The Walking Dead Workout

I love this time of year.

Not only is Halloween right around the corner, but AMC’s The Walking Dead returned to the air last weekend too!

It didn’t just return either; the season 5 premiere crushed it! With 17.3 million viewers tuning in, it was the most watched cable TV show of all time.

“Whoa.” – Keanu Reeves, Every movie he’s ever been in

While that’s pretty damned awesome, it also means a lot of people are going to be spending the next 16 Sunday nights sitting on their couches though!

Now, I am all for balancing all the geeky things I love with leading a fit life, and I love a little TV escapism like everyone else, but if you find yourself constantly battling to find the time to workout you might want to think about combining the two with an in-front-of-the-TV workout!

So why not turn your fandom into an opportunity to get you into shape? Get ready to survive the impending zombie-apocalypse with The Walking Dead Workout!

Here’s all you need to know about the season 5 workout…

• It can be done in the comfort of your own home
• It requires no equipment
• It’s a better use of your time than sitting on the couch eating nachos

So 15 minutes before the show starts, slap on some comfy clothes, and do a quick warm-up (anything will do… go for a brisk walk, bang out some jumping jacks, just get the blood pumping a little), grab a bottle of water and a notepad…

Then get ready for some zombie killing inspired exercise!

As the show goes on, just keep track of how many times the criteria for what’s on each block on the matrix is met. During the commercial breaks bang out what you owe and guzzle a little water. Repeat until the show is over.

Like the exercise matrix states, increase the reps based on the intensity you want from the workout.

• Beginner (Rick) level? Do the reps as shown
• Intermediate (Carol) level? Double them
• Advanced (Daryl) level? Triple them (and possibly curse my name afterwards)

As much as I wish I could say this is scientific, it isn’t going to be since every episode is different.

Look at it as a challenge… just like you never know when a herd of walkers is going to come shambling out of the tree line towards you, you also don’t know if you are in for a light or a brutal workout.

It’s good to stay alert and on your toes!

Finally, if you really want to get in zombie-killing shape, add in the Walker Challenge for a serious sweat. Keep a running tally of how many walkers get put down during the episode and do 3 burpees for every one.

Oh, I almost forgot… if you need help with proper form you can find almost all of these exercises as part of our Nerd-Core Fitness workouts, check them out!

So there you go, the Walking Dead Workout!

I hope you enjoy getting your Daryl Dixon fix while making your weekly hour of geeky TV productive! You can even invite some friends over and push each other for added incentive. Whatever it takes to get you ready for the zombie apocalypse!

What other movies or TV shows would you like to see turned into workouts? Let me know!

And if you haven’t already done so, make sure you’ve checked out my new e-book series The Heroes’ Transformation! Also check out our YouTube channel (if you want access to our Nerd-Core Fitness exercise videos), follow me on Twitter, and like us on Facebook and Google+ (there is content on both not available here on the site.) There are so many different ways for you to get your daily dose of Jerdly goodness so don’t miss out!

(Photo #1 credit)

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