Gabby Reece: How I Stay Motivated to Work Out

by Daniel Alvarado B.S.E.P (Exercise Physiologist) | Fitness, Health, Wellness

This article originally appeared on Motto. 

One of the biggest factors in achieving your health goals is finding the motivation to work out and keep your fitness top of mind. When life gets busy, it’s easy to let fitness fall by the wayside and not make it a priority. But once you find ways to keep yourself motivated and develop healthy habits, it can become a lifestyle that will enable you to see results and improve your overall well-being. Still, even as a former professional beach volleyball player, and now a Fitbit ambassador, carving out time to exercise hasn’t always been easy. That’s why I’ve depended on these five tips to keep me motivated throughout the years.

1. Develop a workout structure

Scheduling out your workout helps you stick to it and leaves little room for opting out at the last minute. A flexible routine that gives too much choice will be the thing that you cut out of your schedule first. I personally like to write it down. If you treat your workout like an appointment, it will help you stay committed and develop habits over time, which will make it easier to continue building exercise into your routine. When you might feel tired or you’re not seeing dramatic results, a structure will help keep you going.

2. Figure out your favorite activities

Staying motivated is infinitely easier when you find something you love to do. Some people enjoy working out at a gym and lifting weights, while others might find more joy from running outside or practicing yoga. While it’s important to try and incorporate both strength training and cardio into your workouts, it’s equally important to determine which forms of exercise you love most, so staying active becomes less of a chore and more of a source of happiness.

3. Sport the right gear

It may seem like a minor factor, but having the right clothing and gear can work wonders when it comes to motivation. I love using a heart rate monitor — keeping an eye on my heart rate zones is a great way to maintain intensity and make real-time adjustments to ensure I’m hitting my goals. I also enjoy finding some cute tights or sneakers to help boost my mood. I think when you look good, you feel good, and will find that much more reason to get moving.

RELATED: Do This 30-Minute Beach Workout to Turn Up Your Calorie Burn

4. Find a workout buddy

Finding a partner in crime to work out with is another great way of staying accountable. Making plans with someone else adds more of an obligation and makes it harder to consider taking the day off. That’s why my husband Laird and I make it a point to exercise together.

5. Make rest and recovery a priority

To stay motivated and get your best workout, you have to give your muscles and body a chance to recover. So don’t overdo it and be sure to get enough sleep, which is just as important for your health as exercise.

Gabrielle Reece is a world-renowned athlete, New York Times bestselling author, wife and mother. She’s a former professional beach volleyball player and was Nike’s first female spokesperson. She has a passion for healthy living and fitness, which has shaped her career and makes her a popular leader in the world of health and wellness.

Got 30 Minutes? The Ultimate HIIT Jump Rope Workout

by Daniel Alvarado B.S.E.P (Exercise Physiologist) | Fitness, Health, Wellness

Photo: Courtesy of Justin Patterson

This is a partial workout. Read the rest on Life by Daily Burn.

When was the last time you jump roped? If it was as a kid during class recess, now’s a good time to get back into the rhythm of things. The jump rope is not only a fun workout to turn up the sweat, it’s also a key conditioning tool for athletes and boxers, like Laila Ali, to build endurance, coordination and agility.

And now, it’s the basis for the new interval-based total-body workout, The Rope, from celeb trainer Amanda Kloots. “The jump rope is one of the most underrated pieces of fitness equipment. When you’re jump roping, you’re engaging all the muscles in your body, including your heart,” Kloots says. “Each jump involves tightening your core, toning your arms and powering your legs.”

RELATED: 3 Cardio Workouts Under 20 Minutes — No Treadmill Required

Whether you’re crunched for time or traveling (it packs light, too), just a few minutes of jump roping can leave you breathless. Kloots’s signature jump rope workout is divided into four sections: warm-up, coordination, stamina and sprints. But before you jump in, it’s important to have the right length rope. Check by standing on top of the jump rope hip-distance apart with both hands holding each end. Bring the jump rope handles toward your shoulders. If the rope goes beyond your shoulders, it’s too long, Kloots says. Now grab your rope and hop to it!

The 30-Minute HIIT Jump Rope Workout to Build Endurance

THE WARM-UP

First, it’s time to re-familiarize yourself with the basic jump. According to Kloots, proper jump rope technique starts with the feet together, shoulders pulled back and arms down by your sides with your hands the same distance away from your body. You’ll want to jump and land on the balls or midsoles of your feet (heels not touching the ground), catching at least one inch of hang time on each jump. Be sure to use your wrists to power the rope and not your elbows or shoulders. If you get tired, “Keep your shoulders over your hips, hips over your knees, and knees over your toes,” Kloots says.

GIFs: Tiffany Ayuda / Life by Daily Burn

1A. Jump Rope (60 sec)

1B. Plank (60 sec)

Repeat for 3 rounds.

RELATED: How to Master CrossFit Double Unders

COORDINATION

Next, we layer on some footwork. The goal: improving agility and drawing a stronger connection between your body and brain. To keep you from getting tripped up, “I like to remind people of different ways to think of jumps to take the pressure off the fancy footwork. For instance, when you take your legs in and out of the jump rope, I’ll say outer thighs and inner thighs. It helps people focus on the muscle groups,” Kloots says. Cue up a three-minute song and you’ll hit approximately 360 jumps — with a whole bunch of strength and core work mixed in (sequence below). Do eight reps on each side and repeat for three rounds.

RELATED: The Ab Moves You Aren’t Doing (But Should) 

1. Oblique Crunch

How to: Stand with your feet shoulder-distance apart. Fold the jump rope in half twice so it’s shoulder-distance apart when you hold each end and lift it up overhead. Pull each end of the rope to create resistance in your arms (a). Engaging your core, crunch to your left side, while dynamically pressing the rope up overhead (b).

2. Single-Leg Forward Hinge

How to: Stand with your feet together. Lift your left leg up so your left knee is bent. Fold your jump rope in half and hold each end of the rope with your hands, pulling it tightly (a). Balancing your weight on your right leg, hinge your torso forward and bring the jump rope over your left knee to touch your shin (b). Bring the jump rope back overhead (c).

RELATED: 10 Resistance Band Exercises to Build Total-Body Strength

3. In and Out Jumps

 How to: Stand over the jump rope with your feet a little wider than hip-distance apart (a). When you take your next jump, land with your feet together (b). Take another jump and bring your feet back out so they’re a little wider than hip distance (c). This is one rep. Repeat for seven more reps (d).

5 Times Cher Was the Ultimate #FitnessGoals

by Dr Alex Jimenez | Fitness, Health, Wellness

Did you catch Cher’s performance at the Billboard Music Awards on Sunday night? Not only did she hit the stage in a sheer, bedazzled body suit looking incredible, she dropped a little humble-brag about how she stays in such great shape. “I can do a 5-minute plank, okay?” she told the audience.

Yep, 71-year-old Cher can plank longer than most people who are decades younger. This wasn’t the only time the pop icon showed off her devotion to working out and living a healthy, active life. For further proof that Cher is a super-strong badass, check out her top five #fitnessgoals moments throughout her career.

RELATED: 20 Ways to Do a Plank

When she showed us how to be forever fit

Cher came out with a book in 1991 called Forever Fit: The Lifetime Plan for Health, Fitness, and Beauty. The epic cover photo shows her in a knotted gray t-shirt with her black boot placed on a barbell. Besides workout advice, the book featured exercise and weight loss programs, nutrition tips, and her favorite skin-care products. If her current healthy glow is any indication, she knew what she was talking about.

When she wore Spandex for her step aerobics videos

In the early 1990s, Cher released a series of fitness videos called (what else?) CherFitness. The videos featured step routines, ab workouts, and dance cardio sessions, all accessorized with black leotards and Spandex. The beginning of this step routine clip offers some major motivation and truth bombs from Cher. Our favorite: “You don’t have to start off perfect, you just have to start.” Preach!

When she killed it while keeping up with Tina Turner

Okay, so this glittery 1970s dance duet isn’t exactly what we think of as a workout today. But it takes damn hard training and effort to do these moves as perfectly as Cher and Tina do—and in heels to boot. Watch and learn, legends at work!

When she was candid about working out 5 times a week

When Cher was 67, she gave HELLO! magazine a summary of how she stays in shape. “I exercise about five times a week because it’s something I’ve always done and I just enjoy it,” she said. “I don’t like meat and so most of things that I like are healthy for you, apart from desserts. I don’t do drugs and don’t drink very often. I try to play the age card with my trainer but she just doesn’t go for it. My farewell tour was one of the longest tours ever, and I think it would be a tour that would kill a 25-year-old girl now.” Props for not pretending she doesn’t work hard at it.

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When she learned to surf in her 60s

During at interview with E! Online in 2010, Cher spoke about how staying in shape is more difficult now that she’s older, but she’s passionate about trying new activities to keep things fresh and exciting. “You have to work twice as hard. You have to be in the gym all the time. But I like it. When I was young I was a tomboy. I played sports . . . and I’m learning to surf right now. I like that kind of stuff, thank God.”