3 + 6 MINUTE Standing AB WORKOUTS - At Home Fitness with Bowflex

This Bowflex workout below is an absolute favorite of my parents and especially my Dad who found it at the beginning of the pandemic and during quarantine. He has maintained doing this workout video everyday and I am so proud of him for that! If you missed his blog post "My Dad Talks About His 50 lbs. Weight Loss and Healthy Lifestyle Journey" you can read it HERE.

Don't feel like going to the floor to give your abs an awesome workout? No problem! This workout will have your core burning big time without ever going to the floor! Make this workout your go-to if you don't have a comfortable surface to lay on, don't want to get down on a floor that's seen a lot of foot traffic, or just want to mix up your ab routine.

6 Minute Standing Ab Workout

For this 6 minute workout, you will be doing 4 ab exercises for 45 seconds each, two times through.

The 4 ab exercises are:

1) Punches - Place your legs about shoulder width apart and twist your upper body, throwing a punch with your arm. Then twist the other direction & punch with your other arm. Your feet should stay mostly stationary, with just a little twist of the same foot of the arm that is punching to allow the body to twist.

2) Front Kicks - Keep one leg planted & kick out with the other leg, focusing on contracting your abs when you kick. Alternate legs after each kick. Be sure you have plenty of space to do this exercise & don't kick anything or anyone!

3) Standing Marches - Start with both hands straight up in the air & bring one knee all the way up while bringing your arms down, keeping your hands above your elbows & near your body, so your elbows & knee lineup, with your knee in between both arms. As you do this, squeeze your abs. Return to the starting position & do the same thing with your other knee & continue to alternate knees.

4) Standing Cross Crunch: Knee to Elbow Variant - Bring one arm up so your elbow is at chest height & your hand is above your elbow & bring your opposite knee up while bringing that arm down so your elbow meets your knee (don't hit them together hard). As you do this, squeeze your abs. Return them back to their starting point & do the same thing with your other knee & elbow & continue to alternate.

Extended Leg Variant - Kick one of your legs straight out, keeping your leg as straight as possible & reach out to touch the toes of that leg with your opposite hand. Alternate legs & arms throughout the workout.

Don't worry if you can't kick super high or touch your toes when you do this workout, just make sure you are doing the range of motion that you are able to do & engaging your abs with each move.

If you don't have the time for a 6 minute ab workout:

3 Minute Standing Ab Workout

Subscribe for more workouts and tips from Bowflex here.

Check out my Instagram

HERE

For a little surprise to see who joined my parents on this workout!

The Day The Music Died - December 8, 1980 - Remembering John Lennon

By: My Papa Ed

The tragic murder of John Lennon left an irreplaceable void in the world of music. There are very few people that leave an amazing legacy on the world and he was one of them. His lyrics will forever demonstrate the hopes, fears and joys we all experience in our lives.

John's contribution and collaboration with Paul, George and Ringo will go down in music history as a moment in time that to this day has not been replicated. We can all learn from his message of peace and harmony in a world that has become increasingly fractured.

In his words, " Imagine all the people living life in peace..." he knew there was a better world that we can all live in if we try.

Rest in Peace, John.

A Directory of FOSTER Care CLOTHING Closets Around The U.S.A.

Generous organizations and people create Foster Care Closets for foster parents. They consist of donated items meant to offset the costs of new clothing and other necessary belongings for children in care. Many of them offer used clothing, toys, furniture and baby accessories. Please note: the Foster Coalition does not run foster care closets. However, they have created this wonderful comprehensive list as a service to the foster care community.

About the Foster Coalition

What is the Foster Coalition?

The Foster Coalition is a resource website for many things related to foster care. The mission is to make important information easy to find, whether you are a foster youth looking for support, a foster parent seeking a clothing closet, or a concerned person who wishes to get involved and support youth in care.

​How did the Foster Coalition get started?

The Foster Coalition website was started by Leah Burdick, an adoptive mom. Leah was a blogger for the Chronicle of Social Change, and given her business background, she specialized in writing about innovative programs improving different aspects of foster care. However, she often had difficulty finding programs and support data for her blogs. That's when she compiling lists for herself and quickly found that they were useful to others. Thus, the Foster Coalition website was born!

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The Foster Coalition does not accept donations. It is a "love offering" to the community in the hopes that access to information will make it easier for people to support youth in care.

Now that I found this wonderful Foster Coalition directory, going forward I will now be clearing out my closet and making a "love offering" to my local foster care closet.

Click

HERE

For A List of Foster Care Closets

All Over The U.S.A.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post.

If you see that a great resource is missing from The Foster Coalition website, be sure to let them know when you visit the site.