This is a workout from Caroline Girvan‘s CGX app. For more info on Caroline’s App, see the CGX App page.
This workout kicked my @$$! In this workout Caroline hits the quads and the glutes hard with supersets and trisets. This is definitely an endurance workout. And you get it all–step ups, bridges, hip thrusts, band work, Bulgarian lunges, and squats. My legs are fried! It was all hard, but the biggest burn for me was the banded hip thrusts. You are not even using a dumbbell or barbell! But it is right after 90 seconds of weighted banded bridges. You get 30 seconds of rest then you are pulsing at the top of a hip thrust while pushing legs out against the band. Oh the burn! This is also a circuit workout so there is no boredom and it gets a bit metabolic.
This workout is done interval style. The interval and recovery times vary so they are noted below in the breakdown. 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. There is also a bar along the bottom of the screen that counts down the entire workout time as a percentage.
Lower Body is 47:39 minutes (this time does not include the optional 6 minute warm up or the 3:16 minute intro, also optional) with a 2:15 minute stretch. Equipment: dumbbells, barbell, chair/bench, box/high step, glute band, heel wedges and a fitness mat. Caroline’s barbell is at 48kg/105.8 pounds. She is also using 10kg/22 pound dumbbells. The weights listed below are what I used.
- Heel elevated squats for 60 seconds (heels are elevated on heel wedges, DBs held at shoulders) (30# DBs)
- (no rest) Bodyweight only for 45 seconds (same as #1 w/out DBs)
- 30 second rest
- Quad focused Bulgarian lunge for 60 seconds (stationary/static lunge, back leg is elevated on bench/chair behind you, front foot is closer to chair/bench than a normal Bulgarian lunge so that it is similar to a single leg squat, hold one DB in same side hand as front leg) (one 25# DB)
- (no rest) Bodyweight only for 45 seconds (same as #4 w/out DB)
- (no rest) Step up for 45 seconds (stand behind box/high step, one foot rests on box, step up on box then lower keeping foot of working leg on box the entire time)
- 30 second rest
- Repeat #4-6 on other leg
- 45 second rest
- Banded bridges for 90 seconds (lay on back on back on mat, knees bent and feet close to glutes, booty/glute band is around thighs just above knees, legs are open so there is constant tension on the band, a barbell or heavy DB rests on hips, raise and lower hips) (barbell @ 105#)
- 30 second rest
- Pulse bodyweight banded hip thrust for 45 seconds (lean back against your bench or step, knees bent and feet on floor, glute band is around thighs just above knees and legs are open so there is constant tension on band, raise hips to top of bridge and pulse hips upward)
- (no rest) Full range for 60 seconds (same position as #12 but raise and lower hips–no pulsing)
- (no rest) Forward and back banded walk for 45 seconds (band is still around thighs just above knees, walk forward the length of your space then walk backward)
- 30 second rest
- Repeat #1-3
- Repeat #4-8 but during the Bulgarian lunges the heel of the working leg is elevated on a heel wedge
- Repeat #9-15
- Repeat #16-18
Finisher: (4 minutes)
- Slow & paused quad Bulgarian lunges, 10 reps (stationary/static lunge, back leg is elevated on bench/chair behind you, front foot is closer to chair/bench than a normal Bulgarian lunge so that it is similar to a single leg squat, heel of front foot is elevated on heel wedge, lower slowly and pause briefly at bottom of lunge)
- Repeat #1 on other leg
- Repeat #1 & 2 as many times as possible in 4 minutes
