
Today’s fast, fun workout can be done anywhere, with no equipment and targets your glutes, legs, and core – especially your lower abs.
My buddy Coach Tyler joined me for this and he’ll help push us through when it starts to get really tough!
Ladders are a fun way to mix up your workouts – in this case we’re doing just 2 moves but using the ladder format to really get the maximum burn and keep our heart rate up.
Pay attention to your form, and take a low impact modification if you start to get too tired so you can keep it moving.
Leave us a comment below when you do it with how you felt!
Glutes and Abs Ladder Workout
Glutes and Abs Ladder Workout
Click to expand and see all workout move descriptions.Format: Perform these 2 moves back to back, decreasing them from 10 to 1 each round.
Move 1: Ceiling Stomps
- Lie on your back and press your lower back into the ground. Straighten your legs and bring them down to a 45 degree angle. In one smooth motion, bring them back up to a 90 degree angle, lift your hips and press your heels up towards the sky.
- When your legs are extended out, don’t lose contact with your lower back and the ground. This will help engage your deep core muscles and protect your back. Bend your knees when you start to feel it arch so you can build your strength.
- When you’re pressing your feet up to the sky, try to keep them super straight – don’t let momentum tip your legs back toward your face as this will decrease the effectiveness of the move.
- Coach Tyler likes to have us synchronize our breath with the ceiling stomp, breathing out as we press our feet up and breathing in as we come down.
- To modify the stomp, you can do a few different things. First, if you’re having trouble with the leg extension (it’s like a negative or eccentric contraction for your core) take it out. Just do the hip raises. Second, as I recommended above, you can bend your knees and keep them bent. Tap your toes down and then lift your hips with bent knees. You can also take the lift out entirely and do bicycle crunches if being in a more supported position feels more comfortable for you.
Move 2: Jump Switches
- A classic fat-burning move, jump switches target your glutes and legs. Begin in a strong lunge position, making sure your front knee is in line with your front foot, and when you bend it stays at a 90 degree angle and the knee doesn’t end up beyond the toe.
- Your back heel is lifted and is in line with your back knee.
- Jump yourself up and switch positions, landing softly and with good form. You can get your arms involved for balance and speed.
- If jumping isn’t a good idea for your knees but you are okay with lunges, perform forward reverse lunges (that’s a forward lunge, followed by a reverse lunge with the same leg) and alternate sides to target all the same muscles. You can also perform basic lunges in place, or walking lunges. Remember to hold onto a wall or railing for balance, as unilateral movements recruit your proprioceptive balancing muscles as well.
I recommend adding this circuit in as a fat-burning finisher at the end (or beginning) of a weight training session or as a stand alone sweat fest on a day you’re really short on time!