kids are staying active. And let’s face it, “Who wants to exercise?” doesn’t sound very appealing to most of the young set. The trick is to make play active. Your kids will be so busy having fun, they won’t realize they’re benefiting physically. Here are a few ideas that will help your kids set down the after-school video games and start moving! kid-workout

  1. Nerf Gun Battle Royale: What kid doesn’t enjoy surveillance, teamwork, and shooting Nerf darts? Set up a station for each team far enough apart to ensure the kids will have to run back and forth in battle. Anyone hit by a dart is out. In this version, the winning team turns their darts on each other. The last person standing is the Battle Royale winner. Your kids will run miles trying to beat the darts, and they won’t even know it.

 

  1. Trampoline Fun: Sometimes we don’t think about jumping as a form of exercise, but according to the Center for Disease Control, when done safely, jumping on a trampoline counts as a moderate level of exercise intensity, putting it on par with light yoga and gymnastics. Many cities have indoor trampoline gyms, so jumping can be done in any weather, and 9 out of 10 kids won’t say no to that outing.

 

  1. Ultimate Tag: If you went back into history, the game of tag would probably be the oldest one. It’s a classic game that encourages running away from the player who’s “It.”  In Ultimate tag every player is “It.” Anyone who is tagged has to sit down. When the player who tagged them is tagged, they get back into the game. It’s fast paced, so there is more running and less sitting than most games of tag. Sound exhausting just reading about it? It is. And that’s a good thing.

 

  1. Ropes Course: Some kids are mini adrenaline junkies. They enjoy the thrill of heights, laugh in the face of zip lines, and dream of narrow balance beams. For those types of kids, or even to encourage the others, ropes courses are a great way to actively enjoy physical challenges. There are indoor and outdoor ropes courses that allow kids to move and climb, or you can set up your own mini course at home. Make a bridge out of chairs, jump off a pile of pillows, ride your bike around the driveway, and then crawl across the room with the dog – let your creativity guide you and your kids will follow.

 

  1. Fun 5Ks: Ask a kid if they want to run 3 miles and you may get a blank stare in return. Ask a kid if they want to get covered in color with their friends, and you might be voted Parent of the Year. At Color Me Rad kids are having so much fun tie-dying their t-shirt in the color stations, that they won’t notice the distance. And when they realize they completed a 5K, they’ll have bragging rights at school. Win-win.

Tell us what you do to keep your kids active below, and sign up to run together at colormerad.com.