Nerd-Core Fitness 102 – Basic Workout (Day 1)

It is time to level up your “Heroes Transformation” my loyal Jerdlings!

Already conquered the Nerd-Core Fitness 101 beginner workouts (Upper Body, Lower Body, Total Body & Ab Workout)? After 3-4 weeks you should be cruising through them with relative ease, and be ready to change things up.

This new series of exercises will keep you on your way to being a real life super-hero! (Let’s be honest; right now you are in fledgling sidekick territory, but you have to start somewhere! And no Robin, please put away the green underoos…)

If you dedicate a little time and couple the program with clean and healthy eating, desire, and some superheroic willpower and you will have the recipe for a Strengthening Solution worthy of Hogwart’s Alchemy class!

Here’s the Nerd-Core Fitness 102 Basic Workout program… your next level at-home exercise program.

So what are we changing for this new routine?

The foundation of all the beginner/basic workouts is staying the same, 3x a week with no need for a gym or equipment, and only a small open space (and now, a chair)!

The goal of the 101 workouts was to get some of the large muscle groups engaged, to start to develop proper form and to work your way up to a comfort level with regular exercise; so we split the workouts up by muscle groups to allow you to focus on form and give you plenty of time to recover from that inevitable post-workout soreness.

Now every workout is going to hit your total body!

We want to do our best to:

• Get in as many reps as you can (While still maintaining proper form.)
• Perform them at a brisk pace (Get that heart-rate up!)

This basic workout will take you a few more steps down the “Heroes Transformation” path and will give you the tools necessary to do battle with your fitness enemies; if you’ve been doing to 101 series of Beginner workouts you will be able to complete this upgraded workout and you will continue to get in better shape.

So let’s keep pushing forward to a better life!

I hate to have to say this, but make sure you are cleared by your personal physician for physical activity before undertaking these, or any, exercises. With that said let’s get to it!

Step One: Warm up!

Do.not.skip.this!

Take 5 minutes and get your body warm and your heart rate elevated. You should already have a warm-up routine you like, but if you want a formal routine, or more convincing that this is a vital aspect of your workout, then here you go – How To: Warm Up Properly!

No matter what, please do not workout cold! After you are warmed up move on to the workout itself. I know when doing body-weight exercises it might seem silly, but you want to get in the habit now before things get more difficult.

Step Two: Workout #1

Like I said earlier, we aren’t doing muscle group splits for these part of the Nerd-Core Fitness program. You are going to pick 3 or 4 days a week (spread out to allow for recovery time) and we are going to be doing total body workouts each and every time!

Remember, the goal is proper form and intensity!

This is going to require holding all those muscles you found during the 101 workouts nice and tense, and pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone a little.

Don’t get lazy as you get tired, no matter how hard you think it may be!

Sweat and an elevated heart-rate is your friend.

Your first workout is going consist of two sections (and should consist of exercises you are already familiar with).

Body Weight Sets:

• 10x Pushups
• 24x Squats
  
• 24x Lunges
• 12x Jump Squats
  
• 20x Knees to Chest

Once you have finished one set, take a 30 second break and then do it again.

Our goal is 3 sets at a good clip to prepare us for harder workouts. Don’t be discouraged if you can’t do three sets right away! As I have said before, fitness is an iterative process.

Just do your best and try to do a little better each and every time you perform this routine.

Clean-Up Exercise:

• 15x Burpees

After you have finished your sets, you are going to finish up with this exercise done at the fastest pace you can while maintaining form. Yes, you are going to be tired but embrace the suck and fight your way through it!

So push through these and be proud of yourself for making it another step towards being superhero fit!

Step Three: Stretch!

After your workout your muscles have been slightly traumatized from contracting, and they need to be stretched back out to allow for proper healing and use. I will cover my special stretching methodology in another post, for now just make sure to loosen up and stretch out slowly.

Step Four: Rest!

As you continue your Heroes Transformation journey, don’t feel guilty for enjoying your down-time.

If you are truly hitting these workouts religiously, and with the fury of Wolverine’s berserker rage, then taking down time on the days in between your workouts is fine!

So give yourself a day in-between workouts to let your muscles recover.

While you are resting it’s the perfect time to catch up on your backlog of comics, or if you are really getting into the spirit of being in better shape then use your off days to run or do some other form of cardio (For tips on getting started running look no further than here – The Keys to Running)!

However you spend this time, you have earned the simple pleasure of being a geek, so enjoy it!

You now have the tools to keep your workouts fresh for another few weeks. In order to jump into more heroic (and rewarding) workouts you have to get your body acclimated to the rigors of exercise and this is a great way to start. Stick with it, diligently do at least three workouts a week while eating right and I promise you will continue to see positive changes in not only how you look, but how you feel. The Jerd does not lie!

Remember, these workouts are the foundation from which all other workouts will evolve.

Please keep me abreast of your progress and hit me up with any questions you might have!

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(Photo #1 credit)

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