Wedding Dress Workout Plan Sheath or Mermaid

style wedding dress:

 

 
List of things to know before doing weights:

·         Always skip a day between weight workouts
·         Be sure you are breathing at all times
·         For a complete workout on days you are doing only the weight workout:
·         Start with a 5-minute warm up doing light cardio like biking, walking stairs, or jogging.

·        Use the weight amount that allows you to complete 8-12 reps with perfect form.  When this   gets easy, add another set of 8-12 reps or increase the amount of weight you are using to continue getting results.

Want to workout in a group?  Find a local wedding fitness program in your neighborhood!

Walking or Standing Lunges (Works Hamstrings, Quadriceps, and Glutes)


1.  From a standing position, take a giant step forward with one leg and land on the heel of your foot.
2.      Bend both knees, slowly lowering your hips to the floor.
3.      Make sure your front knee is directly over your ankle; you should be able to see your toes at all times.
4.      Bend your back knee so that it is near but not touching the floor.
5.      Keep your weight distributed over your entire front foot.
6.      Push off with your back foot and bring it forward to standing position. Your feet should now be side by side.
7.      Continue walking forward in this fashion, switching leg positions. Start at 10 steps per each leg, and increase how many steps you do over time as this exercise becomes easier.

 Full Squats (Works Legs and Glutes)


1.      Stand with your legs shoulder width apart.
2.      Shift all your body weight onto your heels.
3.      Stick out your buttocks behind you as you lower your body toward the floor by bending your knees.
4.      Continue to lower your body until your thighs are parallel to the floor.
5.      Make sure you can see your toes past your knees at the lowest point in the exercise.
6.      Return to standing position.
7.      Repeat sequence.

                                                                    


Adductor Ball Squeeze (Works Inner Thigh, or Adductor)


1.  Lay on your back with your legs extended toward the ceiling, knees slightly bent.

2.  Place an exercise ball between your legs.

3.  Place your arms out to your sides, with your hands positioned out from your hips, hands flat on the floor.

4.  Squeeze the ball with your inner thighs.

5.  Hold for three to five seconds.

6.  Relax and rest one second, then repeat.

7.  Do 10 squeezes to start and add more reps as you feel you can.

           
Supine Bridge (Works Hamstrings, Glutes, Abdominals, and Back)


  Chest Press on Ball with Dumbbells (Works Chest and Arms)

1. Lie on the ball with the back of your head and upper back supported on the ball. Hold the dumbbells at your shoulders, next to your chest.
2. Lift your hips up so that your body makes a straight line from your shoulders to your knees (in a bridging fashion).
3. Push the dumbbells straight up above your chest.
4. Lower slowly to the start position. Your upper arms should finish parallel to the floor.
5. Repeat.

Side Leg Lifts with Band (Works Outer Thighs, or Abductors)

1. Wrap or tie one resistance band around both of your ankles.
2. Stand next to a wall or chair for balance. You should be perpendicular to the wall or chair so that one leg is closer to it than the other.
3. Slightly bend the leg closest to the wall at your knee.
4. Lift the leg furthest from the wall straight out to the side (away from the wall) and as high as you can go comfortably. This leg can also be slightly bent.
5. Keep your hips forward and your back straight at all times.

After completing a set, repeat with the other leg.


Standing Rows with Bands (Works the Upper Back)

 This exercise is great for posture. It helps improve your upper back muscles, your ability to balance, and your stability all at once.

1.      Secure the resistance band at a chest-high attachment point.
2.      Face the attachment point, standing far enough away that the band is taut.
3.      Take the band handles in your hands, keeping your wrists straight, palms facing each other. Do not shrug your shoulders. Keep your shoulder blades down.
4.      At all times, your feet should be shoulder width apart, with your knees slightly bent. Bend your knees enough to keep a solid stance. Pull the bands toward you, keeping your elbows at your side, so they brush your torso when you are pulling in and moving your hands toward your chest. The movement should be slow and steady.
5.      Release at the same speed you pulled the band toward you, back to the full extensded position.
6.      Repeat.

               
                   
Bicep Curls (Works Biceps)


1.      Stand with your feet  shoulder width apart and your knees slightly bent.
2.      If using a resistance band, stand on the band with one foot. As an alternative, you can use dumbbells.
3.      Hold one dumbbell or one band handle in each hand. Keep your hands at your sides, palms facing forward.
4.      Curl both arms up toward your shoulder, moving the arm only from your elbow. Make sure you do not move your shoulder joint. At the "top" of the curl (the end of your range of motion), your palm should be facing your bicep.
5.      Lower arms back to the start position.
8.      Repeat.



Pushups

I love push-ups. The great thing about them is they work a number of major muscle groups. When starting out with push-ups, don't worry about how many you can do; you can continue to work your way to full body push-ups by the end of this program.

Here are my three variations to performing a standard push-up.


Option 1: Wall push-up


1.      Stand facing a wall. The farther away your feet are from the wall, the harder the  push-up will be.
2.      Place your palms on the wall, just below your shoulders. Your palms should be a bit farther apart than your shoulders.
3.      Keeping your body rigid in a straight line, lean in toward the wall. (You may need to turn your head to your left or your right when at your closest point to the wall.)
4.      Return to the start position.

 

Option 2: Counter push-up


You will get a better core workout doing a counter push-up than you will using the ball or your knees. Once the wall push-up feels easy, try the counter push-up and progress lower and lower until you reach the floor. To do this, find a series of ledges of varying height that you can use for your push-ups throughout the Healthy Bride workout program: perhaps a low countertop to start with, then a bench, then a step, and then eventually, the floor. The lower the ledge, the harder the push-up will be. A very simple, low-tech way to progress to lower ledges is to use a staircase. Stand facing a staircase and place your hands on about the fifth or sixth step. As you get better at push-ups, work your way down the staircase.

 
Option 3: Push-up over the ball

1.      From a standing position, crouch down behind the exercise ball. Place your abdomen on top of the ball and roll forward until your hands reach the ground.
2.      Walk out with your hands as far as you feel comfortable.
3.      Pull in your abs, and keep your body in a straight line.
4.      Keep your shoulders over your elbows, and elbows over your wrists.
5.      Lower yourself down as far as you feel comfortable. You should be able to get low enough that the part of your arms above your elbows are parallel to the floor.
6.      Push back up to the start position.
7.      Repeat.                       


Tricep Dips (Works Triceps)

1. Sit on the edge of a bench, step, or sturdy chair. 
2. Position your hands beside your body on the edge of the bench (or whatever you're sitting on), fingers facing forward.
3. Lift your buttocks off the bench and lower them toward the floor by bending your arms at the elbows.
4. Make sure you stay perpendicular to the ground, and keep your back straight.
5. Don't push your hips forward.
6. Lift yourself back up by straightening your arms. Be sure to keep your arms close to your body throughout the exercise.

 Abdominal Crunch on the Ball (Works Abs and Neck)

This is the best abdominal workout around. Before you start this exercise, be sure you are comfortable and stable on the ball. Do this by sitting on the ball. Then bounce up and down on the ball. Follow that by swiveling your hips on the ball. If you feel OK, proceed. If not, start by doing your crunches on the floor and work up to doing them on the ball by following these steps:

 1.      Sit on top of the ball and slowly walk your feet forward, away from the ball, until your hips are off the ball and your lower back is supported on the ball. When you begin this exercise, you may drop your hips closer to the floor. This relieves your neck and abs of some of the work and engages your quads to do more of the work.
2.      Your hands can be either on your thighs, crossed at your chest, or with your fingers touching your temples. Do not cradle your head in your hands; you need to build strong neck muscles too, and this exercise will help you do so.
3.      Lay back over the ball, face up, with your back matching the curvature of the ball. This is your starting position.
4.      Draw your navel toward your spine, and "crunch" (or roll) your shoulders toward your hips. This is a small movement that creates a 30[-]45 degree angle of space between your shoulders and hips.
5.      Be sure to keep your neck in its neutral position. Your chin should not be tucked, but in a straight line from your shoulders to the top of your head.
6.      Lower yourself back to the starting position.
7.      Repeat the crunches.

 
Bicycle Maneuver (Works Abdominal Oblique Muscles)

1.      Lie flat on the floor with your lower back pressed to the ground.
2.      Put your hands  on top of your shoulders (elbows point out, not forward). 
3.      Bring your knees up to about a 45-degree angle and rotate your legs as if they were pedaling a bicycle.
4.      Keep rotating your legs as you bring your left elbow to your right knee, and then your right elbow to your left knee. 
5.      Breathe evenly as you continue the exercise.
6.      Perform 8[-]12 reps on each side, or go until you feel fatigued.

Reverse Crunches (Works Lower Abs)

1.      Lay on your back on the floor.
2.      Raise your feet in the air, legs straight, until your soles are facing the ceiling and your legs and torso form a 90-degree angle.
3.      Extend your arms out to either side of you. They should be flat against the floor.
4.      Lift your hips straight up off the ground. Your feet move toward your head. (This should be only a small movement.)
5.      Return to start position.
6.      Repeat.