And One More Thing About Pumpkins

Sure you can carve ‘em, paint ‘em and eat ‘em but have you ever considered working out with them?

Well there you go, something new for all of us to try out. (This just goes to show that there are no excuses when it comes to working out if you find yourself without weights… just about anything goes as long as it provides resistance.)

So I have to admit that this pumpkin idea thing didn’t originate with me, there are some smarter and savvier people out there (and much more creative apparently) than your’s truly. But I thought it was a no-brainer blog today since I just wrote about how much I love pumpkins… and they’re versatility obviously.

So what should one do with said pumpkin? BJ Cook, a fitness coach and host of the upcoming Freaky Fat Loss Pumpkin Workout in Florida suggests doing these three moves below two or three times a week to “blast off those candy calories”. (Blogger note #1: “Blasting off” anything sounds downright awesome, however, I’m going to interject at this point and add to that recommendation by suggesting that along with these moves, you should add in about five more moves, perform them one after the other, rest once you’ve gone through them all and then go through them two more times. And then, every other day get out and walk, jog, run, or cycle your way to 30 minutes of heart-pumping cardio.)

I know, it’s a lot, but no one said exercise was easy, despite the easy recommendations magazines usually give you! Don’t hate me, hate them.

Ok, here we go per BJ Cook and Self magazine:

Core cincher

Lie face-up, arms and legs extended and slightly off floor, holding said pumpkin overhead. Contract abs and crunch up as you raise both legs (bend knees for an easier move; or Blogger note #2: lift one leg at a time if you have a bad lower back and are susceptible to lower back pain) and shoulder blades and bring pumpkin toward toes. Hold for 1 count then lower to start. Do 12 reps.

Arm accentuator

Start in push-up position, palms under shoulders, with pumpkin turned sideways under chest on floor. Keeping torso aligned with neck and elbows near sides, lower chest to pumpkin. Straighten arms to return to start. Do 10 reps. (Blogger note #3: : Ok, this is just a regular old push-up with a pumpkin placed under your torso so as to add a little freaky fear factor to the move. If you’re arms are too weak, your ribs are heading for a hurting if you can’t hold yourself up so be careful freaky seekers, you may want to paint a mischievous grin on the pumpkin for this exercise.)

Side sculptor

Sit on floor with knees bent, feet flat, holding pumpkin at chest level. Recline torso to 45 degrees. Contract abs and rotate torso slowly to the left and then to the right for 1 rep. Do 15 reps.(Blogger note #4: I actually use this move and to make it a bit more difficult, try lifting your feet up off the floor.)

So there are three moves you can add to your workout and in no time flat you’ll be “blasting off” towards the land of the toned and fit. And don’t worry if you don’t have a pumpkin on hand or your kids already carved it (which, by the way, you can’t use… that’s just cheating), feel free to use a papaya or watermelon… or even that 2-liter bottle of soda (that’ll prevent you from actually drinking it!)