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Workouts - Adding variety and fun to your workout

By Paul Stephen Lubicz – The Wellbeing Manager

This is an awesome workout as it adds variety and flexibility to your exercise regime. You can fit it in on your run home from work mix it up and take advantage of the summer using it as an alternative to indoor training!

One of the benefits that this training program has is that you are combining total body weight exercises and cardio together producing a powerful fat burning routine, variety and fun is the key to consistency and this workout delivers both!

30-minute park workout

Warm up - Do one or two laps of the area you are going to use for this circuit at an easy jog and check for any hidden dog mess, territorial squirrels and other obstacles.

Stretch Major Postural Muscles - Hold for 30 seconds plus, taking the stretch past the first point of resistance!

Calf stretch, Hip flexor stretch, Lat stretch

Do the following exercises in order, taking as little rest in between stations as possible. It’s a good idea to wear a stopwatch / heart rate monitor for this workout because many of the exercises are timed and monitoring your heart rate to measure your intensity levels would be useful.

Cool down

Afterwards do another couple of gentle laps of the area and do the same stretch routine as the warm up to cool-down.

The plank

Sets: 1 Reps: 30-60 seconds.
Find a flat piece of ground and get into a press-up position. Then draw your elbows in and rest on your forearms, keeping your body in a straight line. Hold this position for at least 30-seconds. You should feel the burn in your abs.
Intermediate: Hold for 45 seconds.
Advanced: Hold for one minute.

Burpees
Sets: 1 Reps: 30-60 seconds
These are a cross between a squat thrust and a jump. Begin with a regular squat thrust, where you start in a press-up position and then bring your feet under your torso, then explode upwards into a jump and throw your arms over your head. Drop down again and repeat for at least 30 seconds.
Intermediate: 45 seconds
Advanced: One minute with double squat thrusts.

Press up
Sets: 1 Reps: 10-40
Find a flat piece of ground and get into a press-up position with your body in a straight line and your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Do ten, slow press ups with perfect form.
Intermediate: Find a park bench and rest your hands on the seat with your feet on the ground and do 20-30 press-ups.
Advanced: Find a park bench and rest your feet on the seat with your hands on the ground and do 30-40 press-ups.

Step-ups
Sets: 1-2 Reps: 30-60 seconds
Find a fallen log or high kerb and stand facing it. Step up onto it with one foot and then the other, and then step down again. Do this as fast as you can for at least 30 seconds.
Intermediate: 30 seconds, then ten seconds rest then 30 seconds
Advanced: One minute without rest.

Bench dips
Sets: 1-2 Reps: 30 seconds to one minute
Find a park bench and put your back to it with your palms resting on the edge of the seat and your legs straight out in front of you. Now lower your body down, keeping your back in contact with the bench and push yourself up using the muscles in the backs of your arms. Do this for at least 30-seconds.
Intermediate: 30 seconds, then ten seconds rest then another 30 seconds.
Advanced: One minute without rest.

Slalom Run
Sets: 1-2 Reps: 30-60 seconds
Find a group of close-packed trees or posts and set up an imaginary slalom course through them. Then run through it one way, turn around and run through them, the other way for at least 45 seconds.
Intermediate: One minute.
Advanced: Two flat-out 30-second sprints with a 20 second rest.

Tree Dash
Sets: 2-3 Reps: 15 seconds Active rest: 30 seconds
Find two trees or other upright structures that are a 15-second sprint away from each other. Sprint between them and then jog back for about 30 seconds. Repeat at least once.
Intermediate: Do three sprints.
Advanced: Sprint to the tree and back again then jog, then repeat this pattern.

Stick Crunch
Sets: 1-2 Reps: 10-50
Find a decent stick and hold it in both hands while sitting on the grass. Hold the stick to your chest with your knees bent and crunch forwards straightening your arms as you go so that you place the stick behind your feet. Repeat for at least 10 reps.
Intermediate: 25 reps.
Advanced: Two sets of 25 reps.