You Don’t Need a Lot of Space to Break a Sweat!

Well, this Halloween is one filled with more tricks than we’d like here in the Northeast. Let me start by saying thank you to all of you who sent emails, Facebook messages or tweets checking up on me here in New York following the storm that made history.

I’m happy to report I’m safe and sound in Manhattan. My parents who live on Long Island also made it through okay, although they’re facing an uncertain timetable for when they may get their power and phone lines restored. They lost several trees on their property, however, none damaged the house. My heart and prayers go out to those people who did lose loved ones or all of their possessions to this epic storm. We face a difficult period of rebuilding ahead, but I know as other Americans have done following other episodes of Mother Nature’s wrath, we will band together and get through this.

Things are slowly getting back to normal in my neighborhood. While my office remains closed in Midtown, stores and shops in the Upper West Side are opening for business again. Today will probably mark the first time I can hit the gym since the weekend. It will be nice to get back on the elliptical and rowing machines, but again, considering there are so many people who lost more than a few days at the gym, I will be counting my blessings twice today.

One thing I realized while I was cooped up in my cozy apartment watching the latest weather updates and live reports from the area, you truly don’t need a lot of space to burn some calories and break a sweat.  Thanks to a yoga mat, two 15-pound free dumbbells, one resistance band and one foam roller, I was able to burn off some of my nervous energy along with a few of the calories I consumed from the red wine, mini dark chocolate – peanut butter cups and other storm essentials  I stocked up on before Sandy arrived. Tabata Derbys became my workout of choice, usually while the TV was on tuned into the latest Sandy coverage.

Reminder on the Tabata formula: eight continuous intervals of 20 seconds of maximum intensity followed by 10 seconds of rest. You create a “Tabata Derby” by adding consecutive four-minute intervals and work your way up to a 20-minute total Tabata workout. Two important notes if you move ahead with building a derby:

1. If you do more than one Tabata – you must rest for 60 seconds before moving on to the next exercise.
2. While the idea is to push out as many reps as possible in the 20-second work period, you shouldn’t sacrifice good form. Better to do “perfect” push-ups on your  knees with your stomach drawn-in and glutes squeezed nice and tight than risk injuring your lower back with sloppy reps.

My Tabata Derby broke down like this:

• Squats
• Push-ups
• Resistance band bicep curls
• Side planks

On Monday, I followed the 20-minute derby with a 45-minute Zumba workout following the program from my Zumba Fitness Exhilerate DVD collection.

Now that the storm has passed and we work on rebuilding our neighborhoods and lives, I end with a word of encouragement for those who will be dealing with the aftermath for many days ahead. Know that you are not alone in your struggle and know that you WILL get back to your plans to have fun, be fit and feel fabulous!