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Meet the Daily Burn Dozen! Nope, we’re not talking about a box of donuts (sorry). We’re referring to the latest kick-butt workout from Daily Burn 365 trainer Becca Pace. If you like variety in your workouts — and hate repeating moves — this 19-minute routine will be your new go-to challenge. We’re serving up a linear workout of 12 moves, with no circuits and no breaks in between. Plus, there’s an extra ab challenge at the end to make it a full baker’s dozen! (You didn’t think we’d deprive you of that, did you?)

RELATED: Burn Fat, Build Muscle: 3 Killer Circuit Training Workouts

Don’t forget to warm up (try these awesome dynamic stretches) and cool down afterwards. And check out the challenges below so you can take this workout to the next level if you’re feeling ambitious.

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The Daily Burn Dozen Total-Body Workout

1. Side lunge (right side)
Step out into a side lunge, keeping your weight in your heels, back straight. Push your palms together in front of your chest to create resistance in your arms. As you come out of the lunge, raise your palms over your head. Continue for 90 seconds.

2. Side lunge (left side)
Repeat move on opposite leg.

RELATED: 5 Better Ways to Sculpt a Stronger Butt

3. Plank to down dog
Start in plank position, knees on the ground, shoulders over wrists, back straight. Lift your hips, heels and knees to transition into down dog. Then, roll back to plank.
Challenge: Lift your knees off the ground in plank position.

4. Superman
Lie facedown on the ground. Start by lifting your right arm and right leg off the ground and hold for 30 seconds, keeping your neck neutral and extending through your fingertips and toes. Then, lift your left arm and left leg for 30 seconds. Finally, lift your arms and legs simultaneously for 30 seconds.

RELATED: The 5-Minute, No-Equipment Back Workout

5. High knees
Stand in place lifting alternate knees to your chest as fast as you can.
Challenge: Fold your arms in front of your chest and rotate side-to-side as you raise your knees.

6. Standing leg lifts (right leg)
Stand with your weight on your left leg, arms out to the sides for balance. Lift your right leg out to the side, about six inches off the ground. Holding your leg in the air, point your toes up to the ceiling and then down to the ground.
Challenge: Lift and lower your leg, as you point your toes up and down.

7. Standing leg lifts (left leg)
Repeat move on opposite side.

RELATED: Tone Your Thighs: 3 Moves for Awesome Legs

8. Wide push-up
Get in a modified push-up position with your knees on the ground, hands wider than your shoulders. Perform a push-up, then sit back into child’s pose, and repeat.
Challenge: Raise your knees off the ground during your push-up.

9. Forearm plank
Start in a forearm plank position. Hold for 30 seconds. Then, switch to a side plank supported by your right forearm. Hold for 30 seconds. Next, switch to a side forearm plank supported by your left arm. Hold for 30 seconds. Place your bottom knee down on the ground if you’re struggling to hold the plank.
Challenge: Tap alternate feet out to the side in forearm plank, pulse your top leg up and down in side plank.

RELATED: Hate Crunches? 6 Better Core Exercises for Beginners

10. Back lunge with twist (right leg)
Step back with your right leg, coming into a low lunge. Bring your palms together in front of your chest, creating resistance between your hands. Twist towards your left leg. Push off your back leg to come back to standing. Repeat for 90 seconds, then switch legs.

11. Back lunge with twist (left leg)
Repeat move on opposite side.

12. Cardio hops
Complete two big hops forward, then four small hops backward. If hopping feels uncomfortable, step forward and back instead.

Make It a Baker’s Dozen!

13. Standing ab pivots
Stand with feet hip-distance apart, arms fully extended in front of you, palms touching. Twist to the right, pivoting with your left foot. Twist to the left, pivoting with the right foot.
Pro tip: With each twist, imagine you’re crushing something behind you with your hands!

Want more no-equipment exercises like these? Head to DailyBurn.com/365 to get new live workouts, daily.

The post The 12 Move Total-Body Workout: The Daily Burn Dozen appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

Get inspired by these Daily Burn success stories, which showcase real people who committed to fitness and saw results that were way beyond average.

In October 2005, 24-year-old Stacy Cole married the love of her life, and celebrated with a honeymoon on the beautiful shores of Montego Bay, Jamaica. Fast-forward about 10 years and one child later, when the couple decided to spend their special anniversary with a return visit to the Caribbean island. Stacy booked the trip, and quickly stepped on the scale, knowing bikini photos would be inevitable. Her 5’5’’ frame at 162 pounds was a wake-up call. With busy days at the office — and even busier nights at home taking care of her family — Cole realized she needed to carve out time to take better care of herself, too.

RELATED: 5 Healthy Fast Food Breakfasts for Crazy-Busy Mornings

Before finding Daily Burn, Cole thought she was active enough: a weekly mile-long jog here, a lunchtime walk there, plus kickball games sprinkled throughout. And as a Project Manager in the bustling tech world, she explains there’s always work to be done and meetings to attend. Throw in married life and a three-and-a-half year-old son, and Cole found herself with a full plate. “But Being busy didn’t mean I was active,” she recalls. “In fact, I was quite sedentary.”

Finding What Worked

Right after Cole booked her vacation, she also joined Daily Burn to step up her workout game. “I tried looking for stuff online, but I just wanted someone to tell me what to do. And when I saw an ad for Daily Burn on Hulu, I was like, ‘This is exactly what I need.’ I don’t want to have to go to the gym. I want a personal trainer to guide me, step-by-step, on what I can do and how I can get results,” she explains.

RELATED: The Trim Healthy Mama Plan: Inside the Best-Selling Diet

Cole started with Daily Burn's Cardio Sculpt and Intelliburn, then moved on to TBT (a no-equipment, bodyweight-based program). Encouraged by the results she was seeing for the first time in what seemed like forever, she then jumped into the high-intensity Inferno program (“Anja Garcia is my favorite,” she says of the program’s trainer). It was official: Cole was hooked on her daily DB workouts — and lost 35 pounds in six months, weighing in at a lean 132 pounds.

Now, with just two pounds to go until reaching her goal weight of 130 pounds, Cole is making her way through the strength training program Live to Fail, while also (not-so) secretly recruiting her husband to join her. “My husband doesn’t really exercise, but I think when he sees me picking up the weights and lifting he thinks, ‘I can do that too!’ she says. He’s since begun jumping in on several of those sweat sessions.

Making the Necessary Tweaks

What’s remarkable about Cole’s transformation isn’t that it wasn’t all about the food changes she made — it was about the attitude she took on. “To be very honest, my diet hasn’t changed too much, but what I think has changed the most is my mindset. Because I’m not calling it ‘a diet,’” she says. “As soon as you do, that’s when you fail. If I cheat, I feel guilty, then I’ve failed...and I’m not gonna do that anymore.”

RELATED: 10 Foolproof Ways to Cut Calories While Eating Out

So rather than overhaul everything in her fridge, Cole decided to adapt to the circumstances around her, making subtle changes for each meal (and snack) that contributed to her 30-pound weight loss. While breakfast used to be scrambled eggs and breakfast sausage, now it’s a veggie omelet — with produce from her very own garden. “I started gardening over the summer because I didn’t want to put any more garbage in my body,” she explains of her newfound green thumb.

She snacks on her bounty as well, grabbing a handful of green beans or an apple instead of a bag of chips from the office vending machine. When it comes to dinner, though, Cole has to keep her husband and son in mind. “They still want to eat pizza, so I’m trying to make a lot of healthy swaps. So instead of regular pizza, I’m making cauliflower crust instead,” she says. Add to that a wealth of spiralized zucchini dishes (“No more pasta!” Cole exclaims of her new kitchen discovery), and you’ve got a happy, healthy and satisfied family.

A New Reason to Stay Healthy

While Cole’s original weight loss intentions were skin deep, they turned out to be a larger wake-up call when it came to her own health. “My mother was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes a few years ago, and now my father was diagnosed, as well,” explains Cole. “And the stats tell me that my chances of developing the disease as I get older are very high.”

RELATED: How to Do a Sugar Detox (Without Going Crazy)

To keep her future looking bright, Cole plans on continuing her weight loss journey, but with wellness at the forefront of her mind. “I take so much comfort knowing I’m doing everything in my power to make sure that’s not how I end up. I’m taking care of my body, I’m putting in good food,” Cole explains. “Yeah, of course I wanted to look cute in a swimsuit,” she adds. “But there’s so much more to this whole process. You don’t even realize it.”

To learn more about Daily Burn or to try a free 30-day trial yourself, head to DailyBurn.com.

Note to reader: The content in this article relates to the core service offered by Daily Burn. In the interest of editorial disclosure and integrity, the reader should know that this site is owned and operated by Daily Burn. Always talk to your doctor before beginning any exercise or weight loss program. Daily Burn users who worked out for 30 minutes or more at least five times a week for 60 to 90 days reported an average weight loss of about one pound per week.

The post My Wedding Anniversary Trip Was My Weight Loss Wake-Up Call appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

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What if we told you the secret to better health starts with a shake of the hips…and a smile? That's what Dancing with the Stars pro Louis van Amstel preaches in his signature dance party-meets-fitness program, LaBlast Fitness. Through his 10-season-long career coaching novice celebs like Paula Deen and Kelly Osbourne to grace the DWTS stage, being in great shape isn’t just expected — it’s a necessity. But the three-time world dance champion chooses the salsa, rumba and jive over treadmills and weight machines every time — and here's why: "Fitness should be fun," he says. We totally agree, of course.

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

This week, the Dutch-American ballroom star teamed up with Daily Burn 365 to share a limited-time only, total-body workout (that doesn’t feel an ounce like work). Check out van Amstel’s high-energy, cardio-blasting routine below — and read on to find out what keeps him moving every day (hint: passion, purpose and ice cream). Yep, you can count us in!

The Louis van Amstel Dance Workout You Need in Your Life

From Dancing with the Stars to Your Living Room

On getting started: “My grandparents had me start dance because they believed it was important for my social etiquette. But it only took me one year to know that this was going to be a huge part of my life. I’m forever indebted to them for that.”

RELATED: Dancing with the Stars’ Mark Ballas: Fit for TV

On people with two left feet: “No such thing. My motto is if you are ready to give up control and get out of your head, you will be able to learn to dance. Dance is based on logic. If you can clap the rhythm, then you can dance it. I say, ‘Stop thinking and start watching and listening. If you see the person in front if you goes forward with the left foot, don’t think about it, just do it!’”

On committing to fitness: “I want to feel as good on the inside as I look on the outside. I can go to the gym for the sake of working out, but if I don’t walk out of there feeling good, I won’t go back the next day. That’s the problem: People feel obligated to go to the gym but you have to first determine why you want to go to the gym. Why do you want to sign up for Daily Burn? Why do you want to become a LaBlast member? Determine your ‘why,’ set your goal, and be prepared to do whatever it takes.”

On bringing sexy back: “Just because you only see the front of your body when you look in the mirror, doesn’t mean you should forget your backside. It’s so important to think holistically, and work the whole body — front, back, top to bottom. I’m a big believer in full-body workouts.”

RELATED: 5 Ways to Sculpt a Better Butt

On the Viennese Waltz — with weights: “We have 19 dances as part of the LaBlast program. And in the Viennese Waltz you get it all. People might say, ‘Wait, that’s an elegant dance, why would you do that with weights?’ But afterwards they thank me! They say ‘I never would have thought that this would give me legs, posture, arms and upper body all in one song.’ Three minutes. And that’s just one dance. We also do Paso Doble for muscle endurance. Then Jive for cardio, so you’re covering cardio, muscle endurance and weight training.”

On (not) dieting: “I’m a conscious eater — and that’s the only thing I will promote. I believe it’s important for people to understand that if there’s something you crave, that’s not bad. You just need to be conscious of it and day ‘OK, not every day, not too much.’ It’s all about learning a little more about food. What are carbs, what are proteins, what are saturated fats, for me it’s all about awareness.”

On chocolate and ice cream: “Yes and yes. I love it all, but you can bet I’ll be in the gym the next day!

On his favorite DWTS pairing: “Kelly Osbourne. When we started out, she didn’t think she could dance; she was out of shape. But by the time she made the finals she had lost 35 pounds. She was confident, she was happy from inside out, and she felt accomplished. It’s why I do what I do.” 

On being kind to yourself: “Transformation happens over a long period of time. When it comes to weight loss people give themselves a week. But think about it: You’re on the planet let’s say for 80 years, so why not give yourself more time? That way you don’t ever have to feel pressured. Plus it’s way healthier and more sustainable in the long run.”

RELATED: 6 Weight Loss Success Stories to Motivate You Right Now

On the secret to success: “There are no shortcuts. Right now I feel I’m on dream number four. The secret is looking at the long haul. Set a goal, work at it, and enjoy what you do. And most of all, don’t take yourself too goddamn seriously.”

Exhibit A: THIS tongue-in-cheek routine with his Dancing with the Stars Season 21 partner Paula Deen:

A video posted by Louis van Amstel (@louisvanamstel) on Dec 2, 2015 at 9:42am PST

Want exclusive access to more great workouts every day? Click here to try Daily Burn 365 free for 30 days.  

The post The Louis van Amstel Dance Workout You Need in Your Life appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

The 12 days leading up to December 25^th are jam packed with cookies, carols and candy cane-clad Christmas trees. But you can still get your sweat on and stay in the spirit of the season with this fun workout challenge from Daily Burn 365 trainer Dara Theodore.

RELATED: Burn Fat, Build Muscle: 3 Killer Circuit Training Workouts

To the tune of the holiday classic 12 Days of Christmas, allow us to present Daily Burn’s 12 Days of Fitness! That means instead of one partridge in a pear tree, eight maids a milking and 10 lords a leaping, you’ll get one nutcracker burpee, eight Rockette bridges, 10 leaping lunges — and more!

RELATED: The 12 Move Total-Body Workout: The Daily Burn Dozen

Tack the following moves onto your standard workout every day until Christmas — or for a true challenge, build up to completing the entire 12 days’ worth of moves on Christmas Day. Don’t forget to follow it up with a warm-up and cool down — and then sit back and treat yourself to a glass of something good (try this healthy eggnog recipe!). You earned it.

The 12 Days of Fitness Challenge

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Nutcracker Burpees: Start standing, feet hip-width apart, arms straight overhead. Bend your knees to squat down and place your hands between your feet, then step back into plank position. Next, step your feet back up to your hands, then jump up, raising arms overhead.

RELATED: The Louis van Amstel Dance Workout You Need in Your Life

Triceps Presses: Lie on your left side, hips and knees stacked, knees slightly bent. Wrap your left arm around your torso, bracing yourself with your right hand planted on the ground in front of your chest. Push against the floor, engaging your triceps to lift and lower your torso. Repeat on opposite side.

Snow Angels: Lie facedown on the floor, arms and legs fully extended, neck long, eyes to the ground. Engage your back and glute muscles as you lift your arms, legs and forehead off the ground. Sweep your arms and legs out to the side, and back, as if you are making a snow angel. Return to starting position.

RELATED: How I Lost 130 Pounds the Healthy Way

Tree Balances: Balance on your left leg, right foot resting on your left calf, hands in prayer position in front of your chest (this is called tree pose). Step out with your right leg into a plié squat position, return to tree pose. Repeat on opposite side.

Boxer Presses: Stand with feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent. Hinge at the hip to bend forward almost to a 90-degree angle, back straight, chest up. Clenching your fists, press your arms straight out in front of you. Engage your arm muscles to draw your fists in towards your body, then extend your arms straight out to your sides. Repeat.

RELATED: Tone Your Thighs: 3 Moves for Awesome Legs

Lateral Lunge Wraps: Stand straight with feet hip-width apart, arms straight out in a T. Step out to the right with your right foot into a lateral lunge, wrapping your left arm behind your back and your right arm around your stomach. Return to standing, bringing arms back to T position.

Shining Stars: Stand with feet together, arms at sides. Jump up, sending your feet apart, and arms in the air, forming a star shape with your body. Land with [FILL IN LANDING POSITION. SAME AS STARTING POSITION?] Repeat.

RELATED: The Game-Changing Way to Work Out With a Towel

Rockette Bridges: Lie on the floor, arms by your sides, feet hip-width apart. Keeping your arms on the floor, engage your glutes to lift your hips off the ground. At the top of your bridge, lift your right leg up into the air. Lower to the ground and repeat on opposite side.

Press and Rolls: Complete a push-up on your knees, then roll back into child’s pose. Repeat.

RELATED: 5 Calorie-Blasting Cardio Exercises (No Treadmill Required!)

Leaping Lunges: From a standing position, bend your left knee and lift it towards your chest, before stepping out into forward lunge. Return to standing by pushing off your left leg, and lifting your left knee towards your chest again, before lowering your foot to the ground.

Drummer Squats: Perform jump squats (or regular squats) while drumming your hands in the air in front of your torso.

RELATED: My Wedding Anniversary Trip Was My Weight Loss Wake-Up Call

Toy Soldiers: Stand tall, arms lifted overhead. Keeping your left leg straight, lift it up as high as you can, reaching across your body to touch your toes with your right hand. Repeat on opposite side.

Want more no-equipment exercises like these? Head to DailyBurn.com/365 to get new live workouts, daily.

The post The Daily Burn 12 Days of Fitness Challenge appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

If you’re sick of slogging through endless rounds of crunches at the gym, we don’t blame you. Ab workouts can be boring — but that’s where Pilates comes into play. Based on more than 600 exercises and variations, Pilates keeps ab work interesting while helping you sculpt a powerful core. And the benefits are more than just aesthetic. “I love every kind of physical fitness, but I will say Pilates is the only thing that gave me this kind of abdominal strength,” says Daily Burn Pilates instructor Andrea Speir.

RELATED: 5 Ways to Sculpt a Better Butt

Try It Now: The Daily Burn Pilates Ab Workout 

This six-move core series makes for an intense workout, Speir says. Use a Pilates Magic Circle to add resistance to some of the exercises. Don’t own one? No problem. All you need is your mat. Perform these moves with no breaks in between — we dare you!

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Wind Down
How to: Sit in the center of your mat, knees bent, feet hip-distance apart (a). Bend your elbows and make a fist with each hand. Stack your fists on top of one another in front of your chest (b). Begin circling your fists around each other (c). Inhale and curl your tailbone under, scooping the abdominals in, and roll down towards the mat. Stop before touching the mat (d). Exhale as you round back up, winding arms in the opposite direction. Repeat four more times.

RELATED: 7 Easy Pilates Ab Moves for Beginners

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Frog-Circle Combo
How to: Lie flat, holding your knees to your chest (a). Curl your head and neck off the floor, and stack your hands like a pillow behind your head (b). Heels together, toes apart, slide your legs out along the mat, hovering your feet just about the mat (c). Lift legs up to a high diagonal, about 45 degrees from the ground (d). Bend your knees in towards your ears, and then slide your legs out along the mat again, hovering feet a few inches off the ground. Repeat 16 times. Think about engaging the abdominals from the two inches below your navel, Speir says. That will help the lower abs really engage and control the movement.

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Footwork
How to: Lie directly in the center of the mat, and bring your knees into your chest (a). Curl your head and chest up. Gazing at your abdominals, stack hands palm over palm like a pillow and place them directly behind the head (b). With heels together and toes pointed, turn your knees out, keeping them shoulder-distance apart (c). Send legs out to a high diagonal, at least 45 degrees from the ground, and hold (d). Bend knees back towards your ears. Repeat 10 times.

RELATED: Hate Crunches? 6 Better Core Exercises

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Tabletop Control
How to: Sitting on the mat, position the Pilates Magic Circle between your legs, just above the anklebone (a). Lie down on your back, knees drawn towards your chest. Stack your hands palm over palm, and place them behind your neck (b). Curl up, squeezing the Pilates Magic Circle between your legs (c). Lower your toes towards the mat (d). Without arching your back, scoop your abdominals in to lift your legs back up to your chest. Repeat 10 times.

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Crunch Series
How to: Lie on the mat, knees bent, feet together and planted on the floor. Stack your hands palm over palm, and place them behind your head (a). Drop your knees down to one side (b). Gazing at your navel, curl your body up slightly (the middle of your back should be on the ground at all times), keeping elbows wide, lifting from your core. Repeat 10 times, then switch sides.

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Side Bend
How to: Sit on your right hip, folding your right leg under your body and extending your left leg out to the side in a straight line (a). With your right hand placed on the ground next to your hip, bend the left knee slightly, pushing yourself up to balance on your right knee (b). Flex the foot of your left leg, pull your abs in and lift your right leg, placing it behind your left leg. (c). Place your left hand on your hip, then pulse your hip up two-inches and down two-inches, keeping you right arm straight. Repeat eight times. Switch sides.

For more Pilates workouts you can do anytime, anyplace, head to DailyBurn.com/Pilates.

Note to reader: The content in this article relates to the core service offered by Daily Burn. In the interest of editorial disclosure and integrity, the reader should know that this site is owned and operated by Daily Burn. 

Originally posted June 2015. Updated December 2015. 

The post The Pilates Ab Workout to Sculpt Your Core appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

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Take off your shoes but don’t get too comfortable. This barefoot barre workout will leave you sweaty and feeling the burn all over your body.

“This is a really, really great way to work the entire body in a low-impact way and to pretty much touch on every single muscle group, especially a lot of those little muscle groups that tend to get forgotten when we focus on the larger muscle groups,” says Daily Burn 365 trainer Becca Pace.

While most barre workouts require an actual bar, you can do these moves using just your bodyweight and a yoga mat. Plus, you’ll be happy to know you won’t be doing any burpees. Barre workouts are all about tiny movements that require you to focus on form, stability and balance. Need a break? Feel free to pause to roll out your your wrists or take a breather in child’s pose, Pace says. And prepare to work muscles you didn’t even know you had!

RELATED: The 12 Move Total-Body Workout: The Daily Burn Dozen

The 5-Move Barre Workout That’ll Work Your Whole Body

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1. Walk-Down Planks
How to: Start in down dog, then walk your hands out into plank pose, letting your left leg float up a few inches off the ground as you move forward (a). Think about zipping your belly button in towards your spine and reaching the crown of your head forward. Your shoulders should be over your wrists, with your fingers spread apart (b). Keeping your elbows straight, hold the plank for 30 seconds (c). Bend your knees and slowly walk your hands back into downward dog and repeat on the opposite side.

RELATED: Burn Fat, Build Muscle: 3 Killer Circuit Training Workouts

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2. Half-Moon Leg Lifts
How to: Get on your hands and knees, arms straight, knees bent at a 90-degree angle (a). Straighten your right leg and lift it off the ground. With your foot flexed, tap your toes out to the right side, off your mat (b). Then, engage your glutes to lift your right leg up and over your left leg, tapping the floor on the outside of your left foot (c). Repeat for 30 seconds, then switch legs.

RELATED: The Louis van Amstel Dance Workout You Need in Your Life

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3. Forearm Plank Knee Taps
How to: Get into a forearm plank, shoulders over elbows, heels pushing back, spine long. Pull your shoulders away from your ears (a). Tap your right knee down to the floor, then your left knee. Alternate for 30 seconds (b). Then, tap both knees to the ground for 30 seconds.

RELATED: The 5-Minute No-Equipment Back Workout

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4. Plié Pulse Series
How to: Stand upright, feet positioned wider than hip-width apart, toes pointed out at a 45-degree angle. Raise your arms straight out to your sides, holding them at shoulder-height, or place your hands on your hips (a). Bend your knees to go into a plié squat, then return to standing. Repeat for 30 seconds (b). Then, bend into a plié squat and pulse for 30 seconds (c). Repeat both variations one more time.

RELATED: Tone Your Thighs: 3 Moves for Awesome Legs

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5. Inner Thigh Lifts
How to: Lie down on your left side, left forearm planted on the floor perpendicular to your torso to support your body. Lengthen your neck to avoid collapsing into your supporting arm (a). Bring your right leg over your left leg, bending the knee and planting your right foot in front of your left knee (b). Keep your left leg straight and foot flexed, and rotate your foot so it’s lying flat against the mat. Then rotate the foot so your toes point into the air, and lift your leg about six inches off the ground (c). Repeat for 30 seconds, then switch to opposite side.

The post Pulse, Plank, Plié: The Barre Workout You Can Do at Home appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

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These exercises come to you from DailyBurn 365 trainer Prince Brathwaite. You can find more no-equipment workouts from DailyBurn’s trainers at DailyBurn.com/365.

If you feel a surge of motivation when you’re working out with a partner, it’s not just in your head. Research shows that buddying up for a workout can help you push past personal doubt and sweat through those last few reps. And since it's the holiday season, we're gonna make a bet you'll have someone to sweat with over the next few weeks. You’ll exercise harder when you’re sweating side-by-side (or with a virtual partner) than you would when solo. Turns out a little healthy competition never hurt anyone! Plus, having a partner in crime can increase the fun factor — which might just help you fall in love with your fitness routine. A serious sweat session doesn’t always need to be serious!

RELATED: 20 Partner Exercises from the Fittest Couples on Instagram

So schedule a mini strength session with your bestie, significant other, coworker or kids, and team up for the core exercises below. (Keep in mind, the exercises are listed from easiest to hardest.) The buddy system is not overrated, folks.

Ab Workout: 3 Partner Exercises for a Stronger Core

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1. Patty Cake Plank
How to: Start in a high plank position, balancing on your hands and toes. Shoulders should be directly above your wrists and your feet should be hip-width apart (a). Keeping your core engaged and maintaining a straight line from head to toe, swing your right leg to the side and gently tap your toes on the ground. Your right leg should be about 45 degrees from your left leg (b). Bring your right leg back to center and perform the same movement with the left leg (c). Next, bring your right hand off the floor and extend your arm straight out from your shoulder, reaching diagonally to slap palms with your partner. Bring your right hand back to the floor and repeat movement with your left hand (d). Repeat the sequence at a brisk pace for 60 seconds.   

RELATED: Pulse, Plank, Plie: Your At-Home Barre Workout

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2. Best Friend Oblique Sit-Ups
How to: Lay next to your partner on the floor with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Hands should be placed on either side of your head and your shoulders should be pulled back and relaxed to avoid tension in the neck. Your back should be flat against the floor (a). Engage your core and peel your shoulders off the floor to an upright position, rotating your torso towards your partner as you reach the top (b). Take the outside arm (the one that is farthest from your partner) and reach across your body, firing your oblique muscles, to give your partner a high five (c). Bring your hands back to cradle your head, and carefully lower your upper body back to the floor (d). Repeat this exercise at a brisk pace for 30 seconds, then switch sides.

RELATED: The #12DaysofFitness Challenge: Try It Now!

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3. Double Trouble Leg Circles
How to: Lay with your back on the floor, hands placed under your glutes with your legs extended straight out. Your partner should also be lying on the floor across from you, with the soles of both your feet almost touching (a). Lift your legs straight up in the air and lower them gently, your core engaged and your back flush against the floor. Stop when it becomes difficult to keep your back against the floor (b). Next, keep your core engaged and slowly draw a circle clockwise in the air with your feet. (Your partner should be going counter clockwise, so your feet don’t knock into each other.) (c). Repeat for 30 seconds, then switch to counterclockwise for 30 seconds. Having trouble making it through? If this move is tough for you, try bending your knees to 90 degrees.

Want more partner exercises like these? Head to DailyBurn.com/365 to get a new live workout every day.

Originally published September 2015. Updated December 2015. 

The post Your 3-Minute Partner Ab Workout appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

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So maybe you’ve let your workout routine slide over the past week, but why wait until New Year’s to get back on track? Resolutions are overrated — and we’re all for starting each week with a fresh slate and good intentions.

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

Research shows that people think about and actually do healthy activities more on Mondays than other days of the week. And working out on Monday could give you the momentum you need to exercise more frequently for the rest of the week, too. (As Daily Burn 365 trainer Anja Garcia says, “Never miss a Monday.”)

RELATED: 5 Calorie-Blasting Cardio Exercises (No Treadmill Required!)

To get a jump on the week, try this quick, effective cardio and strength circuit created by Garcia exclusively for Daily Burn 365. Best of all, you'll get a full-body workout without needing a single piece of equipment.

Complete this dynamic warm-up, then get moving on the four circuits below. Perform each movement for 45 seconds, then take a 15 second break. Repeat the circuit twice, take a 15 second breather to transition, then start on the next circuit. Your future self will thank you!

16-Minute Cardio Strength Circuit

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Strength Circuit Exercise How-Tos

1. Long Jump Shuffle
Squat down and jump forward. Then, with knees bent, shuffle quickly back to your original position.

2. Side-Step Squat
Crouching in a squat, take two steps to the right. Now take two steps to the left and repeat.

3. Jumping Jack Squat
Perform a regular jumping jack. Then jump your feet out and transition into a squat position, keeping your arms in front of your body in a “prayer” position. Alternate between regular jumping jack and the squat jack.

4. Beast Crawl
Start with your hands and knees on the floor. Lift your knees two inches off the floor. On your hands and feet, take two steps forward (keeping your butt down, back straight) and then two steps back. Repeat.

5. Butt Kick
Jog in place, pumping your arms and focusing on trying to bring your heels to touch your glutes.

6. Pulsing Squat
Squat down and pulse for two beats, then stand up. Focus on squeezing your glutes as you stand.

7. Lunge Tap-Back
Bend your knees so you are in a squat position. Take your right foot and bring it behind you, tapping the floor with your toes. Perform as many as you can, then switch to using the left foot for the second round.

8. Glute Bridge Dip
Sit on the floor and place your hands near your hips with your fingertips pointing towards your feet. Lift your butt three inches off the ground and perform a tricep dip by bending your elbows. At the top of your triceps dip, squeeze your glutes to lift your hips off the ground so your quads are parallel with the floor. Repeat.

Want more short and effective workouts like this one? Head to DailyBurn.com/365 to get new, live workouts daily.

The post Do This 16-Minute Workout Before 2016 appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

[caption id="attachment_46627" align="alignnone" width="620"] Photo courtesy of Allison Hagendorf[/caption]

When it comes to abs, Allison Hagendorf knows what’s up (ahem, see photo above). But her secret to a stronger core isn’t what you think. That’s right — it’s not crunches — but the good, old-fashioned squat.

“In order to do a squat properly, everything has to be engaged and it starts with your core,” says Hagendorf, the official host of Times Square New Years Eve. “Your shoulders are back and you need to have a nice tall chest and the way you’ll do that is having your core engaged, otherwise your shoulders come forward and you’re hunched. It’s your core and abs and obliques that hold you up and help get proper form.”

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

A CrossFit coach and certified health coach, Hagendorf teaches an Ab Lab class at her local box (that’s CrossFit speak for gym). Most people who show up are surprised when they realized they aren’t in for a million crunches — but rather, a workout filled with planks, squats, rotations, plyometrics and agility moves.

However, while you can plank and squat to your heart’s content, Hagendorf is quick to point out that, “Abs are made in the kitchen.” The self-described food lover sticks to a diet primarily comprised of plants, animals, nuts and seeds. And she’s seeking to spread the word about the importance of balancing eating and exercise at her Fit to Feast event series in Los Angeles. “I lead everyone in a quick, efficient workout — ­it’s not about duration but efficiency. And then I partner with a chef and we curate a menu of real, nutrient dense whole foods. It’s a delicious culinary experience.”

Get a taste of one of Hagendorf’s workouts with this quick, three-move ab series designed exclusively for Daily Burn 365!

RELATED: Burn Fat, Build Muscle: 3 Killer Circuit Training Workouts

Want more awesome ab workouts? Head to DailyBurn.com/365 to get a new, live workout every day.

The post The Ab Lab: 3 Moves to Strengthen Your Core appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

Get inspired by these Daily Burn success stories, which showcase real people who committed to fitness and saw results that were way beyond average.

Whether you’re trying to lose 10 pounds or more than 100, these nine weight loss success stories will inspire you to take those first steps you need to make a change. Together, they’ve lost a collective 603 pounds through eating and lifestyle changes that included Daily Burn workouts! They’ve relied on food diaries, attitude shifts and plain old exercise to whip their bodies (and minds) into the best shape they’ve been in for years. Find out what motivated each of these men and women to get started — and most importantly, what kept them going in the long run. Steal their secrets and start writing your own success story next.

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

9 Weight Loss Success Stories You’re Going to Want to See 

Transformed his health post-college 

Alex Clary
Weight loss: 75 pounds in 15 months
How he did it: Tactical Bodyweight Training (TBT)

Weight loss wake-up call: When Alex Clary got a scary report from his doctor post-college, he realized it was time to make a change. Heart disease ran in his family — and he didn’t want to be susceptible to health problems down the road. “That was the trigger, I thought, ‘I’ve got to do something about this,’” he recalls.

Secret to success: Tracking calories. For the first month of Daily Burn, Alex didn’t make any changes to his diet — so he didn’t see much progress on the scale. After realizing he needed to get his portion sizes under control, he began using a calorie-tracking app to monitor what he was eating. “It was like a switch flipped as soon as I changed my diet. That first week I lost a couple pounds, then a couple more the next week,” Clary says. “It was so exciting and there was nothing more motivating than actually experiencing that change.”

RELATED: Burn Fat, Build Muscle: 3 Killer Circuit Training Workouts

Started with just 15 minutes of exercise each day

Chris Diggins
Weight loss: 61 pounds in 13 months
How he did it: DB15, Inferno and Move!

Weight loss wake-up call: At 250 pounds, Chris hated seeing himself in family photos, and was upset by the fact that he could no longer play easily with his three children. Though he’d always struggled to find the time to work out, he was intrigued when he saw a commercial for Daily Burn on his Roku. “I decided to look through the app and saw that there were workouts that could be done in 10 and 15 minutes,” remembers Chris. “It was the beginning of the year and I decided it was time to make a change.”

Secret to success: Starting small. “I tried not to set my goals too high,” he says. “I wanted to get to 200 pounds but I figured with doing only 15 minutes here and there, there was no way that could ever happen.” But after cutting fast food from his diet, and focusing on portion control, Diggins started to lose weight. “What set this apart was that it was the longest I’d been on any exercise program because it was hard to tell it no,” Diggins says.

RELATED: 3 Quick HIIT Workouts for Beginners

Got her confidence back

Katarina Herrera
Weight loss: 71 pounds in 16 months
How she did it: Cardio Sculpt, Inferno, TBT

Weight loss wake-up call: It wasn’t until after giving birth to her son that Herrera’s weight became a problem. “[It was] just me continuing to eat for two even though I wasn’t feeding two anymore,” she recalls. “And I’d say, ‘Oh, I’m just big because I had a baby!’” But after the death of her grandmother, she realized it was time to get her weight under control. “I kept the clothes she bought me because I wanted to hold on to them, but they didn’t fit,” Herrera says.

Secret to success: Short-term goals. “My ultimate goal was just to get to 145, but my short-term goal was to cut it down halfway to 165,” Katarina says. “I’d give myself many goals, just so I wouldn’t get discouraged.” Slowly, she started swapping her usual breakfast of toast for a protein-packed meal of eggs. Baked chicken and veggies replaced breaded chicken and mashed potatoes at dinner. “It’s all about feeling confident rather than what the scale says,” she notes.

RELATED: I’m Exercising More — So Why Am I Gaining Weight?

Made tiny changes to lose 100 pounds

Sean McKinley
Weight loss: 100 pounds in 15 months
How he did it: True Beginner, Cardio Sculpt

Weight loss wake-up call: When his daughter was four years old, McKinley knew the 320 pounds he held on his frame were holding him back from being the dad he wanted to be. “We were running outside trying to fly a kite and I realized I couldn’t run around very well,” McKinley, 31, says. “Just realizing I had gotten to the point that I couldn’t run with my daughter anymore was a wake-up call.”

Secret to success: Small changes. Though he had a history of crash dieting, McKinley decided this time would be different. “I slowly started incorporating more vegetables and fruit into my diet,” he says. “It was definitely a slow process.” Eventually, he found his grocery cart stocked with 90 percent produce — whereas in the past, it had been mostly processed foods. “A lot of people try to jump into it all at once and say they are going to do all this to see change quickly,” McKinley says. “For me, I did slow diet changes and also a slow exercise progression. I think that’s what allowed me to continue or I would have burned out and given up on myself a long time ago.”

RELATED: The 12 Move Total-Body Workout: The Daily Burn Dozen

Conquered destructive eating habits

Nancy Berry Idoni
Weight loss: 35 pounds in 16 months
How she did it: Cardio Sculpt, Live to Fail, Black Fire

Weight loss wake-up call: Though she’d struggled with disordered eating and weight gain for a long time, it wasn’t until she met her now-second husband that Idoni decided it was time to shape up for good. Plus, as a mother of five, she wanted to be a healthy role model for her children.

Secret to success: Learning to shop healthy on a budget. With a large family to feed, Idoni had to get creative in the kitchen to stretch her funds. “I’ve found that cooking things by scratch takes a lot of time, but you get a lot of nutrients and it’s pretty cheap, so I buy a lot of dried beans, because it can go a long way,” she says. “We also use a lot of potatoes and rice, and I try to get things on sale and buy in multiple when I can,” she says.

RELATED: 21 Meal Prep Pics from the Healthiest People on Instagram

Learned to eat clean

Dina Shingleton
Weight loss: 30 pounds in 10 months
How she did it: True Beginner, Cardio Sculpt, Black Fire

Weight loss wake-up call: The 183 pounds Shingletown was carrying on her 5’3” frame was starting to take a toll on her body. “…I was having a year-and-a-half long bout of plantar fasciitis in the bottom of both of my feet,” she says. “It was miserable, every time I would get up, I was hobbling.” Even though her injury may have been unrelated to her weight, it prompted her to start eating clean and getting fit.

Secret to success: Finding a diet that worked in the long-term. When she was overweight, Shingleton used to skip breakfast and lunch, only to find herself snacking and overeating at night. Fad diets had failed her — so she decided to mix things up. “I started to focus on eating clean, whole foods…I eliminated anything white, sugar, flour — and most items with gluten in it,” she says. “And then I concentrated on adding more protein. I’d do a meal-replacing shake for breakfast.”

RELATED: 20 Low-Calorie Snacks You’ll Want to Eat Every Day

Embraced a more active life

Kristen Bloom
Weight loss: 66 pounds in 16 months
How she did it: Cardio Sculpt, Intelliburn, Live to Fail

Weight loss wake-up call: After suffering from appendicitis, Bloom feared she’d only end up spending more time in hospitals later in life if she kept gaining weight. “I said, ‘OK, this is such a miserable experience. Even though [appendicitis] isn’t a weight-related issue, someday there will be one,’” she says.

Secret to her success: Staying positive. An optimist at heart, Bloom’s sunny attitude helped her stick to her routine of measuring what she ate and exercising diligently. “While I’m exercising, I’m telling myself, ‘You can do that, you’re strong, you’re fast, you’re amazing,’ and then my body will follow,” Bloom says.

RELATED: 19 Reasons to Work Out (Beyond the Perfect Body)

Lost 130 pounds the healthy way

Randi Fields
Weight loss: 130 pounds in 12 months
How she did it: True Beginner, Cardio Sculpt, Inferno, Black Fire

Weight loss wake-up call: Though she always remembers being heavy, Fields’ weight really started to escalate after the birth of her daughter. When she saw a photo of herself on a cruise in March 2014, she got inspired to change her ways.

Secret to her success: Keeping a food journal. Fields had more than 100 pounds to lose — and she knew she needed a way to keep herself accountable. So whenever she ate something, she’d either write it down or take a picture of it. “That was very revealing,” she says. “You can say ‘I had a cup of macaroni and cheese,’ but, well, did you really have a cup or was it way more than that?”

RELATED: Gym Time or Meal Time: What Matters Most for Weight Loss?

Changed her outlook to change her body

Stacy Cole
Weight loss: 35 pounds in six months
How she did it: Cardio Sculpt, Intelliburn, TBT, Inferno

Weight loss wake-up call: When Stacy Cole booked a trip to the Caribbean to celebrate her wedding anniversary, she decided to use it as motivation to shed pounds from her frame.

Secret to her success: The right attitude. “To be very honest, my diet hasn’t changed too much, but what I think has changed the most is my mindset. Because I’m not calling it ‘a diet,’” she says. Instead of doing a huge overhaul, she started making tiny tweaks to her meal plan. Rather than eating pasta, she’d make spiralized veggies. And instead of snacking on chips, she’ll grab an apple or some green beans. “I’m taking care of my body, I’m putting in good food,” Cole explains.

To learn more about Daily Burn or to try a free 30-day trial yourself, click here.

Note to reader: The content in this article relates to the core service offered by Daily Burn. In the interest of editorial disclosure and integrity, the reader should know that this site is owned and operated by Daily Burn. Daily Burn users who worked out for 30 minutes or more at least five times a week for 60 to 90 days reported an average weight loss of about one pound per week. For those seeking to lose weight, keep in mind that extreme weight loss can be harmful to your health if done improperly or too suddenly. Always talk to your doctor before beginning any exercise or weight loss program.

The post 9 Weight Loss Success Stories You’re Going to Want to See appeared first on Life by DailyBurn.

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These exercises come to you from Daily Burn 365 trainer Anja Garcia. You can find more no-equipment workouts from DailyBurn’s trainers at DailyBurn.com/365.

Looking to refresh your cardio routine? Kickboxing is a great way to get your heart pumping, while also blowing off a little steam. (Take that, morning commute!) Plus, the high-intensity workout has also been shown to have a slew of other health benefits, including improved coordination, flexibility, strength and even increased mobility for some. And did we mention kickboxing is a solid way for all fitness levels to get moving? “You don’t need any prior experience to do the workout,” says Anja Garcia, Daily Burn 365 trainer. “The moves are easy to grasp on their own.” So don’t let the scary-sounding sport spook you: After running through this five-minute routine, you’ll be ready to take on anything.

RELATED: The Barre Workout You Can Do at Home

5 Kickboxing Moves to Get Your Cardio Fix

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1. Front Push Kick
How to: Start standing, with arms firmly in guard in front of your face (a). Kick your right leg out, extending through the hamstring as you pull your arms down towards your hips (b). Return right foot to floor and repeat motion on your left side (c). Continue kicking, alternating legs for 45 seconds.

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2. Combo Punch and Slip
How to: Start in fighter stance, with left foot forward and right foot back, arms in guard position in front of your face (a). Pivot slightly forward and throw a jab punch with your left hand, stepping forward with your left foot (b). Then, throw a cross punch with your right hand (c). Next, throw a hook with your left arm (d), then an uppercut with your right arm (e). Slip back by bending at knees before turning and switching sides, with right foot in front and left in back (f). Repeat the previous combination using opposite arms as directed; alternating sides for 45 seconds.

RELATED: 7 Awesome Boxing Classes to Up Your Burn

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3. Double High-Low
How to: Begin in fighter stance, arms in guard, left foot forward and right foot back (a). Quickly jab with your left arm, once up high, once down low (b). Repeat the sequence once more, focusing on your form (c). Next, do two jumping jacks with arms in guard, finishing in fighter stance with your right foot forward (d). Repeat above sequence with your right side, then alternate between both for 45 seconds (e).

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4. Uppercut Squat Reach
How to: Start standing with knees slightly bent and arms in guard (a). Complete four uppercuts: right arm, left arm, then right arm, and left again (b). Next, take a full squat (or modify for an extra burn with a jump squat) (c). Repeat sequence for 45 seconds.

RELATED: 7 Ways to Improve Your Squat

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5. Burpee Kick
How to: Start by standing in squat position (a). Place hands on the ground and extend left, then right back into plank position (or, jump back straight into plank pose) (b). Then, ring each leg back forward and return to standing. (For an extra challenge, throw in a jump here.) Kick your right leg out, then left leg (c). Repeat sequence for 45 seconds.

Want more partner exercises like these? Head to DailyBurn.com/365 to get a new live workout every day.

Note to reader: The content in this article relates to the core service offered by Daily Burn. In the interest of editorial disclosure and integrity, the reader should know that this site is owned and operated by Daily Burn.

The post Need a Cardio Fix? Try This 5-Minute Kickboxing Workout appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.

One of the keys to nailing an at-home workout is making sure your space is set up for success. Because when it’s not, a burpee or plank could leave you covered in dust, or worse, bruised from a coffee table that’s just an inch too close to the TV screen.

That’s why we had Daily Burn 365 host, JD Roberto, school us on how to create the perfect home gym. The father of two, who’s active on the regular, has had a few of his own home gym mishaps — and now is sharing some sage advice for creating your own space.

RELATED: Want New, At-Home Workouts Daily? Sign Up for DB365!

So grab a broom, check your WiFi and dust off that trophy from 1980s Little League — your revamped home gym awaits.

Tune in every day at 9 a.m. ET for a brand-new live workout you can do in your own home gym at dailyburn.com/365.

The post How to Avoid a Home Gym Fail appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.

Meal Prep: Healthy Turkey Roll-Ups

You’ve probably heard that meal prep is the key to success in sustainable healthy eating. Preparing tupperware full of healthy food sounds like a lot of work, right? Luckily, you don’t need to cook a week’s worth of food ahead of time if you want to clean up your diet. There are plenty of easy (and delicious!) meals that you can assemble in a jiffy if you’re pressed for time.

RELATED: 10 Snack Hacks to Satisfy Your Most Evil Cravings

Case in point: These satisfying turkey roll-ups from Fit to Feast founder Allison Hagendorf. Instead of chomping down a turkey sammie from the deli at lunchtime, you can make your own better-for-you turkey roll-ups packed with healthy fat from avocado and just the right amount of carbs from sliced apples. Have one or two as a snack, or a few more if you want to make a meal of it.

Want more meal prep tips? Check out these 12 brilliant ways to save time and money, and tune in to Daily Burn 365 at 9 a.m. ET for brand-new live workouts and healthy living tips.

The post 30-Second Snack: Healthy Turkey Roll-Ups appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.

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When life gets hectic, it can be tough to squeeze in a workout — Jenna Wolfe, former Today show correspondent and fitness expert knows that all too well. But it wasn’t until she became a mom (of two!) that Wolfe realized how hard it would be to get back into shape. “I literally came out of the womb doing push-ups against my moms thighs and I had an inclination to be athletic as a kid,” Wolfe says. “Then, this thing called childbirth happened.”

RELATED: Work Out with Jenna Wolfe on Daily Burn 365!

After the birth of her second child, “All I saw was this uphill, endless journey to get my body back,” Wolfe says. “In my head I thought I would ‘bounce back’ and do one workout and have my body back [but] in my heart, I knew I would have to be patient and it was a process.”

Wolfe’s new book, Thinner in 30: Small Changes That Add Up to Big Weight Loss in Just 30 Days, aims to help make that process simpler. “Believe it or not starting is the easy part,” Wolfe says. “ On day one of Wolfe’s plan, you’ll challenge yourself to take 20 sips of water before you get out of bed each morning. Then, you’ll add one new healthy habit every day, building on what you’ve learned in previous days. With these new habits, it’ll become easier to build up to longer workouts — and thirty days later, you’ll be feeling better than ever, Wolfe says.

But what about those days when you just can’t find time to sweat? “The best workout you can do is whatever workout will get you to work out,” Wolfe says. And if that means doing squats in your kitchen while your coffee brews, so be it. “Don’t do a thousand things, do the few things that are good for you,” Wolfe notes.

Wolfe joined us on Daily Burn 365 to share five ways she likes to get in a mini-burn on-the-go.

5 Ways to Burn More Calories at Home

1. Wall-sits while brushing your teeth.
The challenge: Do a two-minute wall sit while brushing your teeth. Place your back flat against the wall, then lower your butt like you’re sitting in a chair, knees at a 90-degree angle, core engaged. Hold the wall sit while you brush your teeth for two minutes. Want to make it harder? Lift your feet one at a time, or alternate tapping toes on the ground.

2. Counter push-ups while making coffee.
The challenge: Four minutes of counter push-ups (or as many as you can manage!). Place your hands on the counter a little wider than your shoulders, then go down into a push-up, bringing your chest as close to the counter as you can. Then, gently push off the counter, allowing your hands to float away from the surface, before coming back down into another push-up. Repeat for four to five minutes. “Eventually, when that’s pretty doable, you can get down on the ground and do some push-ups,” Wolfe says.

RELATED: Get More of Jenna Wolfe's Moves Here!

3. Single leg squats while waiting in line.
The challenge: Work your balance while standing in line. Balance on one leg for 30 seconds, then the opposite leg for 30 seconds. Build up to a minute on each leg. For an extra burn, pulse up and down on your standing leg. “Even though it’s a subtle move you’re working your whole midsection,” Wolfe says.

4. Bicep presses at your desk.
The challenge: Strengthen your arms while sitting. Take your hands and press your palms against the underside of your desk, pointing away from your body. Push up as hard as you can for 30 seconds. Rest for five seconds. Repeat two more times. Do this three times over the course of the day. “Even though it’s such a simple move you will feel the burn all throughout your arms,” Wolfe says.

5. Hip thrusts before bedtime.
The challenge: Work your glutes while watching TV. Lie on the floor, planting your feet hip-distance apart. Squeeze your glutes to lift your hips off the ground. Repeat 50 times. Lift your left leg straight up into the air, then repeat 50 more times; lift your right leg up, repeat 50 more times. (Too tough? Start with sets of 10 or 20 and work your way up.) “You should be able to burn calories on those days when you do not have time to work out, and frankly, when you don’t want to,” Wolfe says.

Want exclusive access to new, LIVE 30-minute workouts every day? Click here to try Daily Burn 365 free for 30 days.

The post Jenna Wolfe on 5 Ways to Burn Calories at Home appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.

Get inspired by these Daily Burn success stories, which showcase real people who committed to fitness and saw results that were way beyond average.

It’s a dilemma common to many mothers: Amy Avery had gained weight with her first pregnancy and didn’t quite lose it before deciding to have baby number two. “I thought, ‘Why do I need to take the weight off I’m planning on having another child?’” Avery says.

Though she’d struggled to stay slim her entire life, Avery says she managed to get down to her lowest weight — and smallest pant size — before her wedding. But after the birth of her second child, not only had she gained back all the pounds she’d lost pre-nuptials — she was the biggest she’d ever been. “About a year ago, I was back up to a size 22 pant, which I hadn’t been since high school, and I had a very active four-year-old who wanted me to get up and run around,” she recalls. “And I was like, I need to do something, or I won’t be around as long for my daughters.”

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

The Clean Eating Challenge

At 5’7” and 250 pounds, Avery decided to embark on a five-day clean eating challenge with a friend. In addition to sticking with her meal plan, she was also supposed to do 30 minutes of exercise each day. The problem: She’d gotten bored exercising with workout DVDs. But she’d heard about Daily Burn, so she decided to give it a try. She started with the True Beginner program and surprised herself when she realized she could do most of the exercises. So that week, she challenged herself to try Move! and Total Cardio — which got her hooked.

“Now, I can run up and down the stairs three or four times without even getting winded.”

RELATED: How I Lost 130 Pounds the Healthy Way

With a goal of shedding some serious pounds, Avery dedicated herself to clean eating and sweating every day. “The clean eating challenge forced me to focus on portion sizes, whole grains, fruits and vegetables,” Avery says. “It was a way to teach me how to cook things I already liked in a healthy way.” She started swapping out ground beef for turkey, and nixed white rice for brown rice or quinoa.

It was a big change from her previous lifestyle of dining out on fried food, and eating lots of processed foods, sugar and ice cream. “I was a big eater and it would be a lot of the really bad stuff, so it took a lot to get both of those under control and realize you don’t need to just keep eating because you’re sitting here.” Her new approach: “Stop yourself and pace yourself. You don’t need a third helping after whatever we had for dinner, you’re good after one,” Avery says.

RELATED: My Wedding Photos Were My Weight Loss Wake-Up Call

Hooked on a Healthier Lifestyle

After just five days of clean eating, Avery was starting to see results — and felt great — so she decided to stick with it. She also got a FitBit so she could start tracking her steps — aiming for 20,000 per day, well beyond the 10,000 daily steps usually recommended. She continued to challenge herself during her workouts, too, switching to Cardio Sculpt, and then Inferno. “I almost died after the first Inferno workout, but I was like ‘I can do this!’” she laughs. “I might not be able to do it exactly like [the trainer] could but I could modify it and still get a benefit from it.”

Her progress was evident in her everyday life, too. “After I gave birth to my second daughter, climbing up and down the stairs was absolute torture but that’s where my bedroom was,” Avery says. “Now, I can run up and down the stairs three or four times without even getting winded.”

Today, just under one year after starting Daily Burn and discovering clean eating, Avery has lost 80 pounds. “I didn’t expect to do it in less than a year,” she says. “It’s just hard work and watching what you eat — there’s really nothing more to it than that.”

To learn more about Daily Burn or to try a free 30-day trial yourself, click here.

Note to reader: The content in this article relates to the core service offered by Daily Burn. In the interest of editorial disclosure and integrity, the reader should know that this site is owned and operated by Daily Burn. Daily Burn users who worked out for 30 minutes or more at least five times a week for 60 to 90 days reported an average weight loss of about one pound per week. For those seeking to lose weight, keep in mind that extreme weight loss can be harmful to your health if done improperly or too suddenly. Always talk to your doctor before beginning any exercise or weight loss program.

The post How I Lost 80 Pounds in Just Under One Year appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.

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These exercises come to you from Daily Burn 365 trainer Anja Garcia and FDNY firefighters Al Combs, Blaise Major and Jamah Figaro, special guests on today’s show. You can find more no-equipment workouts at DailyBurn.com/365.

Think firefighters are wolfing down donuts whenever there’s not a fire to put out? Think again. Some of our finest public servants are actually incredibly health-conscious. Case in point: The ripped muscles gracing the pages of the FDNY Calendar of Heroes. (Full of fun eye candy, the 2016 calendar raises money for the FDNY Foundation, which promotes fire and life safety in NYC communities.)

But it’s not just about looking good. For firefighters, their job depends on their fitness level. When duty calls, these men and women must put on anywhere from 85 to 135 pounds of gear in 15 seconds flat. Then, they might have to run up and down stairs in a burning building in order to locate and evacuate people trapped inside. Wowza!

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

So how do these “calendar guys” stay so fit? “It’s all about consistency,” says Al Combs, a Brooklyn-based firefighter who joined us on the set of Daily Burn 365. Combs and his fellow firefighters perform drills and train strength and cardio when there’s down time between emergency calls. Plus, he stays on track when it comes to food, too. “Sometimes we treat ourselves, but it’s all about self-control at the end of the day,” Combs says, explaining that he uses specific portions to prevent overeating.

Here, Combs and fellow FDNY firefighters Blaise Major and Jama Figaro demonstrate three full-body exercises that can help you get fit for life. You probably don’t sprint through smoke and flames during your day job, but these no-equipment moves will tone your core and lower body while improving your balance and reaction time. Ready to train like a modern-day hero? Follow along with Daily Burn 365 trainer Anja Garcia and the three firefighters in the video below. Perform one round or up to three if you’re feeling en fuego!

3 Moves to Work Out Like a Firefighter 

Want the whole 30-minute workout with these FDNY pros? Click here to get free access to Daily Burn 365.

The post 3 Moves to Work Out Like a Firefighter appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.

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Got five minutes? That’s all you the time you need to work your core, thanks to this quick 5-minute ab workout from Daily Burn trainer Anja Garcia. Whether you’re tacking it on to the end of your cardio session, or simply squeezing in five minutes of fitness before you start your day, we promise you’ll feel the burn. “If things start to shake, things are working,” Garcia says.

Perform each move for 50 seconds, with 10 seconds of rest in between. You’ll be done before you know it.

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

The 5-Minute Ab Workout You Won’t Get Sick Of

1.Standing Cross Crunch
How to: Stand straight, arms behind your head. Perform a standing crunch, bringing your opposite elbow to opposite knee. “You may feel like you’re getting off balance, but that’s part of the drill here,” Garcia says. With each crunch, try to drive your knee so it’s at a 90-degree angle.

RELATED: Pulse, Plank, Plié: The Barre Workout You Can Do at Home

2. Beast Crunch
How to: Get down on the floor, positioned on your hands and knees. Lift your knees a few inches off the ground. Twist your torso side to side, bringing your right glute towards the ground (but not touching!), then your left. Need a challenge? Pick up your right hand, and bring your left knee in to touch your right elbow — and repeat on the opposite side. “You’ll feel that right into those obliques — those are the side abs,” Garcia says. “I really like this movement because we’re not on our back, but everything is working from the front of our core to the backside.”

RELATED: Tone Your Thighs: 3 Moves for Awesome Legs

3. Side Plank
How to: Lie on your right side, propped up on your right elbow, right knee on the ground, left arm straight up in the air. Reach your right arm down, threading it under your torso, then bring it straight up into the air again. Then, lift your left leg up, bending at the knee, as you bring your left arm down, touching knee to elbow. For an extra challenge, lift your bottom knee off the ground to come into full plank. Repeat for 25 seconds on each side.

4. Plank Walks
How to: Sit on your butt, legs out in front of you. Plant your hands on the ground just behind your butt, fingers pointing towards your toes. Lift your butt off the ground, keeping your legs straight. Hold there, or for an extra challenge, bring alternating knees towards your chest. “Now remember that your core involves your back as well as the front side, which is why this move is so important,” Garcia says. Keep your hips lifted as you go; they might start to drop as you get tired.

RELATED: Burn Fat, Build Muscle: 3 Killer Circuit Training Workouts

5. Tick Tocks
How to: Stand up, feet positioned wider than your hips, toes pointed out. Put your hands behind your head and get into a squat position. Then, keeping your torso upright, reach your elbows side-to-side, bringing your right elbow to your right knee, and left elbow to your left knee. Keep your belly button tucked up and in. “Pretend that there’s a wall in front of you, so you’re not starting to hunch forward,” Garcia says.

Want more no-equipment exercises like these? Head to DailyBurn.com/365 to get new live workouts, daily.

The post The 5-Minute Ab Workout to Strengthen Your Core appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.

Get inspired by these Daily Burn success stories, which showcase real people who committed to fitness and saw results that were way beyond average.

For Adrienne O’Connor, losing weight had always been about one thing: getting skinny. “It would be one of those things where I have to go to a wedding in a month, so let’s do everything I can think of to [lose weight],” she says. “I was not really getting healthy for myself and my family, but because I wanted to look skinny.”

Along the way, O’Connor, now 37, tried every diet in the book — from low-carb to juice cleanses to South Beach and Atkins. Her yo-yo dieting began in earnest during her college years, when she found herself exercising less — and eating and drinking more. “I’d lose weight, then I’d think, ‘I can eat whatever I want now,’” O’Connor says. “It’s crazy how easy weight comes back on and how hard it is to take it off.”

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

Hooked on salty and sweet snacks, O’Connor found it hard to resist temptation — especially after life got even busier when she and her husband became parents to two daughters, now one and four years old. Running a business as an event planner from her home and taking care of her daughters during the day, O’Connor found late-night snacking hard to resist. “I’m up late at night once they go to bed and that’s a trigger, especially if I’m sitting at the computer and getting stressed,” she says.

It took O’Connor two years to lose the baby weight she’d gained while pregnant with her first daughter. “I did not want that to happen again,” O’Connor says. So six months after having her second daughter, she decided to take action.

Swapping “Skinny” for “Healthy”

In August 2015, O’Connor saw an advertisement for Daily Burn 365 — a new workout program looking for participants for their live, daily show. “I was like, ‘This could be what I need,’ because I’m really into accountability and this could help motivate me,” she recalls. Being a good role model for her daughters was also important for O’Connor. “I just decided I didn’t want to struggle anymore and I didn’t want to have to worry all the time and constantly think about weight,” she says. “Because that’s exhausting…I decided I’m going to change my life and lifestyle.”

RELATED: Sign me Up for New Workouts Daily, Free for 30 Days!

“The scale tells a small part of the story in my opinion.”

After her first workout at the Daily Burn 365 studios, O’Connor was hooked. “It was so much fun. The energy is amazing, it was just infectious,” she says. “I knew I was in the right place — but I couldn’t walk for a couple days after!” she laughs. The best part: Even though she hadn’t worked out in awhile, O’Connor felt like she could do all the moves, while still feeling challenged. (Want to try a Daily Burn 365 workout for yourself? Click here.)

Now that she’d committed to a workout routine, O’Connor decided to start targeting her eating habits, too. “I think my turning point in my diet was when I asked one of the other participants what she was doing and she said was tracking her food on My Fitness Pal,” O’Connor says. “That really changed things for me because it made me really aware of how many calories I’m taking in.” She also started meal planning so she’d always have something healthy on hand. Her diligence was paying off, too. Within six weeks of joining Daily Burn 365 and tweaking her diet, O’Connor had lost 10 pounds.

Committing to Fitness

Two months into Daily Burn 365, O’Connor’s results were becoming even more obvious. “I was on set and my pants were almost falling down and it was the greatest feeling in the world!” she says. Beyond that, she started to see differences way beyond the number on the scale. “The inches you’re losing, that was just crazy — that was amazing,” she says. “I’ve lost and gained weight before but I feel like now my body is actually reshaping itself in a great way.”

RELATED: 9 Weight Loss Success Stories You’re Going to Want to See

“The scale tells a small part of the story in my opinion,” O’Connor, who has now lost 27 pounds over the past six months, says. Today she says she can hold a plank, use long-forgotten ab muscles to get up off the ground — and even walk up and down the stairs carrying both of her children (or a boatload of grocery bags).

“It’s been that kick in the butt I needed to get started on healthy lifestyle again,” O’Connor says. “For the first time in years I’m starting to feel like myself again, that I’m in my body.”

To learn more about Daily Burn or to try a free 30-day trial yourself, head to DailyBurn.com.

Note to reader: The content in this article relates to the core service offered by Daily Burn. In the interest of editorial disclosure and integrity, the reader should know that this site is owned and operated by Daily Burn. Always talk to your doctor before beginning any exercise or weight loss program. Daily Burn users who worked out for 30 minutes or more at least five times a week for 60 to 90 days reported an average weight loss of about one pound per week.

The post This Mom Lost Weight But Her Non-Scale Victories Are Even Better appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.

These exercises come to you from Daily Burn 365 guest and celebrity trainer David Kirsch. You can find more no-equipment workouts at DailyBurn.com/365.

David Kirsch's Ultimate Plank Challenge

At first glance, the humble plank looks pretty unassuming. But make no mistake, this basic exercise can actually challenge you from head to toe. Your back, shoulders, arms and more will be feeling the burn by doing just one move.

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

But holding your body in a straight line can get boring fast. Luckily, celebrity trainer and author of Ultimate Family Wellness, David Kirsch showed us how to mix things up on Daily Burn 365. Work your outer thighs, butt and triceps with these fun and effective plank variations. We promise the five minutes will fly by faster than you can say, “I hate crunches!”

Want the whole 30-minute workout from today’s show? Click here to get free access to Daily Burn 365.

Note to reader: The content in this article relates to the core service offered by Daily Burn. In the interest of editorial disclosure and integrity, the reader should know that this site is owned and operated by Daily Burn.

The post Hate Sit-Ups? Try the 5-Minute Plank Challenge appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.

Until a few years ago, Nigel Barker, fashion photographer and former judge on America’s Next Top Model, was just your average gym-goer. (Well, kind of.) He’d work out solo, with headphones, going through a routine — and occasionally copying other moves he saw on the gym floor.

But that all changed when he got a call one day from Hugh Jackman — yup, that Hugh Jackman — to ask Barker if he’d like to join his workouts while he was training to star in Wolverine. “He liked working out in a bit of a pack so he started inviting his friends to work out with him, myself and a couple of other guys,” Barker, host of Sirius Radio’s Gentleman’s Code, recalls. But Barker wasn’t easily convinced. “I was terribly intimidated and didn’t want to do it — he asked me maybe six times until I got embarrassed not to go!”

RELATED: Daily Burn 365: New Workouts, 7 Days a Week

Welcome to the DogPound

Eventually, Barker joined the crew — and was totally hooked. “Instead of being intimidating, it was this incredible sense of brotherhood and positive reinforcement,” says Barker, who recently joined Daily Burn 365 for a workout. “At the same time, it was challenging. Everyone’s pretty competitive and wants to be the best, so that pushes everyone.”

Soon enough, the group of about eight guys was joining up with trainers six days a week at various gyms across New York City — and started calling themselves The DogPound. (They’d all bring their dogs to the workouts!) Today, they’ve even expanded to include three Olympic athletes, a NAVY Seal and the head trainer for the NYPD, among other big names.

RELATED: The 5-Minute Ab Workout to Strengthen Your Core

“Most of us are in our 40s, a few are in their 50s, a few are in their 30s and one or two who are much younger,” Barker says. “When you get to work out with a guy like [Olympian Conor Dwyer] and you’re me, you say, ‘He’s an Olympian and he’s 20 years my junior — there’s no way I can compete!’ But then there’s something you can do that he can’t…and you think, ‘I’m doing pretty good for an old guy!’”

Nigel Barker’s DogPound Workouts

Dog Pound workouts revolve around heavy lifting, with high numbers of reps and few breaks. On Mondays, they focus on chest and back; Tuesdays, legs; Wednesday, full body; Thursday, arms; Friday, deadlifts and shoulders; Saturday, full-body again — and on Sunday, they rest. “Going to the gym to work out with these guys is one of my favorite times of the entire day even though it’s at 5:45 a.m.,” Barker says.

Eventually, the DogPound crew started to get bigger, as more people asked to join. So the group decided it was time to build their own gym — aptly named The DogPound — which will open in New York City in March.

Need proof that Dog Pound workouts really work? Check out the insane partner moves Barker and his crew demo’d when they recently joined a Daily Burn 365 workout in the video above! 'Curls with a Girl' and the 'Human Deadlift'? ‘Nuff said.

Want to work out with more awesome guests like Nigel Barker? Visit dailyburn.com/365 for a 30-day free trial of our live, daily workouts.

The post 3 Holy-Crap Moves from Nigel Barker and the DogPound Crew appeared first on Life by Daily Burn.