Fun and Effective Strength Training Workout Routine

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, I am a HUGE group exercise junkie. On any given week, I try to attend at least 4 different classes ranging from kickboxing to yoga to zumba to boot camp and everything in between. If Pitbull is blasting and a fit, bubbly instructor is leading the way, you can count me in.

However, in an attempt to keep my body guessing and bust through yet another plateau, I decided to switch things up recently with this fun yet effective strength training workout routine. A few tips if you decide to give this circuit a try:

1) Before getting started, warm up your body with at least 10 minutes of cardio. I was hot off a Katy Perry concert and decided to do a 20 minute run/walk routine to her music on the treadmill but you can do the elliptical, bike or simply walk. 

2) If you’re not sure how to perform the moves, do a Google image or YouTube video search. There are a lot of helpful resources online that can show you the safe way to do these exercises. A few of my favorites include Women’s Health Magazine, Cooking Light Fitness and Shape Magazine.

3) When you’ve completed the circuit, spend at least 30 seconds stretching out every muscle group that you worked. In this particular circuit, you will be working the entire body so I recommend a 10 minute full body stretching routine. I was especially sore in my shoulders and chest so be sure to give a little extra love to those muscle groups.

What are your favorite strength training moves? I would love to hear new ideas!