If you are like me, you don’t like to be separated from you phone – especially when you workout. Phones are not just for texting and calling friends anymore. We rely on them for everything – especially in the world of fitness.

I use my phone for my phone for my interval timer, workout music, stopwatch and to view my workout. As a trainer, I use my phone during classes and training too – PLUS, I love taking pictures of all the action. Either way, not having my phone or tablet with me is not an option.

Top 5 ways to get your phone or tablet gym-ready.

#1 – Protect It!  

Definitely, first on the list, you need to protect your phone from glass breaks. Between checking my time, changing music or just handling my phone with sweaty hands, I can’t tell you how many times I have dropped my phone in the middle of a workout. Bottom line – you should really make sure your phone is protected. Corning® Gorilla® Glass 4 is the toughest cover glass yet (Gorilla® Glass 4 protects 2 X tougher than competitive glass designs).

 #2 – Time It!

Make sure you get a good interval timer to help you structure and time your workouts. Whether you do interval workouts, or you just want to stick to a set training time, apps like the Gymboss Interval Timer, are great for formatting yours exercise and rest time. An interval timer can turn your phone into a trainer that will boss you around, and tell you to get to work to keep you on task.

#3 – Play It!

I recently discovered FitRadio for awesome workout music (thanks to my sister! Thanks Katelyn!). You can look up music by your favorite DJ, genre or even style of workout – like music specifically for tabata training, running, 32-count aerobics, yoga and even Zumba.

#4 – Pace It!

Whether you teach an aerobics class or just like music to help you keep a certain pace during activities like running, Tempo Magic is a great app for creating customized playlists with adjustable tempo to set a workout pace (awesome for aerobics instructors and fitness professionals). You can set the beats per minute to exactly the pace you need. It’s super cool!

#5 – Track it!

Lastly, you want to track your workouts and progress. Diet and fitness apps I use include LoseIt (for tracking calories in and out), Polar M400 for tracking activity and exericise, Runkeeper for tracking my runs and HeartRate for checking my heart rate during workouts. The more you understand calories in vs calories out, the more you can be in control of your weight – and success.

So now you can get to work!! Here is a workout I put our BCx boot campers through last week. It will take about 50 minutes to go through – but it was killer!! You won’t feel your arms afterwards and you may hate me during the workout, but you’ll LOVE me later!!

Upper Body Workout

Part 1 – Opposites Attract

The first part of this workout is pairing opposite muscle groups together. Another words, creating super sets using 2 exercises that don’t really tax each other. You should be able to remain pretty strong for each exercise during this first set of workouts.

Set your interval timer for 30 seconds ON and 10 seconds OFF (just enough time to switch exercises).

Bent Over Rows & Tricep Dips – X4
Push Ups & Alternating Bicep Curls – X4

Part 2 – A Quick “Break”

This short shoulder workout will give your chest, back, biceps and triceps a short break before we go back to them. Use the same 30/10 format for this shoulder superset.

Upright Rows & Mountain Climbers – X4

Part 3 – A Perfect Match

These next 2 supersets are complimentary exercises, meaning they work together (instead of working opposite each other like in #1). When you are working back, you are also working biceps. When you are working chest, you are also working triceps. Since your arms get no rest during this one, I’ve lowered the time to only 20 seconds of work, with a very quick 5 second break in between (which is barely enough time to switch out equipment so you have to HURRY!). This pace will get your heart rate going and your arms will feel like jello in no time! Crank up the music and have fun!  Time: 20 seconds ON, 5 seconds OFF

Bent Over Rows & Alternating Bicep Curls – X3
Push Ups & Tricep Dips – X3 

Part 4 – Finish It

This is the last circuit to finish off your arms by wearing out your shoulders. Set that timer back to 30 seconds on and 10 seconds off.

Ladders/Alternating Shoulder Press (dumbbells, moderate weight)
Lateral Raises (with resistance bands or light dumbbells)

X4

Finish With This Short Plank Drill

60-Second Plank (15 Second Rest)
30-Second Right Side Plank (no rest until the end)
30-Second Left Side Plank (no rest until the end)
30-Second Right Side Plank (no rest until the end)
30-Second Left Side Plank (no rest until the end)

Jello Arms?

Jello arms are not good for holding phones. Trust me! I’ve simply just “let go” of my phone because I was so weak after my workout! Ha!! Find out if your phone has Gorilla Glass here. They really work hard to improve damage resistance against sharp contact, such as a drop on asphalt, concrete, and other rough surfaces – and they may be just what your trainer ordered! Now go have a protein shake!!
Corning® Gorilla® Glass has been used on nearly 4 billion devices from 40 major brands. Is it on yours? Click here to find out

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Corning® Gorilla® Glass. The opinions and text are all mine.