The Twelve Days of Christmas

By Eric Bofinger

Last Year over the holidays, I got myself into a very creative spirit and invented a workout entitled, “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” This workout flows just like the song. Start with day 1 and add an additional day with each round of the workout in a cumulative fashion up to the 12th day. Each exercise is either a rhyme or a slant rhyme with what is described during that day of Christmas or it at least begins with the same letter or makes you think of something that has to do with that day.

12 Dead lifts (40kg)- Drummers Drumming
11 Over head PVC squats- Pipers Piping
10 Box Jumps (24′)- Lords a Leaping
9 Jumping Jacks- Ladies Dancing
8 Man Makers (20 lbs ea.)- Maids a Milking
7 Butterfly Sit ups- Swans a swimming
6 Goblet Squats (20 lbs)- Geese a laying
5 Kettle Bell Swings (20 lbs)- Golden Rings
4 Cleans (40kg)- Calling birds
3 Front Squats (40kg)- French hens
2 Jumps to tuck hold- Turtle Doves
1 Burpee into a Pull up (8’6″)- Partridge in a Pear tree.

If your good at math you realize that you do the least amount of reps with exercises 1 and 12, each being done for 12 reps, 2 & 11 are done for 22 reps, 3 and 10 are done 30 times, 4 and 9, 36, 5 and 8, 40 and 6 & 7, 42 reps. That’s 364 total reps!

So far in the existence of the workout, the record is 16:06 held by an anonymous athlete. For 2011, a few changes are being considered. The 2nd Day may be switched to a push press and the 11th day may be changed from a PVC OH squat to a weight TBD. The box jumps will most likely be increased to 30″. In addition pending the arrival of new kettle bells, the goblet squat and kettle bell swings will be increased to 1 pood (The old Russian unit of measurement weighing 34.11 lbs.)

If you do not celebrate Christmas, there is a modified version of this workout called, “The Eight Nights of Hanukkah” which incorporates most of the same exercises through eight cumulative rounds.

If your as interested in the Twelve Days of Christmas song as I am, please click and read this article on the Twelve Days of Christmas.

Until next week, let me leave you with an old old Russian proverb that reads, “You never know a man until you have eaten a poodof salt with him.” (It would probably not be a good idea to eat 34 pounds of salt, but you get the picture.)