
YOUR UPSIDE DOWN ABDOMINAL QUICKFIRE CHALLENGE!
Your QuickFire Challenge of The Day Are The Oblique Crunch!
You don't have to always do floor crunches to get an effective abdominal workout. Standing Core QuickFire Challenges are also a great tummy toner. They can improve your posture and you don't have to worry about neck strain like you would if you did the floor exercises.
STANDING OBLIQUE CRUNCH!
www.hulu.com/watch/58186/jill
ian-micha
els-mini-workouts-upside-down
-abdo
minal-workout (NOTE: 1:10 into the video-)
slideshows.health.com/slide_s
hows/1050
4/slides/12369 
ON YOUR MARK!
Stand with feet slightly wider than hip-width apart, with your weight on your right leg (if you want you may add a 3- to 5-pound dumbbell/ or use a water bottle in your hand for even more crunch). Stretch your left hand up and overhead to the right so you feel a stretch in your left side waist (aka your oblique).

GET SET & GO!
Crunch your torso to the left, bringing your left knee up and left elbow down toward each other as if trying to crack a nut between your ribs. Return to previous position.
Muscles QuickFired: Obliques

QuickFire Challenge YourSelf To Do 12–15 reps, then switch sides and repeat. Do 3-5 Sets Spread Out Through Your Day! Find Your "Trigger" (Bathroom/Water/Chill Break, Commercial Breaks, Phone Call, etc.)!

Track in Your Fitness Tracker: Strength: Core Exercises: Crunches!
AND/OR:

Seated Knee Lifts with Chair
www.sparkpeople.com/myspark/e
x/exercis
es.asp?ID=127 
QuickFire Instructions!
Sit on edge of chair, knees bent, feet flat. Grasp sides of chair, lean back slightly.
EXHALE: Pull knees toward chest as you crunch upper body forward using abs, not arms.
INHALE: Lower feet almost to floor, but don't let them touch until the end of the set.
This movement should be slow and controlled. Don't let the momentum of your legs do the work for you, and don't let gravity snap your legs down as you return to the starting position.
Muscles QuickFired: Abs

QuickFire Challenge YourSelf to 50 in sets of 10 spaced throughout your day!

Track in Your Fitness Tracker: Strength: Core Exercises:Seated Knee Lifts with Chair!
QUICKFIRE STRETCH:
YOUR QUICKFIRE TORSO TWIST:
www.sparkpeople.com/resource/exercis
es
.asp?exercise=289 Moving your spine in different directions during the day is important to keep circulation flowing to the intervertebral discs.
This corrective posture exercise is a great way to stimulate muscle activity, alleviate compression, and increase blood flow to the discs.

QUICKFIRE STARTING POSITION!
Sit on the floor, back straight, shoulders down, abs engaged, and legs extended in front of you. Bend right knee to place foot flat on the floor.

QUICKFIRE ACTION!
Wrap your left arm around your right leg and twist to your right side, supporting yourself by placing your right hand behind you.
Breathe deeply and hold for 10-30 seconds. Repeat on opposite side.

QUICKFIRE SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS!
Stretch to the point of "mild discomfort," not to the point of pain. Never bounce. Keep shoulders relaxed and back straight. For a deeper stretch (not pictured) place the right foot on the other side of your left knee.
Muscles QuickFired: Glutes, hips, core

Do this QuickFire Stretch 4-5 times on each side. Repeat 3-5 times throughout your day &/or Every Time You QuickFire Your Day!
SUPER SIZE YOUR CORE QUICKFIRE WITH THIS ADDITION (OR USE IT AS ALTERNATIVE TO FRIDAY QUICKFIRE, IF NECESSARY)!
QUICKFIRE COMPUTER CRUNCHES!
A QuickFire Core Standard!

First exhale, then suck in your stomach as far as you can, hold for about 15 seconds.

Relax and breathe. Visualize moving your bellybutton straight toward your back.
Holding in your tummy muscles and tensing your abs is a good way of firming and strengthening them. You will also become more aware of how to control your tummy muscles.

Your QuickFire Challenge is to do 3-5 times, spaced throughout your day.

Track in Your Fitness Tracker: Strength Training: Crunches
This QuickFire can be done anywhere, anytime and that's the way we like it! Do it NOW! If you are reading this on your computer you are already in position! QuickFire Up!
QUICKFIRE VIDEO(s) OF THE DAY!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjcZN
R6MiRE Need Motivation?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWWJs
cNtT5M LIVESTRONG ACTION
www.livestrongaction.org/?tr=
y&auid=50
67004 
GO QUICKFIRE UP YOUR DAY! SHARE YOUR FIRE & PAY IT FORWARD!

QUICKFIRE TIP OF THE DAY!
Be Positive: Being positive and cheerful has been medically proven to be healthful. Hence, smile and laugh more, and you will feel good about yourself and the world around you!
IN ADDITION:
STAND and TALK! While talking on the phone, stand up and pace for a few minutes. Pacing burns about one calorie for every 15-20 steps you take.
As with anything new, introduce your body to the QuickFires gradually. These will work your body in a very different way than you are used to, so take it easy!
If you aren't breathing while QuickFiring, then you're doing them wrong.
Create your own QuickFire Circuit by choosing different QuickFire Challenges and doing each one for a minute as hard as you can for a high intensity workout.
QuickFire Quality over Quantity.
QuickFire with other people. It's great fun, and will keep you motivated.
Remember to Log All Fitness Activity into
SparkPeople to Increase Your SparkPoints!
AS ALWAYS:
**MODIFY the QuickFire Challenges to suit YOUR abilities and feel free to Challenge Yourself (or someone else) to more! If you are unable to do the exercise, or alternative, feel free to substitute any QuickFire that you choose. The important thing is this: Space out the QuickFires as to continually spike your metabolism throughout the day.

"Tough Times Never Last; Tough People Do." ~ Robert Schuller
A QUICKFIRE SPECIAL!
Find Your QuickFire Challenge Now on FaceBook & Twitter, Too!
www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=78211
79
4244&ref=mf Spread the Spark! Your QuickFire Challenge is Now on Facebook! Twitter link from FB Site! "Spread Your Spark; Pay It Forward"