4 Body Fat-Melting Exercises You Can Do This Spring
It's officially spring and time to shake off those winter pounds, and if your exercise routine is becoming, well, routine, then it's time to shake it up and get more bang for your buck! The secret to that is not exercising more, but smarter and adding compound exercises to your old routine!
Our bodies adapt quickly to repetitive movement, which can cause us to plateau in the same old workout. One person who knows a thing or two about this is Liz Hilliard, the creator and owner of Hilliard Studio Method. At the age of 70, Liz credits the addition of compound exercises, including adding resistance work and weights into her routine, as the key to keeping her body stronger than ever.
Here are four Hilliard Studio Method compound exercises to pump up the strength and the sculpt and keep your brain powered up and guessing!
Concentration Bicep Curl
Standing with a weight in each hand, cross one ankle over the other thigh making a figure four shape in the legs. Bring the arms to a 90-degree bend at the elbows palms to the sky. Slightly bend the standing leg and curl the weights toward shoulders. As you extend the standing leg, kick the figure four leg out straight in front of you and extend the weights down by the thighs. As you return to figure four in the legs, return the arms to 90 degrees. A squat and kick with a full range bicep curl makes one rep. Try 10-15 reps on each leg.
The Expert Says: "This complex compound exercise works biceps, quads, glutes, and core. This is one of our top balance exercises at Hilliard Studio Method. Combining these movements together goes way beyond the physical by adding important neurological benefits as well!"
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Curtsy Lunge Overhead Press
Place the body in a curtsy lunge position. With one foot forward, knee stacked over ankle and toes facing forward, step the other leg back like a lunge but on the back diagonal so you can just see the toes on the outside of the front glute. Keep the torso square forward, shoulders stacked over hips. This position will more deeply work the outer thigh, glute, and waist. Next,holding a weight in each hand, bring arms into a field goal position with elbows in line with shoulders and wrists stacked over elbows at 90 degrees. Bend the back knee as you press and arc weights overhead into a delt press. Press into the front heel to drive back up to straight legs as arms lower back to field goal position. That is one rep. Try 10-15 reps each leg.
The Expert Says: "This exercise works the obliques, glutes, quads, and most of all shoulders! Because this exercise is so complex your body works extra hard to achieve the move creating a concerted effort of body, mind, and strength in one complete exercise."
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Curtsy Hinge Triceps Kickback
From the curtsy lunge overhead press bring weights to chest. Forward fold at the hips until the chest hovers over the front leg, making a straight line from shoulders to hips to heels. Bring the weights to either side of the chest, elbows high, palms facing. Extend the arms behind you by flexing the triceps. As the arms extend, raise the front heel by pressing into the ball of the foot to challenge your balance and core as well as calf and quad. Bend the elbows and lower the heel to complete one rep. Try 10-15 reps each leg.
The Expert Says: "Taking the curtsy move into a hinge ensures more core engagement and increases the resistance on the lower body as well! The heavier the weight you add the more efficient the exercise becomes for your total body."
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HSM Pushup
From plank position, walk hands wider than shoulders, elbows gently turned out. Lift one leg in the air, bend the knee and crunch it in toward the chest, extend the leg back out straight. While keeping the leg in the air, lower the body by bending the elbows until the chest is in line with the elbows and then straighten the arms to return to start. One rep is a leg crunch and extension plus a pushup bend and press. Complete 8-10 each leg. To modify, put the floating toe down on the pushup or lower the supporting leg knee to the mat.
The Expert Says: "This is my all-time favorite push-up! You will literally work every muscle in your body in the most efficient, core-centric way to sculpt your body. If you could only choose one HSM exercise, this is the one! The results will astound you!"
