CGX: Iron Program Day 14: Full Body Circuit Plus Abs

This is a workout from Caroline Girvan‘s CGX app. For more info on Caroline’s App, see the CGX App page. Another tough workout! Caroline is really kicking my butt this week with these circuit workouts. This workout is very metabolic, too. I burned 480 calories! I also pulled out my bench press so I could use a barbell to lift heavier on the chest press and I am so glad I did! I really need to re-arrange my workout room to make it easier to use. There is no isolation work for the biceps or triceps, though everything else, including your core, gets hit pretty hard. But you biceps and triceps assist in all of the other upper body exercises so they are getting worked, too.

All of the exercises are done interval style: 60 seconds of work followed by 20 seconds of rest. There is a timer in the upper right hand side of the screen counting down your intervals and recoveries. During the recovery Caroline previews the next exercise. During the Finisher/core section, you do not get any rest/recoveries. When there is 10 seconds left of the exercise a video appears in the upper lefthand corner of the screen, previewing the next exercise. There is also a little bar at the bottom of the screen that counts down the entire workout time as a percentage.

Full Body Circuit Plus Abs is 41:40 minutes (this time does not include the optional 11:38 minute warm up or the 3:04 minute intro, also optional) with a 3:40 minute stretch. Equipment: dumbbells, wedges to elevate heels and toes, a bench or chair and a fitness mat. Caroline is using 15kg/33 pound, 10kg/22 pounds and 4kg/8.8 pound dumbbells. The weights listed below are what I used.

1. Chest press (slow eccentric) (push up at normal speed but lower slowly) (70# barbell)
2. Slow eccentric high squat (heels are elevated on wedges, DBs are held at shoulder level, lower slowly and return to standing at normal speed) (30# DBs)
3. Arnold press (20# DBs)
4. RDL (Romanian Deadlifts, toes are elevated on wedges) (40# DBs)
5. Renegade rows (30# DBs)
6. Rear step lunge (reverse step back lunges) (20# DBs)
7. Repeat #6 on other leg
8. Seated lateral raise (8# DBs)
9. Repeat #1-8
10. Chest press (regular pace) (70# barbell)
11. High squats w/ one DB (same as #2 but squat at a normal pace and hold one DB in both hands at chest) (one 40# DB)
12. Push press (double arm overhead press, arms are in goal post, use legs to assist pushing DBs overhead with force) (25# DBs)
13. RDLs (not fully standing) (same as #4 but only partially raise out of deadlift, so there is constant tension on the hamstrings) (30# DBs)
14. Renegade row (Caroline drops to a lighter weight than what she used in #5) (25# DBs)
15. Rear step lunge (x1 DB) (same as #6 but only hold on DB in same side hand as front leg) (one 25# DB)
16. Repeat #15 on other leg
17. Standing lateral raise (8# DBs)

Finisher: (5 minutes; each exercise is done for 60 seconds, no rest/recoveries between exercises) (I used one 20# DB for all of the weighted exercises)

1. DB leg lowers (lay on back on mat, hold one DB in both hands and extend arms/DB to ceiling, legs are extended straight to ceiling, raise and lower straight legs while keeping DB extended to ceiling)
2. DB crunch (lay on back on mat, still holding one DB in both hands, legs are bent w/ feet on mat, do an upper body crunch, reaching DB toward ceiling)
3. DB Russian twists (still holding one DB in both hands, sit up on mat, lean torso back slightly, legs are bent and feet are raised off of mat, in this position twist DB from hip to hip)
4. Leg lowers (same as #1 but no DB, hands are behind head and head/shoulders are elevated)
5. Crunch pulses (lay on back, knees are bent and feet are on mat, lift head/shoulders into a crunch and hold while pulsing upward, Caroline has her arms in different positions)