FITNESS, BLOG & MOTIVATION influenced by Metal Music
Happy Sweaty Halloween – EXERCISES
With Power Speed Metal building power and improving speed? What could be more fit than a training with medicine ball aka pumpkin to Helloween songs.
Sweat-inducing exercises that are not only perfect for Halloween and give our muscles real power, but also do our body centre a favour. The additional weight means that the torso muscles have to provide a balancing stability. In addition to the muscles addressed in the individual exercise, the abdominal and back muscles are also strengthened as well.
By the way, you can do the Happy Sweaty Halloween EXERCISES all year round. Then with a real medicine ball…
When performing the EXERCISES you should go along with the music. Just listen to the beat. You can do the exercises fast or slow. Alternatively you can for example go up to three at the crunches and back again at the last beat. Or vice versa. The possibilities vary depending on the exercise. Just try it out.
You should do roundabout 24 to 32 (by training with the beats) repetitions per exercise. Because then we train our strength endurance. This means that we can endure longer periods of repetitive stress. So longer front row at the next Helloween concert!
Pausing in between is permitted (except in the front row!). If you run out of breath, just listen to the nice sounds and get back in later. Between the exercises you can of course loosen up again and again.
Happy Sweaty Halloween – EXERCISES
HALLOWEEN
To get into the mood for the theme, we warm up with the song “Halloween”. There are no limits to your imagination: dance in the kitchen, on the cornfield or wherever you are, play the air guitar or bang your head. Swing your arms and legs around like a mad monster and fly like a bat. It is important that you move your whole body and get the circulation going for the upcoming training.
MR. TORTURE
Lunge
We begin in the upright position. Belly and bottom are tensed. Take the pumpkin between your hands.
From a standing position take a step forward. The knee of the back leg bends towards the floor, but does not touch the floor. At the same time your arms are stretched out. Belly and bottom are still tensed. Return to the upright position and repeat on the other side.
Lunge – Rotation
Starting from the lower position of the lunge …
… first turn your upper body and pumpkin to one side, back to the middle and then to the other. The hip remains stable. The rotation takes place exclusively from the middle of the body. Repeat the exercise with the other leg in front.
Side Lunge
From an upright position give one leg to the side. Stretch the leg to the side and bend the knee in the standing position. Belly and bottom remain tight. Return to the standing position and repeat the movement to the other side.
Wood Chops
While standing, the knees are bent slightly. Now pull the arms together with the pumpkin sideways backwards down next to the body. From there it goes into the stretch upwards to the other side…
… so that you describe a diagonal curve. The exercise is done with body tension: That means abdomen is in, tucked in buttocks firmly and move without swinging. After the number of repetitions sufficient for you, train the other side.
I WANT OUT
Bicep Curl
Now we do something for our upper arms: When standing you slowly bend your forearms up and down from your elbows.
We like to use the full range of movement, so start at the lowest point and lift the pumpkin as high as possible.
One Leg Squat
For the very stable among you an exercise for advanced: The one leg squat with pumpkin. Pay attention to your body tension!
Tricep Press
The Tricep Press helps against unattractive wiggling muscles on the upper arms. Raises the pumpkin with stretched arms over the head …
… and leads it behind the head to the upper back. Maintain the torso tension here as well.
Stutter Steps
With your arms still stretched out upwards, take a small step forward. The upper body is also slightly forward.
Now bring the knee of the back leg and the pumpkin together. If you have a good balance, don’t put your leg on the ground when you go back, but let it float briefly above it with every repetition. And also change sides here.
DR. STEIN
Side-to-Side-Tap
Starting from a wide straddle stand…
… you lead the pumpkin to the small toe of one foot. The corresponding knee is bent. The booty pulls back, the back remains straight and the stomach tense.
Come up again…
… and repeat the movement to the other side.
Arm Raises
For the arm raises you take the pumpkin tight between your hands, let your arms hang, bend your knees a little and lean forward a tiny bit.
Now lead the pumpkin up over your head with your arms stretched out – without getting any swing, but with tension all over your body.
Pumpkin Swings
For the Pumpkin Swings you may now gain momentum. Swing the pumpkin in the bent light straddle stand from below behind …
… upwards.
Side Chops
Similar to the Side Lunges, the Side Chops rotate the torso muscles. In a slightly more than hip-width position with lightly bent knees, the outstretched arms and pumpkin are first rotated …
… to one side, back to the middle and then to the other. The legs and hips remain firm, abdomen and bottom still tense.
GORGAR
Singel Leg Balance
Concentrate on one leg. This will be your first standing leg. Tense the whole body. Now lift the other leg slowly. At the same time extend your arms – including the pumpkin – forward.
Repeat this exercise on the other side as well. Two or three repetitions per side are sufficient for the balance exercises. The primary aim here is to train the balance.
Thigh Pumpkin Circles
For the Thigh Pumpkin Circles you focus again on a main leg. The other leg is lifted and bent in the knee. Circle the pumpkin around the thigh of the bent leg.
Repeat the circles on the other side. Again, two to three repetitions per leg are enough.
Boat Arm Raises
Sit on the floor, lift your upper body and legs and bends your lower legs. Your whole body is under tension. The pumpkin is at chest height between your hands.
Hold the body tension and lead the pumpkin up with stretched arms. As this exercise is very strenuous, you may do as many or as few repetitions as you want.
Bridge
Lie down comfortably. Your arms are next to your body. Place your feet on the pumpkin, your knees are bent.
Tense your whole body and lift up your back, buttocks and thighs. Hold briefly and lower again.
WHY?
Pumpkin Push Ups
For the push-ups you support yourselves with both hands on the pumpkin. The body forms – completely tensed – a straight line.
Now bend your elbows and come down. Breathing is important here: When you go down, the gravity helps, you breathe in. And during the effort, i.e. when going up, you breathe out again. Whoever creates two or three repetitions is really top! After this effort you are allowed to rest for a little while.
One Pumpkin Push Up
In this variation of the push-ups you support yourself with only one hand on the pumpkin and with the other hand on the ground. Here too, body tension and breathing are very important.
Inhale with tensed body, come down and exhale, come up again. Once you’ve done one or a few repetitions, rest again!
Pumpkin Climbers
And once again, you will lean completely on the pumpkin.
Now pull your knees alternately towards the pumpkin close to your body.
Bug Crunches
After so many exhausting support exercises we are now on the ground. In the supine position you wriggle like a beetle falling on its back. But, of course, with body tension. Lift the shoulder girdle alternately and pull the pumpkin sideways past the pulled leg.
MR. EGO (TAKE ME DOWN)
Toe Touches
For the toe touches you stretch your legs and arms completely upwards.
Now pull the outstretched arms together with the pumpkin as additional weight towards your toes. Also here the shoulder girdle stands out from the mat and should not be completely taken off again but always float a few centimetres above the ground.
Crunches
For the classic crunches, you move your upper body up with the strength of your abdominal muscles alone. The range of movement is not very large if you work only with the ABS. The same rules here: lift – exhale, lay down – inhale.
The crunches are varied with diagonal movements to the right and left of the knees.
Pumpkin Pull Over
During this exercise your upper body may remain on the mat. Raise your outstretched arms, the pumpkin firmly between your hands.
Now lead the pumpkin with outstretched arms behind your head. Please always squeeze your hands tightly. When you almost reach the ground, the pumpkin is not put down, but returned to its starting position.
Roll Ups
And now you’ve done it! Last exercise: Put the pumpkin behind your head and stretch out your legs. Now build up tension in the whole body …
… and comes exhaling, with stretched arms and only with the strength of the torso muscles …
… up to sitting. If you’ve repeated this a few times – again you don’t have to do 24 repetitions as the exercise is very strenuous – you’ve more than earned it: The Happy Stretchy Halloween COOL DOWN.
The COOL DOWN
Congratulations! Super done! Your whole body has really worked hard now. To tell him that he can now go into relaxation mode in a very restful way, there is the Happy Stretchy Halloween COOL DOWN. You can find it here.
