Some families were in contact with Zoom’s happy hour during the pandemic. Teresa Schubert connected with five children and an extended family through a 12-week virtual fitness challenge. “We live across the country, but for motivation and accountability, we publish training on the thread daily,” said Schubert, the 49-year-old high school activities coordinator for Honolulu.
Some children between the ages of 15 and 26 live with her, others are far away. Schubert was thrilled that his three oldest daughters were spending time doing fitness. Her 26-year-old twin daughters Mahina Choi Ellis and Taimane Kini were in the business. Kini also started a family. And 20-year-old Tenniel Ellis was practically taking a college course in New York. “I told myself that I had no excuses,” says Schubert. “I worked from home and had my 16 year old daughter Aree as an accountability partner.”
For years, strenuous exercises like jogging were uncomfortable, which made it difficult to maintain a fitness routine, said Schubert. She gained weight every time she got pregnant, peaking at 220 pounds. After the divorce in 2009, she lost weight but returned to the 215 pound range. She has always driven her children into activities and sports. “It took me a while to put myself first,” she says. “Then a pandemic occurred.”
Before the pandemic, Mahina trained at a studio called Brrn in New York and used slideboards for her workouts. Participants wear boots over their sneakers so that they can move left and right on the smooth surface of the board. Mahina gave her mother a Brrn Board and membership in virtual courses such as yoga, bootcamp and cardio sculpt as a gift to her mother last July.
“I’m looking forward to training for the first time in my life because it’s fun,” says Schubert. “It’s challenging, but you can be successful with low to moderate impact movements.” She reduced 12 pounds to a size 14-12. “I am very confident that I will get dressed again,” she says. “And my kids call out in a group chat, ‘Watch mom kill it.’ This is really great. When Schubert returns to normal life, her family faces new fitness challenges to take on responsibility and the summer is filled with hiking, surfing, and other activities. say.
Schubert glides on her new favorite aerobic exercise, the Brrn Board.
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work out
Schubert trains on her Brrn board three to four times a week. Leg training on Mondays, upper body test on Tuesdays and Thursdays and bootcamp or cardio sculpting on the fourth day. She started with a 30 minute workout but is currently working on a 30 minute high intensity yoga or online interval workout.
Leg days can include rushes standing sideways and backwards on the board, while the upper body can include burpees and push-ups. Cardio sculpts and boot camps often involve a range of climbers and speed intervals to glide across the board.
During the pandemic, she set herself a goal of doing proper push-ups and her 15-year-old son, Came Aloha Ellis, helped her out. “I can’t do a lot yet, but now I dream of doing the perfect push-ups,” she says. “It’s crazy, but it’s a personal challenge. Upper body strength is always my area of need. ”She bought 8lb, 10lb and 12lb dumbbells and bicep curls and added exercises like tricep extensions to the routine.
Mahina Choy-Ellis helps her mother Schubert stretch while Aree Ellis stretches sideways.
diet
Morning fuel: avocado toast
More environmentally friendly: “I loved delicious steaks and didn’t think I could eat a plant-based diet,” she says. “But beyond Covid, I and my friends accepted the meatless Monday. We gave each other something to eat. Even my son thinks meatless peppers aren’t real. I could not. ”
Little Meat: The family is currently attempting a predominantly vegetable diet, but their 6-foot, 15-year-old son is a growing athlete and needs “real food”. Hence, it is sometimes said that they eat fish and chicken.
Family meal: vegan caroni cheese and green salad
Luxury: dark chocolate caramel bar with sea salt.
Schubert and her daughters made yoga part of their home training during the pandemic.
Essential equipment
Girlfriend Collective ($ 68) or Halara ($ 40) leggings stay in place while you workout. “I am grateful for the training clothes that have lots of curves and fit well.”
Adidas Ultra Boost shoes for women ($ 180) are “for victory,” said Schubert. “I’m 10 feet tall. I’ve said enough. “
reversible
Lululemon
Yoga Mat ($ 88) “My sister gave me the first and only mat during the pandemic because I couldn’t believe I was exercising on the floor at home,” she says.
Catching surfboards “My family loves these surfboards,” she says. “Everyone can drive without any problems, no matter how inexperienced they are.”
Playlist:
Beyoncé
One of Schubert’s fitness goals during the pandemic was to do pushups. Her daughters join her.
Mastering pushups
Pushups can be intimidating, especially if your upper body isn’t strong.
“Essentially, it’s a moving board,” says Prentice Rhodes, a master teacher at the National Academy of Sports Medicine in Scottsdale, Arizona. From head to heel, he says, the body must be straight, as if it were standing in the right posture. The line of sight should be under the nose and the chin should be depressed to avoid breaking the neck. “I tell my clients to take a shrug position,” he says. “The shoulder blade should pull down at the top of the push-ups so that it pulls down from the body at a 30-45 degree angle when the arms go down. The elbow bumps should point straight ahead. ”
Rhodes says progress is key. Ultimately, try to lower your chest to the level of a tennis ball or yoga block, but don’t try to lower it completely at first. Check the form, not the volume, and lower it down enough to focus, he says. “Start with a countertop or similar height push-ups and do three sets of 3-5 repetitions for the full range of motion,” he says. To strengthen the muscles of the postures involved, he suggests adding hip bar and board poses to your routine. If you have wrist pain, says Shane Borley, a posture specialist and trainer in Campo, Calif., Try keeping the dumbbells on the board floor while doing pushups to reduce the stress on your wrists. ..
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