sport, fitness and people concept - happy young man in sunglasses exercising and doing push-ups on summer beach

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Not being from here, sometimes it still surprises me how crazy Delawareans are about the beach. If you live in Delaware, I’m going to guess that the odds of you being at the beach this weekend to celebrate Labor Day are…rather high. If that’s the case – good for you! I hope you get all the sunshine, good food, and good company that you could hope for to say goodbye to summer!

Before you fill your belly with food or beer, or wade out in the ocean, here is a little info on WHY  we celebrate this holiday and a little beach workout to fire up your metabolism for the day ahead!

The Why:

Labor Day was created in the 1880’s by labor activists in New York City. At that time, 2 labor unions in NYC collaborated to host a massive labor convention and parade in the city at the beginning of September. After the success of that first convention, other unions around the US followed suit and began hosting labor celebrations in their cities around the same time. While it was a celebration, workers could be fired for attending or participating in the convention, and it wasn’t officially coined by congress as a National Holiday until June 28, 1984. Today, we celebrate with sales and fun in the sun; while I love this holiday as the unofficial start to Fall, it’s also good to remember why this holiday exists and feel gratitude for current worker’s rights and protections!

And now…get that booty moving to celebrate a day not sitting on it as a desk!!

The Workout: 

Sand Bucket Dead Lift

  • Fill a bucket up with sand and then hold the bucket with both hands in front of you. Bend at the waist and use your abs, glutes, and legs to slowly touch the bucket to the ground and lift it back up to your starting position. Do 3 rounds of 10 reps!

Sand Bucket Swing

  • With that same filled up bucket, stand with legs shoulder width apart and slightly bent. Engage your glutes and core to swing the bucket between your legs and then back up so that you are standing upright and the bucket is in front of you at shoulder height. Do 2 rounds of 10 reps!

Sandy Jumping Jacks

  • Okay, these are just normal Jumping Jacks but it’s so much more fun to do them on the sand! Do 3 rounds of 20 reps.

Now, get out and celebrate the holiday – just don’t forget to drink water and wear sunscreen!

Written by GUADS Staff Member Kate with contributions from cnn.com and bostonmagazine.com