Hammer and Chisel Journey - Day 2: Hammer Plyometrics

Two of the kiddos joined me for today's workout, which made it fun!  My son, Brandon is quite athletic.  Bella, the other child, is only 4yo... and she really just pretended to follow along and she LOVES to photo bomb!  The workout for day 2 is called Hammer Plyometrics and Wow! It is really tough!  As the name implies.... it is a lot of jumping!!

Some notes – all moves are 30 seconds long. You go through all of them sequentially, then do it again for a second round!

1. Vertical Jump – pretty simple, it’s just a squat to a jump, with one arm raised, like you are shooting a basketball! To make this one burn, be sure to really JUMP as HIGH as you can!
2. Burpee Pull Up – Just like it says – a burpee, then a pull up, repeat, repeat, repeat as many in 30 seconds as you can do! *I used a resistance band hooked to a door knob.
3. Leg In & Outs – you straddle the bench, holding onto it, and then jump up and put your feet onto the bench, and back to the floor. Up, down, up, down....repeat. *I used a kitchen chair.

1. Plyo Push Up Taps – It’s a push-up, with a Plyo on the UP, then tap the bench with one hand. *I tapped the couch.
2. Crazy Horse – You hold the bench with your hands and then hop over it... over and over again! *I used a kitchen chair.
   
3. Chin Up Crunch Squat Jump – This is a chin-up (hands reversed so your palms face you) – on the upward pull, lift your knees to your chest to do a mid-air crunch. After, drop from the bar and do a squat and a high jump.  *I used a resistance band hooked to a door knob.
4. Knee Driver – You use a weight ( I picked ~10 pounds). It’s basically a lunge move with a jump afterwards. So – you start with your right leg back, weight in your right hand, in a lunge position. Stand up and raise your right knee and jump, while simultaneously punching up in the air with the weighted hand. Sounds tricky – but you will get the hang of it!

1. Sumo Tuck Jump – Sumo squat position (toes out, legs spread further than hip width, back straight) – squat down and then jump up over and over again to achieve as many reps as you can in 30 sec!
2. Lunge Lunge Squat – Just like it sounds! Plyo fun – a lunge, followed by another lunge, and then a squat to really burn those quads. This one is really tough, especially following the tuck jumps!

Hammer Plyometrics Review & Thoughts:

I really liked this workout... but then I am a cardio junkie!  It was short and sweet... only 26 mins.  But, don't be fooled... it will surely leave you dripping in sweat for sure.  After the warm up and cool down, the actual workout time is only about 19 min!  It was not that difficult to use a chair in lieu of the bench, however a real bench would be a definite plus if your finances allow. The hardest move was hands down, the sumo tuck jumps.... left me completely breathless with my quads on FIRE!!   

Whew!  See you tomorrow for Hammer and Chisel - Day 3