Kickbikes are an excellent fitness tool on so many levels.  I have been using mine for the last almost 21 years to do interval training on a nearby 500m hill .   My son Jesse and I  usually complete 6-8 repeats dependent on the day  – usually Saturdays.  We wear heart rate monitors.  At the top of the hill it is not uncommon for mine to read 160 – 180 bpm and my son’s can be close to 170 –  200bpm.  I am 72 years old and my son Jesse is 30. There have been times in the summer days that we will also include push-ups or sit-ups at the bottom of the hill prior to starting back up.   What is surprising about this workout is how much you will use your arms to help propel you up the hill.  It really is  a total body work-out and the best part is that you are doing it outdoors.  It is only on heavy snow days that keep us away.  The cold is not a factor ( if you dress properly).  The above is our outdoor workout.  Explained below is our indoor workout.

About  twice a week we also do an indoor circuit.  Due to covid -19 we have changed our indoor routine to possibly get a little more out of this protocol. We have now chosen 9 exercises that we go through just once each. We complete the first 5 of the 9 in the morning before any breakfast.  This is on one morning.   Then on the very next morning before any breakfast complete the last 4 exercises – a split routine  over two days.  All 9 exercises are timed for 90 sec.  – we complete as many reps as we can for the one and a half minutes followed immediately by 30 seconds of rest.  We are strict about the rest period.  The exercises that we have chosen are ( and in this order) 1. Dips 2. Pull-ups 3. Hanging  crunches 4. Shoulder shrugs 5. a strict form of bicep curls in which the wrist is never curled and the deltoid is stabilized as much as possible, on day one.  – 6. Deltoid flys or anterior , neutral grip deltoid raises 7. Dumbbell hammer curls with 35 lbs. in each hand.  We aim for a total of at least 65 . 8. Three min. static squat while holding a 35 lb. weight between my legs.   9.   125 continuous push-ups followed by a one minute rest and then 55 more for a total of 180.  Then I have added an addition 20 or more to give me at least 200 . Once we start the push-ups we do not allow ourselves to rest by coming off our 4 point stance except for the one minute of rest between the 125 and 55 and last 20..  At times we might reach 90 – 100 continuous push-ups and we remain in the push-up position and crank out more reps until absolute fatigue and then we remain in the push-up position until we can continue and compete the 125 push-ups.    We started out with 3 exercises years ago and have built on over the years.  On a personal level I need to space this work-out about two to three times a week – at 72  I find this protocol challenging and rewarding.  My numbers ( if you are interested ) are 1.  Dips- 47 – 50 in the 90 sec.  2.  Pull-ups 38- 40 in 90.   3. Hanging Crunches 60-65 in 90.( although the last 3 are suspect in terms of range of motion).  4. Shoulder shrugs – we do not count but are more focused on good form . 5. Strict bicep curls – our focus is not on the quantity but on form with a goal of not stopping for at least  one minute – I have never felt a burn in my biceps like this before using this exercise – it isolates the biceps in an extreme way while using very little weight.  6. Flys ( lateral deltoid)  / neutral grip deltoid raises ( anterior head of deltoid) – 38 – 40.   7.  Hammer Curls – 60 plus.  8. three min. static squat followed by 30 sec. rest and 9.   125 + 55 + 20 push-ups.  The last 10 – 15  of the 120 are brutal – my whole body shakes , especially my legs)  – we allow for stopping or resting in the pushup position but only in a four point stance  until we have completed the first  125.  After the 125 we rest for one min. and go immediately into the additional 55 with no stoppage during those last 55.  Then we rest for one minute and complete the last 20 – 25. I would suggest selecting 3 exercises to start at maybe 20 – 30 seconds dependent on your fitness level.  The rest period should also be tailored to your fitness level and more importantly your fitness goals.  Please note:  I FIND THIS IS A VERY CHALLENGING WORK-OUT AND I AM NOT RECOMMENDING THIS EXACT WORKOUT TO ANYONE – JUST A SIMILAR FORMAT ON A LEVEL THAT WILL MEET YOUR FITNESS GOALS.  This type of exercise protocol is often referred to as HIIT or High Intensity Interval Training. For those of you who wish a more nuanced explanation of HITT I would recommend taking a look at Dr. Eric Berg’s short Youtube video.  The link is : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IQLDlWMl7Q.  Please note that a standard recovery protocol is often expressed as 3 times the exercise duration for those individuals just starting out.    It is important that your heart-rate shows variability during HIIT.  When you go to complete failure for each exercise there are serious hormonal changes and body adaptions that occur.  Growth hormone is released , free blood testosterone levels go up, epinephrine release increases resulting in increased fat utilization for energy.  I try always to do these workouts  before I eat a meal.  The release of insulin has been shown to block fat oxidation.  I choose to avoid a meal prior to my workouts to encourage the body to utilize stored fat by hopefully decreasing the release of insulin.  I have also read that because your body is in a state of stress throughout the protocol adrenaline release is also increased significantly.  My son and I are into using our own body weight as much as possible .  It helps to have a partner to work out with – what the vikings used to call a ” Shield Mate” – time goes by more quickly and you are more motivated by laughing at each other – sorry I mean encouraging each other.  And as of the last 6 months I have added a hang for time to this above routine. – started with 90 sec. but as of the last month have worked my way up to a 5 min. hang from a over head bar.  I do this hang once a week. Comments and any suggestions are welcome, especially if you have found something that works for you and  you would like to share.  If appropriate we will share your thoughts by posting.  WISHING YOU GOOD KICKS – RODGER KNIGHT – OWNER OF KICKBIKE ONTARIO.LTD AND PRESIDENT OF THE CANADIAN FOOTBIKE ASSOCIATION.