HERE’S A ONE-hour all-round exercise gym routine that takes away the thinking for you the next time you go to the gym and stare blankly at the weights for inspiration.
The circuit we’ve designed contains 15 minutes each of cardio, upper body, lower body and core exercises and also gives a breakdown of how many reps you should perform in each set and how much rest you should take.
The weight is entirely up to you but it’s always best to select a weight that’ll really challenge you on the last rep of each set.
Cardio – 15 minutes
Treadmill – 15 minutes, 3 minute warm-up followed by 6 x (hard!) 1-minute intervals hard with a minute rest after each.
Upper body – 15 minutes
Barbell Curls
Sets – 4; Reps – 10; Rest – 30-45 seconds.
There are many variations of bicep curls but as we’re time pressed here we’re going to do them simultaneously, using a barbell.
Stand up with your torso upright while holding a barbell at a shoulder-width grip. The palm of your hands should be facing forward and the elbows should be close to the torso. This will be your starting position.
While holding the upper arms stationary, curl the weights forward while contracting the biceps as you breathe out. Resist the urge to swing and bring the barbell back up slowly to shoulder level. This is one rep.
Bench press
Sets – 4; Reps – 8; Rest – 30-45 seconds.
Lying on a bench, grasp the bar wider than shoulder width apart and arch your back so there’s space between your lower back and the bench.
Release the bar from the rack and lower it to your chest, tucking your elbows about 45 degrees to your sides. When the bar touches your body, drive your feet hard into the floor and press the bar back up.
Tricep dips
Sets – 4; Reps – 10; Rest – 30-45 seconds.
For this exercise you will need access to parallel bars. Get yourself into the starting position by holding your body at arm’s length (arms locked) above the bars.
To perform the exercise, lower yourself until our elbows flare out slightly and you feel a slight stretch in your chest. At the lowest point you can go – or when that stretch in the chest really starts to pinch, lift upwards as you breathe out.
Core – 15 minutes
TRX Planks
30 seconds on, 30 seconds off.
Hook your feet into the slots and with your elbows pressed into the floor and your core muscles braced, hold a plank for 30 seconds. Resting for 30.
It’s important to maintain a straight line from your ankles through your knees, hips and shoulders. Don’t let your hips drop at any point (this is also a very good one for the hip flexors) as doing so will place unwanted pressure on the lower back.
Pikes
30 seconds on, 30 seconds off.
Clip your feet back into the loops at the bottom of the straps. Get into a good, straight plank position and keeping your legs extended and your core tight, raise your bum towards the ceiling and bring your feet in towards the centre.
Try and keep the movement controlled all the way until your bum reaches its highest point. Resist the urge to bend the knees.Return to the starting position, nice and slowly. Do 10 of these and take a 45-second rest.
Mountain climbers
30 seconds on, 30 seconds off.
This is the hardest exercise that we will do today.
Get back into the plank position, remembering to keep your form straight but instead of elbows flexed, your arms must fully extended, your shoulders directly over your wrists.
Lift your knees off the ground and make sure not to drop your hips. Brace your core and drive the knees into your chest. Do this as fast or as slow as you like but ensure the movement is controlled throughout.
Lower body – 15 minutes
Barbell deadlift
Sets 3; Reps – 12 reps; Rest 40-60 seconds.
Keeping your back as straight as possible, bend your knees and grasp the bar, your hands shoulder width apart.
Now, lift by pushing with your legs into the floor while simultaneously getting your torso to the upright position as you breathe out.
In the upright position, stick your chest out and contract your back by bringing the shoulder blades back. The bar should be resting against the tops of your legs now.
Complete the movement by returning to the start. This is done by bending at the knees while simultaneously leaning the torso forward at the waist, keeping your back straight throughout. This is one rep.
Box jumps
1 minute on, 30 seconds off for 5 minutes.
The key here is the height of the box. You want it high enough that you really have to lunge up to it but you don’t want it so high as you fail to reach it and you end up skinning your shins.
Weighted lunges
Another really testing lower body exercise that uses all the muscles in your glutes, quads, calves and hamstrings.
Stand up tall with a dumbbell in each hand. Now, take one step out in front, drop that knee until it touches the floor and then rebound upwards, switching legs.
The key is to keep it controlled. Slow down, fast up, slow down, fast up.