Frosty Fitness
New year, new you.
You definitely don’t have to hike up a mountain on skis to keep fit during the winter here. You don’t have to hunt, ice climb, or slay trout on the frozen riverbanks either. Here are a few less extreme winter exercises that will get your heart pumping outside just the same. Remember that the first five minutes are the hardest, and then it gets easier once you’re warmed up.
Tabata in the Park
Tabata training is a form of High-Intensity Interval Training (H.I.I.T.) discovered by a Japanese scientist. It consists of doing several bodyweight exercises with an interval of 20 seconds on, then 10 seconds off. If you’re short on time, Tabata is an efficient way to keep your heart rate up and burn a good amount of calories and fat. Here’s an example of a 20-minute workout that you can do anywhere, even with snow on the ground, either in your backyard or at a local park.
Warm-up: light jogging, walking, or dynamic stretching for five minutes. Do each exercise at intervals of 20 seconds on and 10 seconds off. Rest one minute in between circuits.
| Circuit #1 | Circuit #2 |
| High Knees (2 sets) | Jumping Jacks (2 sets) |
| Speed Skaters (2 sets) | Squats (2 sets) |
| Pushups (2 sets) | Alternating Lunges (2 sets) |
| Mountain Climbers (2 sets) | Burpees (2 sets) |
| Circuit #3 | Circuit #4 |
| Pushups (2 sets) | Jump Squats (2 sets) |
| Bicycle Crunches (2 sets) | Backward Lunges (2 sets) |
| Russian Twists (2 sets) | High Knees (2 sets) |
| Mountain Climbers (2 sets) | Ski Moguls (2 sets) |
Jessica Tuttle is a personal trainer at the Ridge Athletic Club.
