Hi OwnPace Family, 

Below is your off day training for the next 2 weeks. Going forward you will be getting new and fresh workouts to do on your off days to complement what we do at the gym. Simply put, with these workouts you’ll burn more calories, lose more fat, and recover quicker to put your all into the big strength training days.

Day 1: Interval

Sets:15x30sec@60

Notes: Jump on an upright exercise bike, or any other piece of low impact cardio equipment such as an elliptical if you do not have a bike at your disposal. Start off by riding at a moderate pace for a minute to get the groove, then from there it’s time for “intervals” which will consist of 30 seconds of hard pedaling, followed by 60 seconds of relative rest where you are pedaling very slowly. You will complete 15 rounds of 30 seconds of work and 60 seconds of rest, trying to recover as quickly as possible between rounds. Work on keeping great posture and incorporating deep breathing to bring down your heart rate in an efficient way. Work hard on these, and really push your limits on the work times!

Day 2: Low Intensity Steady State Cardio

Slight Incline Treadmill Walk

Working Sets: 10-45 minutes

Coaching Notes: Get on the treadmill and bring the incline up to 2.0 and get to a speed of 2.5-3.0MPH. You want to keep your heart rate below 125 beats per minute, so adjust your incline and speed accordingly. Biggest thing here is, DO NOT hold onto the treadmill! Keep good walking form the entire time. Try and increase the incline by 1 degree each week (e.g. week 2 you should be at an incline of 3.0).

Lets be honest, low intensity steady state cardio is not sexy, but it is one hell of a tool for increasing cardiovascular condition, while also burning calories and increasing daily activity level without being too hard on your joints.

You should be focused on Walking for this workout, whether it is on a slight incline on the treadmill or outside. Walking is one of the single most undervalued physical activities, but we are going to place an emphasis on it in this program both for cardio and recovery.

Make sure you are walking with arm swing and your “natural” gait. This is not a game of speed, but we also don’t want you strolling around like you are window shopping at the mall. Moderate speed will do the trick.

Progress over the course of this phase by either walking at a slightly faster speed, a higher incline (if you are on the treadmill) or just go for a few minutes longer on every walk. Simple mastery of the basics will go a long way! Remember, this is a great way to spark fat loss and increase your total weekly activity, while avoiding any stress on your joints.

Regards, 

Olan