Cathe Live: Smokin’ Upper Body Blast

Smokin’ Upper Body Blast was tough! Surprisingly tough! Excellent workout. I love cardio + strength workouts–especially when they isolate the upper body. There aren’t a lot of those types of workouts out there (they are usually total body or lower body focused), so when I discover one, I glom it! And this is an especially excellent one. After reading Cathe‘s forum post about this workout, I thought 10 pound dumbbells (which is all Cathe uses) would be too light, but due to the fast pace and the fact she gives you no real breaks in about the first half of the workout–10 pounds is actually very appropriate! In fact, I didn’t use heavier weights until the second half of the workout when she started giving longer breaks between intervals. Plus the exercises change to ones that a heavier weight was needed. That is the structure of this workout–cardio intervals alternated with upper body strength training intervals. For the cardio intervals you do two sets of everything, except one exercise and I noted that below. As for reps on the cardio intervals, it is generally 16 reps. I also noted it below when it was significantly different, but that is only for a few exercises. One interesting thing Cathe did in this workout is she had a medium tension tube and a heavier tension tube. She showed variations of some of the band exercises using a heavier band. I thought that was pretty cool!

Smokin’ Upper Body Blast is 53 minutes long; 5:30 minute warm up and 2 minute stretch. Recommended equipment: 10 pound dumbbells, medium tension resistance tube w/ handles and a fitness mat. It aired live on 7/28/16 and here is the video clip. Cathe used 10 pound dumbbells (or the resistance tube) for everything, so the weights listed below are what I used.

1. Snowboarders (180 jump squats)
2. 8 overhead presses + 8 rear delt flys; repeat 3x (10# DBs)
3. Ice breakers
4. 8 bicep curls + 8 upright rows; repeat 3x (10# DBs)
5. Squat jump forward, squat jump back, quarter turn jump squat to side, quarter turn jump squat back to front
6. 16 overhead tricep extensions w/ DBs (10# DBs)
7. Tricep kickbacks w/ band; 8 reps followed by 15 pulses
8. Repeat #6 but for 12 reps
9. Repeat #7 but only pulse 7 times
10. Repeat #6 but for 8 reps
11. Repeat #7 but do 4 reps followed by 7 pulses
12. Line taps (lateral squat jumps–staying in squat the entire time and touching the floor w/ fingertips)
13. Shoulder circles w/ band (stand on band holding handles, raise band to side w/ straight arms and circle arms while holding arms out/up)
14. Hold band in both hands palms facing ceiling and about a foot between hands; keeping elbows at side, pull fast on band
15. Repeat 13 & 14 two more times
16. Squat digs, 32 reps
17. 4 sets of 8 push ups
18. With mat on floor, straddle mat and do football runs to front of mat and back, squatting and tapping floor with fingertips each time you reach the end of the mat
19. 4 hammer curls + 4 overhead presses (or 3 hammer curls, 1 curl press, 3 overhead presses); 7 sets (10# DBs)
20. Lateral skaters over mat
21. 1 Plie squat w/ upright row + 1 plie squat w/ snatch overhead (alternate sides 2x then do 12 double arm reps) (12# DBs)
22. Posture pulls (standing chest fly w/ band), 10 reps
23. 1 Plie squat w/ upright rows + 1 plie squat w/ snatch overhead; 8 double arm reps (12# DBs)
24. Repeat #22 but for 8 reps
25. Repeat #23
26. Repeat #24
27. High reaching pop squats (180 high reaching jump squats straddling mat), 3 sets of 10 reps
28. One arm front raise w/ band (pulse once at top) alternate arms 2x; one arm side raise w/ band (pulse band once at top), alternate arms 2x; repeat this series once; do the same pattern but double arm–4x to the front and 4x to the side
29. Shuffle, shuffle, drop (the drop is a squat w/ fingertips touching the floor)
30. 16 one arm rows holding 2 DBs in one hand (one 25# DB)
31. Front swing one arm lat pull down (kettlebell-type swing between legs but at the top, do a one arm pull down); alternate sides; 8 reps (one 15# DB)
32. Repeat #30 for 10 reps
33. Repeat #31
34. Repeat #30 for 8 reps
35. Repeat #31
36. 7 knee repeaters on corner of mat; alternate sides
37. Tricep push ups to child’s pose (start in straight arm plank; lower into a tricep push up to count of 4 then push back into child’s pose then back to straight arm plank); 6 reps
38. Side lying one arm tricep push ups; 12 reps each side
39. Repeat #37
40. Repeat #38 for 10 reps
41. Repeat #37 for 4 reps
42. Repeat #38 for 8 reps

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