Fitness For Women Over 50 Holiday Challenge is back!

Otherwise known as “The 12 Days of Fitmas”, this fun and exciting edition of Alicia Jones Healthy Living boasts 12 complete days of workouts you can do this holiday season!

During the holidays,  family events, gatherings or sharing a home with guests make it more important than ever to find quick and straightforward fitness routines you can do in 10 minutes or less.

Of course, your exercise routine has to be fun, otherwise it’s easy to get caught up in holiday cheer and  erase fitness until the new year.

So, to make fitness a no brainer this holiday season, Judy and I have brought back,” The 12 Days of Fitmas”.

You can  start this 12 Days of Fitmas Challenge any day you like.

Yet, if you’re looking for extra support and motivation, then join the fitness for women over 50 Facebook community here.  Participants will be sharing their workout success together starting December 12th 2021

For the Fitness for Women Over 50: 12 Days of Fitmas Challenge, Here’s What You’ll Do:

• Each day for the next 12 days you’ll do 2 new exercises back to back.

• Each day perform 1 repetition of the first exercise, then 1 repetition of the 2nd exercise, then 2 repetitions of the first exercise, and 2 repetitions of the second exercise, and so on.

• Repeat until you get to 12 repetitions of exercise one and 12 repetitions of exercise two.

• Watch the video for the demonstrations of your daily workout moves.

Inside the video, I’ll be showing the advanced options, and my fabulous client, friend and assistant Judy will be demonstrating the low options.  

Just to be clear, at 68, Judy is more than capable of demonstrating the fitness for women over 50 advanced options, but as she did them last year, it was only fair I took a turn this year.

You can do last year’s 12 Days of Fitmas (where Judy demonstrates the advanced options) here. 

The low options are both low impact and beginner workout moves, as well as moves that show special consideration for those with sore backs, knees and wrists.

Some advanced options are high impact and some are hard floor exercises.

The 12 Days of Fitmas Holiday Challenge: What You Need to Know

If you decide to  join the Get Back to Fit Over Fifty Facebook Group,  December 12th 2021 You’ll get another layer of motivation:

Comment each day during the 12 Day Challenge to share when you’ve completed the daily workout, or when you need more modifications.

Comment on all  12 days and win two 1-1  online VIP coaching sessions with me (Alicia)

Winner of the two 1-1 online VIP Coaching sessions will be  announced Wednesday January 5th 2022!

Are you ready!? Let’s do this!

To Help you Find Each Day’s demonstration Easily, Below shows the exact minute in the video where your daily workout demonstration begins:

0:10 Fitness for Women Over 50: 12 Days of Fitmas “How-To”

0:27 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 1 of 12 Days of Fitmas

1:00 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 2 of 12 Days of Fitmas

1:27 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 3 of 12 Days of Fitmas

2:03 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 4 of 12 Days of Fitmas

2:31 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 5 of 12 Days of Fitmas

3:10 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 6 of 12 Days of Fitmas

3:39 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 7 of 12 Days of Fitmas

4:12 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 8 of 12 Days of Fitmas

4:56 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 9 of 12 Days of Fitmas

5:20 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 10 of 12 Days of Fitmas

5:53 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 11 of 12 Days of Fitmas

6:29 Fitness for Women Over 50: Day 12 of 12 Days of Fitmas

Here are Quick and Simple Modifications and the exact minute in the video where you can find each modification and exercise:

Day 1: 0:27

Exercise 1: Curtsey Lunge

Exercise 2: Hand to Forearm Plank

Modifications for Curtsey Lunge: Protect your knees with a small bend. You do not need to go low to feel this exercise strengthen the legs and bottom.

 Modifications for Hand to Forearm Plank: Use a chair, sofa or table  to elevate your body and reduce  the difficulty. You can also go on your forearms to relieve wrist pain.

Day 2 1:00

Exercise 1: Knee Highs

Exercise 2: Dips

Modifications for Knee Highs: Walk instead of run. The goal is to work the low abs by elevating the knee as high as you can.

Modification for Dips: The more you elevate your body, the easier the exercise is on the wrists. Also, use your legs to make the exercise easier. the closer your legs are to your body, the easier the exercise becomes. Push your heels into the ground and stand to reduce the load on the upper body.

Day 3: 1:27

Exercise 1: Lunges OR Back Leg Extension

Exercise 2: Bicep Curls

Lunge Modifications: Lunges often cause knee pain. This is due to improper tracking of your knee over your toe.

If you haven’t been exercising for a while, I strongly recommend perfecting the back leg extension (Judy’s option). The exercise may look deceptively easy, but it’s still doing its job to strengthen the legs, enhance balance and tone the bottom, on both the leg planted on the ground and the leg you pull back.

It also creates a neuromuscular signal (a mind to muscle connection) to teach the body and brain to work together with proper lunge form, so once you’re ready, you’ll take on the lunge exercise and remain injury-free.

Bicep Curls Modifications: The lighter the weight, the easier the exercise.

Day 4: 2:03

Exercise 1: Snow Angels

Exercise 2: In/Out Planks

 Modifications for In/Out Planks: Use a chair, sofa or table  to elevate your body and reduce  the difficulty. You can also go on your forearms to relieve wrist pain.

Day 5: 2:31

Exercise 1: Plie Squat

Exercise 2: Tricep push-ups

Modification for Plier Squat: Just like a standard squat, you don’t need to bend low. Stay high. This will continue to strengthen the legs and the supporting muscles around your knee to reduce knee pain in the future.

Modification for Tricep Push-Ups: Elevate your body using a chair or a sofa. The Higher the body, the less bodyweight you need to lift.

For Advanced Push-ups on the floor, notice how I’m on my knees. While you can do the push-up on your toes, the goal is to reach your nose to the floor to achieve full range of motion. If you can’t do this, elevate the body. 

A muscle only becomes strong in the range of motion you work it, so if you try it on the toes but barely move, you’re barely creating strength in the body.

Day 6: 3:10

Exercise 1: Squat/Squat Jumps

Exercise 2: Dead Bug

Squat Jumps Modifications:  For the low impact option, take out all jumping.

Dead Bug Modifications: It is important your back remain in “neutral spine”. Your back isn’t arched, or flat. It stays in a natural spinal S Curve. (See demonstration here).

If your core isn’t quite strong enough to hold a natural curve, keep one foot firmly planted on the floor while lifting the other.

Day 7: 3:39

Exercise 1: Burpee

Exercise 2: Flutter Kick

Burpee Modifications: Just like plank and push-ups,  use a chair to elevate the body and modify the burpee.

Flutter Kick Modifications: Do the flutter kicks on the bed if getting up and down from the floor is difficult. 

Day 8: 4:12

Exercise 1: Inchworm

Exercise 2: Glute Bridges

Modifications for Inch worm: Turn the movement into a great low back stretch while you strengthen. To do this grab a chair to elevate the body, then push back into a standing bend (see video  for a demonstration)

Glute Bridges Modification: If going from standing to the floor to standing is difficult, perform the bridges in bed. The elevation of the bed should make it easier to get up again.

Day 9: 4:56

Exercise 1:  Knee highs

Exercise 2: Spider Planks

Modifications for Knee Highs: Walk instead of run. The goal is to work the low abs by elevating the knee as high as you can.

Modifications for Spider Plank: This is yet another great exercise you can do elevated. Place your upper body weight on a chair or sofa to reduce the intensity.

Day 10: 5:20

Exercise 1: Lunge Jacks

Exercise 2: Bird Dog

Fun Fact about Lunge Jacks: Did you know regular jumping jacks go against the natural cross crawl patterns (or contralateral movement patterns)within the body?

This creates weakness, both with the mind to muscle connection and within the neural pathways within the brain.

The simple fix is to change the exercise to reinforce coordination. That’s where the Lunge Jack becomes so beneficial.

This movement reinforces the natural “Cross Crawl” movement pattern within the body .

The end result, you become stronger, fitter and you may even stave off dimentia!

(Learn more about the effects of the Cross Crawl, visit my blog Walking Workout With Weights: Fitness for Women over 50)

Day 11: 5:53

Exercise 1: Russian Twists

Exercise 2: Squat to Calf Raise

Russian Twist Modification: If you’ve got low back issues, stay away from the advanced Russian Twist! The compression on the low spine coupled with the twisting motion is back pain waiting to happen.

The standing version is just as effective at toning the obliques (your hourglass abs).

Cardio is an added benefit the  seated romanian twist doesn’t provide. In order to twist standing, your whole body gets involved, making for a great sweat, elevated heart rate. You even work balance.

It’s a win all around!

Day 12: 6:29

Exercise 1: Mountain Climbers

Exercise 2: Knee Highs

Mountain climber modification: The higher you elevate your body, the easier the exercise becomes. Grab a chair, or use the back of your sofa or a steady table to elevate your body.

Not only will this change the level of difficulty, but it will change the amount of pressure you feel in the low back, your wrists and shoulders.

And don’t forget to  join the Get Back to Fit Over Fifty Facebook Group, 

December 12th 2021 We Begin the Fitness for Women Over 50:12 Days of Fitmas Holiday Challenge! 

Comment each day during the 12 Day Challenge to share when you’ve completed the daily workout, or when you need more modifications.

Comment on all  12 days and win two 1-1  online VIP coaching sessions with me (Alicia)

Winner of the two 1-1 online VIP Coaching sessions will be  announced Wednesday January 5th 2022!

Alright, are you ready to get started! 

The post Fitness for Women Over 50: 12 Days of Fitmas Holiday Workout appeared first on Alicia Jones Healthy Living.