If you’ve been in any of my barre classes lately, you’ve probably noticed – they’re getting a bit sweatier! That’s not only due to the nearly suspiciously nice weather we’ve had in Cork lately, but also because I’ve been trying to incorporate a bit more HIIT-type, cardio bursts either on the mat or at the barre as of late. For some reason, it just seems seasonally appropriate – and it’s a lot of fun! You get your heart rate up, releasing an extra little rush of endorphins on top of the already euphoric experience of barre, and well, it’s addictive! And so I’ve been doing my own home cardio barre workout a few times a week as I work on choreography for the in studio classes. And today – YOU can join in with this no equipment required cardio barre workout!
Tips and Tricks:
- This home cardio barre workout is designed to work your whole body and will take about 15 minutes from warm up to cool down and stretching. If you want to make it shorter, pick and choose the sections accordingly.
- Each set is comprised of 30 second intervals. To make it easier than counting or thinking about the time, you can use an interval stopwatch timer on your phone or watch. I like the app “Seconds”
- Since this is cardio barre, you want to try to move as fast as you can with good form – try to get as many reps in as possible within each 30 second sprint. Not feeling cardio ready? I have lots of other barre workouts here!)
The Warm Up:
- 30 seconds: Start with your feet hip distance apart and parallel with your arms extended overhead and alternate drawing the knees to your chest, pulling your abdominals in and back and lifting the crown of your head up to the ceiling to lengthen your spine. Make sure to lift from your ribs nice and tall, but keep the shoulders dropped away from your ears.
- 30 seconds: Continue lifting the knees, with the arms up overhead, but add a pulldown to your sides leading with your elbows. Reach all the way up to the sky, keeping your shoulders low and then pull down strongly, squeezing your upper back and shoulder blades together behind you.
Arms/Thighs/Seat Combo: 90 seconds per side
- Set One: 30 seconds
- Start in a high lunge, your front knee is bent directly over your ankle (definitely not in front of your toes) and back leg is long. You’ll want to stay light on the back foot and as high as possible on your toes and then reach the arms overhead, biceps by your ears with your back flat. Your body should form a long diagonal line from the fingers to your back leg, pull the navel to spine the whole time.
- Pull the arms down to your sides, squeezing upper back and bringing your elbows behind your body as strongly as possible. At the same time you want to pull the back knee into your chest. Think as much contraction/resistance within your own body as possible.
- Return to starting position and repeat as quickly as possible for 30 seconds. End in the original starting/diagonal position to transition to Set Two.
- Set Two: 30 seconds
- Stay in your high lunge position but extend the arms long behind you. You want the arms as tight as possible towards the midline of your body, as straight as possible, and as high as possible – engaging your triceps intensely and as always, pull the abs in as much as possible.
- Keep squeezing the triceps and keep the elbows exactly where they are, bending the fists towards the shoulder strongly.
- Return to starting position and repeat as quickly as possible for 30 seconds. This one might need to be just a little slower in order to ensure deep muscle contraction as opposed to general flailing. Really keep the elbows as high, tight, and still as possible the whole time, just moving the lower half of the arm. End in the high lunge position with arms back long.
- Set Three: 30 seconds
- Stay in the diagonal position, but pull the back leg into parallel with your standing leg. Stay on the toes of the working leg and light on the foot, squatting back into your seat as much as possible. Arms come overhead with the biceps by your ears.
- Stay low in the squat and then send the arms out to a T while the leg reaches out to the side in parallel. Really try to straighten the leg all the way without transferring weight into it. Keep the weight in the heel of your standing leg.
- Pull leg and arms back in and repeat as quickly as possible for 30 seconds, staying low in the squat with the core engaged the whole time.
- Repeat all three sets on the other leg. This is cardio barre, so move fast! 🙂
Thighs in Parallel: 60 seconds per side
- Cardio Series
- Step One: Stand parallel to a support/wall/countertop with your feet in parallel, hip distance apart with all 10 toes facing forward, feet flat and outside arm long out in front you. Sit low, bending your knees deeply, sitting down with a heavy tailbone, keeping your back as flat as possible, abs engaged/pulling in throughout it all.
- Step Two: Stand all the way up, straightening the legs.
- Step Three: Rise to your highest heels.
- Step Four: Keep the heels sky high and take a big bend in the knees (same as step one, but this time highest heels).
- Step Five: Kick the outside leg up in parallel, high as you can while keeping your back long and body completely upright.
- Bring the leg back down to the starting position/Step One and repeat as quickly as possible for 30 seconds, without compromising your form. Body stays upright with your back long the whole time. At the end of the 30 seconds, hold the leg up at hip height and go into the isometric hold.
- Isometric Work (Step 6): Holding the leg up at hip height or as high as you can while keeping the leg super straight and back long, pulse the leg up to the sky repeatedly for 30 seconds. You want to keep the leg long and as high as possible the whole time, contracting the quadriceps to lift it one inch higher the whole time.
- Spin around and repeat the cardio series and isometric hold on the other leg.
Thighs in Turnout: 90 seconds total
- Set One – Isometric Work: Take your legs out into a wide second position with your heels turned in towards each other and toes turned out. You want to try to turn out from the hip rather than the foot and ankle and your knees should track over your 2nd and 3rd toes. Arms come out to a T, reaching as far to the sides as possible. Start by pulsing down for 30 seconds.
- Set Two – Cardio Series: Keep the arms reach out as long as possible, but rotate from the waist, taking your right hand down towards the ground in front of the left foot. You don’t want to round your back to actually touch the foot, rather keep the back long and flat, reaching beyond it. You’ll be bending the knee that you’re reaching towards, keeping the other one straight. The left arm will go as long behind you, reaching high. Then switch to the other direction. MOVE FAST from side to side! Abs in, arms reach long, and stay low as possible the whole time for 30 seconds.
- Set Three- Cardio Series: Come back to center into the starting/Set One position, but this time reach down with both hands towards the ground. Keep the back flat, abs in and push the knees back, keeping the turnout from the hip and then explode up, reaching towards the sky with both arms overhead and jumping up off the ground. As soon as you land repeat and repeat and repeat as fast as possible, big range for 30 seconds.
Seat Work in Parallel: 60 seconds per each side
- Step One: Start on all fours, hands under your shoulders with a soft bend in your elbows and then lift your right leg up to hip height or as high as you can without allowing an arch in your low back. Flex the foot as strong as you can towards your seat and towards the sky, squeezing into the base of your seat and pulling those abs in tight.
- Step Two: Lower the right knee down in parallel to the left and to tap the ground, keeping the deep bend in the knee.
- Step Three: Pull the right knee forward towards your hands, stepping onto it with your weight in your heel, body comes upright, abs in. Knee does not come forward of your ankle.
- Step Four: Stand up on that front right foot, driving through the heel all the way to the top into a high lunge with the back leg straight, front knee never in front of ankle and reach those arms up high.
- Come back to the starting/Set One position and repeat as many times as you can for 60 seconds (just let the timer go off twice!).
- Repeat on the second side.
Seat Work in Turnout: 60 seconds per each side
- Step One: Start on all fours, hands under your shoulders with a soft bend in your elbows and then lift your right leg up to hip height or as high as you can without allowing an arch in your low back. Take the leg stick straight on the back diagonal, turning out from the hip and pulling those abs in tight.
- Step Two: Keep the leg at the exact same height, but bend the knee and pull it forward toward your right shoulder
- Step Three: Drop the right foot down near to your right hand, stepping onto it with your weight in your heel, body comes upright, abs in. Knee doesn’t come forward of your ankle.
- Step Four: Stand up on that front right foot, driving through the heel all the way to the top and cross the left leg behind it into a curtsy lunge with the back heel high and sink low, pushing weight out into your right side of your seat. Hands in prayer, core engaged.
- Come back to the starting/Set One position and repeat as many times as you can for 60 seconds (just let the timer go off twice!).
- Repeat on the second side.
Plank to Mountain Climbers: 90 seconds
- Set One: Take your hands about shoulder width apart with a soft bend in your elbow. Stay on your toes and with your feet out back behind you so your body is on a long diagonal position from the top of your head down to your heels. Pull your abdominals and core tight to hold the position without gripping in your low back and keep your hips low. Static hold for 30 seconds.
- Set Two: Hold the plank and alternate pulling your knees into your chest (mountain climbers) without letting your hips lift or your back change shape. You want to pull your abs in so tight that knees come into the chest and then drive back behind you to switch. Go quick as possible with good form for 30 seconds.
- Set Three: Hold the plank and alternate pulling your knees across your body (crossbody mountain climbers) without letting your hips lift of your back change shape. You want to pull your abs in tight so that the knee drives over to the opposite shoulder and then all the way back to switch. Move fast! 30 seconds.
Cool down and stretch: 60 seconds
Make sure you stretch everything – arms, legs, core, and seat well and give yourself a pat on the back – after you wipe the sweat off your brow! 🙂
