In just a few weeks after the ball drops and people shout, “Happy New Year!” and kiss their sweetheart, or the random person to their side, it is the moment most make a promise to stop a bad habit and make a good habit. People swear to quit smoking, stop drinking, lay off the sweets, quit being a couch potato, and the gym rat’s favorite one to hear: “I am going to get a gym membership and get healthy!”
Of course, we blue-blood gym goers know that the main floodgates of hell open January 1st and the swarm of people turn our haven into a mosh-pit of utter chaos. You have to wait 30 minutes for a bench, the weights are all over the floor, guys are swinging from the cables….and….and….you see CURLING IN THE SQUAT RACK!
Before you hyperventilate, I’ve got a solution! We all know that the gym rush is the worst in January and slowly tapers off. Let’s do ourselves a favor and take our workout outside of the gym.
Here’s how:
SHORT CIRCUIT (the quick 30-min workout)
Perform the following exercises as a circuit, doing one set of each with a minimal rest between exercises.
After each circuit, rest 2 minutes. Repeat the circuit 5 times.
| MUSCLE GROUP | EXERCISE | REPS |
|---|---|---|
| Legs | Bodyweight Squat | 20 |
| Chest/Delts | Incline Push-Up | 20 |
| Abs | Hip Thrust | 20 |
| Legs | Walking Lunge | 20 total (10 per leg) |
| Chest/Delts | Standard Push-Up | 20 |
| Abs | Crunch | 25 |
RESISTANCE BANDS
Back in September, I wrote an article about free weights vs. resistance bands (read full article here).
Benefits of Elastic Resistance vs. Free-Weight Resistance
| Benefit |
Elastic Resistance
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Free-Weight Resistance
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| Provides progressive resistance |
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| Allows free movement |
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| Allows variable speed of movement |
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| Increases muscle strength |
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| Increases muscle size |
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| Decreases body fat |
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| Provides resistance in multiple directions |
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| Provides variable resistance |
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| Provides constant tension |
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| Prevents cheating |
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| Inexpensive |
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| Easy to store |
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| Easy to transport |
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I own a set of resistance bands and swear by them. I chose the brand Bodylastics, but there are several others that are just as good.
TOP 15 BODYWEIGHT EXERCISES:
- Pushup
- Pullup
- Plank
- Roll out (barbell or ab wheel)
- Glute bridge
- Inverted row
- Close-grip pushup
- Star plank
- Burpee (yes, I said it)
- Dip
- Bulgarian split squat
- Suspended pushup
- Prone back extension
- Pike pushup
- Swiss ball rollout
Written by: Tristan “Lucky”