Working Out With President Obama

When Presidents' Day comes along this year, we are clearly facing a one-of-a-kind moment in history. Regardless of whether or not you support President Barack Obama as the president of the United States, significant change has already occurred because of his election. Obama's accomplishments have yet to truly begin to occur, and therefore the type of change that will come because of his election is yet to be seen.

Nonetheless, it is already apparent that he was truly born to lead. His undeniably calm, comforting presence indicates a confidence that is contagious to a country that is truly in turmoil. These characteristics are going to be needed as the US economy stumbles and many other challenges face us.

Being the leader of the free world is indeed a stressful job, and all of us probably wonder at one point or another how something of that magnitude can truly be handled with such calm. Yet, he seems to do it, and we wonder how he manages such a scope of duties.

One of the things Obama does that doubtless helps is that he works out daily and religiously. He plays hours of basketball and puts in a 45 to 60 minute workout every day, come rain or shine. His comment about that is that it helps him set the tone for his whole day, and that it gives him the energy he needs to tackle the problems invariably set in front of him.

In my own case, I can tell you that at least in this case, physical fitness does indeed make things manageable. Training hard and never missing a workout also helps bring the same intense focus and persistence in my life. The ability to stick to a workout routine, both mentally and physically, helps prepare one for facing any and all challenges. Difficult tasks somehow seem easier once you've just completed an intense, hard grinding total body workout.

Now, there may be some days when President Obama may not be able to do his 45 to 60 minute workout. After all, the president has a pretty full plate every day.

So my suggestion to him is that he do as follows, which will at least help you maintain if not increase your current physical stamina and strength.

I can further simplify the process by designing workouts based on body weight that use nothing more than dumbbells and resistance bands in the comfort of the Oval Office, if necessary.

In addition, each workout can be customized to work within the time the president has to work out each day.

Working out Obama Style on Presidents' Day

All strength workouts should occur on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and all cardio workouts should be done on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. In addition, basketball should be fit in whenever possible.

With just five minutes to work out:

There's something called a strength workout/continuous workout that can still give you a pretty good workout in a very short period of time. Maximize the weight used and do 10 repetitions of an upper body exercise like pullups, push-ups, rowing, dips, and so on. Follow that with 20 reps of a lower body exercise like deadlifts, squats, until the time is up.

For the cardio workout/Tabata intervals, use one body weight cardio exercise like squat thrusts, ice skater jumps, jumping jacks, and so on, OR do one total body exercise like squat to presses, going 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off for four straight minutes. Follow that with one minute of rest.

With 10 minutes to work out:

Strength/continuous workout: Do maximum rounds, 10 repetitions, of an upper body exercise like push-ups, rowing, pullups, dips, and so on. Follow that with 20 repetitions of a lower body exercise like deadlifts, hip extensions, lunges, squats, and so on until time is up.

Cardio Workout/Tabata Intervals: Do one body weight cardio vascular exercise like squat thrust, alternating split jumps, stationary running, and so on. Alternatively, do one total body exercise like deadlifts plus curls, swings, curl to press plus lunge, and so on. Do 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off for four minutes straight, followed by a rest for one minute. Do this five-minute set one more time with the same or different exercises of your choice.

With 20 minutes to work out:

Strength/continuous workout: Do two different 10 minute work sets, and for the first set do maximum rounds of 10 repetitions of an upper body exercise that uses pushing as its strength training, like dips, presses, or push-ups. Follow that with 20 repetitions of a bilateral lower body exercise like hip extensions, squats or deadlifts. For the second set of exercises, do maximum rounds of 10 repetitions of an upper body exercise using pulling as the performance, like rows, pullups, or curls. Follow that with 10 repetitions per leg of a unilateral lower body exercise like step-ups, lunges, or single leg hip extensions.

Cardiovascular workout/ Tabata intervals: Do one cardiovascular exercise using body weight, light jumping jacks, stationary running, alternating split jumps, and so on. Alternatively, do one total body exercises such as deadlifts plus curls, swings, and so on. Do this 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off for four minutes straight, followed by one minute rest. Do this five-minute sequence three more times using the same exercises or different ones of your choice.

The president may appreciate this fitness plan that works with his schedule instead of against it. And you'd better believe that if Obama can fit exercise into his day, there's no excuse for you to avoid it.