This is a workout from Caroline Girvan‘s CGX app. For more info on Caroline’s App, see the CGX App page.
These workouts are not getting any easier. In this one Caroline clearly looked like she was struggling–more than she sometimes appears to struggle in other workouts. Just like in Day 1, you will do a body weight exercise then hit the same muscle group with either a weighted version of the same exercise or a weighted exercise that works the same muscle group. But different exercises than what you did in Day 1, of course. And it can get brutal. Especially the wall squat into the 3/4 rep heel elevated squats. OMG–the burn! One humorous moment in the course of this workout was during the step ups. The last set of them Caroline forgot which leg she was supposed to work! She started on one leg, changed legs then went back to the original leg and by her gestures she still didn’t know if she was on the right leg but was going with it. Since she did those exercises facing the side (so you don’t have to worry about mirroring), I did’t know if she was on the right leg, either! However I just went back and checked (curious!) and she was on the right leg! My legs were fried by the end and I had to add on a longer stretch. The 2 minutes Caroline gives us wasn’t enough for me.
This is a superset workout. You will do 2 exercises back to back, each for 60 or 75 seconds before you get a 30 or 45 second recovery. 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 superset. There is also a bar at the bottom of the screen that counts down the entire workout time as a percentage.
Lower Body is 48:51 minutes (this time does not include the optional 5:55 minute warm up or 2:32 minute intro, also optional) with a 2 minute stretch. Equipment: dumbbells, chair/bench/high stepper, yoga block, heel wedges and fitness mat. Caroline is using 15kg/33 pound and 10kg/22 pound dumbbells. The weights listed below are what I used.
- Bodyweight heel elevated squats for 60 seconds (heels are on heel wedges)
- (no rest) Regular squats for 60 seconds (no wedges, DBs held at shoulders) (30# DBs)
- 45 second rest
- Repeat #1-3 two more times
- Bodyweight close lunge for 75 seconds (front foot is elevated on yoga block, stationary/static lunge, legs are closer together than a normal lunge)
- (no rest) Weighted close lunge for 60 seconds (same as #5 but holding a DB in each hand) (25# DBs first 2 sets, 20# DBs last set)
- 30 second rest
- Repeat #5-7 on other leg
- Repeat #5-8 two more times
- Wall sit for 60 seconds (bodyweight wall squat)
- (no rest) 3/4 rep heel elevated squat (rise on beep) for 60 seconds (heels are elevated on wedges, hold one DB in both hands at chest, lower to bottom of squat but only raise 3/4 of the way, every 15 seconds there will be a beep, when you hear the beep rise all the way out of the squat briefly) (one 35# DB)
- 45 second rest
- Repeat #10-12 two more times
- Step up for 75 seconds (stand behind high step, one foot remains on step entire interval, raise up onto step then lower other foot back to floor)
- (no rest) Staggered squat for 60 seconds (single leg squat, non-working leg is in kickstand, working leg is elevated on yoga block, hold one DB at shoulder of working leg) (one 30# DB)
- 30 second rest
- Repeat #14-16 on other leg
- Repeat #14-17
Finisher: (one 30# DB)
- Heel elevated squat (bottom half) for 30 seconds (heels are elevated on wedges, holding one DB in both hands at chest, lower to bottom of squat but only raise halfway)
- Top half for 30 seconds (same as #1 but raise to top of squat and only lower halfway)
- Full range for 30 seconds (heel elevated squat still holding one DB in both hands at chest)
