Day 1
Body weight bridge, Box Pushup, Air Squat
Ok guys, so on day one we’re kicking off with some exercises that will target your glutes, to prevent lower back pain, the arms, the chest and legs.
With the glute bridges remember ‘tilt the belt towards your chin’. Really drive down through arches of your feet to engage your hamstrings.
Next we move to the box push up, elbows flared out hips bent at the waist. This perfect starting point for beginners.
Finally we have the air push up, go down and touch the toes, then drive up again. Making sure the core is tight, and knees track over the toes.
This is a fantastic workout that is effective for fat loss and toning, it increases your metabolisms both during and after the workout.
Instructions
You can do this 😃
“Click HERE to get a resistance band to enable you to progress each week with your home workout programme. Do this by simply shortening your grip on the band.”
Day 2
Banded Facepull, Seated Banded Row, Banded Clam
Welcome to day 2 guys, today we’re working the rear delts, rhomboids, lats, biceps, forearm and glute medius.
We’re focusing on the muscles that are often neglected, that’s why we’re starting off with the face pull.
With the face pull, lead with your elbows, try not to bend your wrists, use your hands as hooks. Squeeze your shoulder blades and avoid raising your shoulders towards your ears. We’re focusing on the weaker muscles at the back to help improve your posture.
Second exercise is the banded row, once again we’re leading with the elbows, row your hands towards your pockets so you really feel the lats working, that’s the large wing shaped muscle at the back, as well as your rhomboids, biceps and forearms. To make the exercise more difficult you can spread your legs.
Perfect movement for when you’re travelling.
The third exercise for the day guys, is the banded clam. An exercise with so many benefits. It’s something I do every single day. It’s another one of those prehab movements that prevent chronic pain and suffering before it occurs.
Think about splitting the band apart with your knees whilst keeping your feet together. This move targets the glute medius. A muscle that is weak in people who sit down all day. A weak glute medius can lead to knee pain as the knees cave in (valgus knee).
Instructions
You can do this 😃
“Click HERE to get a resistance band to enable you to progress each week with your home workout programme. Do this by simply shortening your grip on the band.”
Day 3
Bird Dog, Controlled Burpee, Rear delt rhomboid row
Well done on making it to day 3 guys, today we will be working the core, lower back, rear delts and rhomboids.
We’re starting off with another much needed exercise that made it to the McGill big 3 core exercises, the bird dog.
Start off on all fours, knees, toes and hands on the floor, extend the opposite arm and opposite leg whilst keeping you back completely straight like a table top, really, really controlled. Then very slowly bring your hands to touch your knee. Do not lose the table top by taking your back leg up too high.
A fantastic movement before you squat and deadlift. Don’t forget to do it on both sides.
Next up, we move to the slow and controlled burpee, feet never leave the floor. Bring the legs up under the chest nice and controlled then stand up nice and slowly.
Make sure you feel this in your legs.
Third exercise, band pull aparts. This exercise works the rear delt and rhomboids. Once again, we’re trying to counter the negative effects of sitting at desks all day, being hunched over the steering wheel and over phones.
Imagine pulling the band through your chest whilst squeezing a pound coin between your shoulder blades.
Instructions
You can do this 😃
“Click HERE to get a resistance band to enable you to progress each week with your home workout programme. Do this by simply shortening your grip on the band.”
Day 4
Single leg glute bridge, single leg bulgarian split squat, banded trunk rotation
A massive congratulations on making it this far. If you haven’t seen the previous videos yet do check them out.
Today we will be working our glutes, hamstrings, quads and core.
We begin with the single leg glute bridge which is a progression from the double leg glute bridge. An exercise you can do anywhere to keep your glutes and legs strong.
Drive through the heel or the arch of the foot ensure your leg that’s off the ground does not go past the knee of the leg that’s on the ground at the top. You can make it easier by slightly bending the leg that’s off the ground.
Next we move to the bulgarian split squat, straight from the foothills of Bulgaria. Another exercise that’s great for preparing yourself for squatting heavy. It’s fantastic for opening up the hips, getting the glutes firing and engaging the quads.
The key thing to remember with this exercise is you’re sitting back as you go down, so don’t just go straight down. Keep the chest up and core nice and tight. Have a little pause at the bottom then drive through the mid foot back to the top. This is a tough exercise but very worthwhile doing.
Finally, we have the band trunk rotation. With your arms locked out rotate the band across your midsection. Initiate the movement from the core and make sure you’re at a sufficient distance from the object you tied the band to so that there is tension even at the start of the movement.
Instructions
You can do this 😃
“Click HERE to get a resistance band to enable you to progress each week with your home workout programme. Do this by simply shortening your grip on the band.”
Star Jumps
Begin in a relaxed stance with your feet shoulder width apart and hold your arms close to the body.
To initiate the move, squat down halfway and explode back up as high as possible. Fully extend your entire body, spreading your legs and arms away from the body.
As you land, bring your limbs back in and absorb your impact through the legs.
I hope you enjoyed this exercise library and thank you for all your kind donations to the Make A Wish foundation.
The Deadlift
The deadlift is great for working your hamstrings, glutes and your entire core, which includes the muscles of the back, hips and abdomen. This tried-and-true move can help improve quality of life by reinforcing proper core engagement and lifting techniques, helping to protect your back from injury.
Approach the bar so that it is centered over your feet. Your feet should be about hip-width apart. Bend at the hip to grip the bar at shoulder-width allowing your shoulder blades to protract. Typically, you would use an alternating grip.
With your feet and your grip set, take a big breath and then lower your hips and flex the knees until your shins contact the bar. Look forward with your head. Keep your chest up and your back arched, and begin driving through the heels to move the weight upward.
After the bar passes the knees aggressively pull the bar back, pulling your shoulder blades together as you drive your hips forward into the bar.
Lower the bar by bending at the hips and guiding it to the floor.
Dumbbell Lunges
The lunge is an extremely effective leg exercise that targets the glutes, core and quadriceps. Lunges are a unilateral movement, works one leg at a time, which helps reduce the risk of a muscular imbalance between legs. Furthermore, it is very sport specific as many explosive sports like football, rugby, squash or hockey require explosive power of a single limb. Lunges also target our VMO (Vastus Medialis Oblique), the muscle on the inside of the knee, which stabilises the knee joint and if weak can be lead to knee injury.
While there are many variations of this movement, this video described a simply yet effective variation that requires minimal equipment or space.
Stand upright with dumbbells at your side, palms facing your body. Lunge forward as far as you can with your right leg, bending your trailing knee so it almost brushes the floor. Use the heel of your right foot to push your upper body back to the starting position. Repeat with the opposite leg.
Make sure your lead knee doesn’t go past your toes to avoid overly stressing the joint.
Bent Over Row
The bent over row is a back day staple exercise and is considered one of the best muscle building back exercises you can do.
The bent over row is typically used to build and strengthen the muscles of the upper back (latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, and trapezius). However, it requires assistance from muscles of the low back, core, and arms to perform a bent over row correctly.
While performing this exercise it is important to brace your core to reduce the risk of back pain. To brace correctly envisage breathing in through your stomach and imagine that you are preparing to be punched in the stomach. Bracing correctly is a crucial aspect of most back exercises, please drop me an email if you are struggling to get this right.
The Arnold Press
Invented by the famous Arnold Schwarzengger, this bodybuilder’s unique twist on the overhead press is so effective at spurring muscle growth that the exercise was named after him: The Arnold press.
This move is so effective because it hits all three sections of the deltoid, the round-looking muscle that caps the top of your upper arm. Most of us get plenty of work on the anterior (front) delts from pushups and bench presses but many of us are missing the medial (lateral) and posterior (back) heads.
Working the medial head adds thickness and width to your shoulders, while the posterior head stabilizes the shoulder joint, improves posture, and aids the big pulling muscles during deadlifts, pullups and rows.
The Arnold press hits all three parts of the deltoid, it also taxes your shoulder joints in a manner that could put you at risk of damage down the road. Because of Schwarzenegger’s adjustment, you run the risk of shoulder impingement as you rotate the weights, and internal muscle rotation is always something worth avoiding if possible.
While the Arnold press does hit all three parts of the deltoid, it also taxes your shoulder joints in a manner that could put you at risk of damage down the road. Because of Schwarzenegger’s adjustment, you run the risk of shoulder impingement as you rotate the weights, and internal muscle rotation is always something worth avoiding if possible.
If you’re thinking about trying the Arnold press and you have any shoulder pain, you should drop the weights and find another exercise immediately. If you drop me an email I am happy to send you a video of a lower risk alternative.
Rear Delt Row
Shoulder pain is becoming more and more frequent now a days as most of us adopt a laptop lifestyle. The combination of desk jobs and spending per longed periods of time seated are all to common.
Moving a mouse, writing or scrolling through our smart phones are all tasks that involve our anterior deltoids (muscles at the front of our shoulders). Unfortunately, rowing movements like starting a lawn mower are all too infrequent thus leading to the likelihood of muscular imbalances and a weakness in our posterior deltoids (muscles at the back of our shoulders). This is also called postural Kyphosis or to put it more simply……….Poor posture. Common injuries in people with postural kyphosis include tendon impingement and rotator cuff injuries.
This rear deltoid row is designed to combat this condition, minimize movement momentum (cheating) and reduce injury risk. If performed correctly this can help you appear taller and more confident. Make a stand against poor posture and keep your shoulders healthy.
Burpee Challenge – How busy people stay in shape
Don’t have have equipment or time…do Burpees 🙂
Burpees can be a powerful cardio tool to add to your fitness arsenal. If they seem a little much for you right now, try simply standing up instead of the jump at the end of the movement. To make them more challenging add in a tuck jump (bring your knees to your chest in mid air).
Burpee challenge
If you haven’t got 10 minutes you haven’t got a life , GO AFTER IT
Barbell Bench Press – Build a Bigger Chest
The barbell bench press is a powerful compound exercise that can help build a strong and muscular chest if performed correctly.
A common misconception of this movement is that we should avoid having an arch in our back due to injury risk but this is incorrect. There is no evidence that having an arched back can lead to lower back pain and, to the contrary, it can actually reduce injury risk.
To build a muscular chest without rotator cuff injury it is important to raise the chest to the bar and envisage that you are putting your shoulders in the back pockets of your trousers.
This video explains the correct technique in more detail.
Barbell Squats – Build Toned Legs and Glutes
Whether you want to gain or lose weight or simply tone up…either way you have to squat. Some form of squat should be included in everyone’s training programme.
This whole body exercise creates an anabolic environment, which promotes body-wide muscle building, particularly glutes, quads and core. The more muscle mass we retain the more we can eat before gaining body fat.
This video shows you step by step how to correctly perform the barbell squat to build bigger legs and glutes safely and quickly. This video teaches you how to avoid injury and build bigger legs faster.