With COVID-19 wiping out our ability to go to the gym and the prospect of local parks closing in the near future for our children, ALM memberships are here to help you encourage the entire family to exercise in the garden* (disclaimer, dogs will still need to be walked.)

What are the positives of home workouts? Burn fat, build muscle, avoid #quarantine15 (the inevitable 15lbs people are gaining from moving less and eating more!) What’s not to love?

Is it possible to get gym-like results at home? The answer is yes! But you have to focus on progressive overload. Progressive overload is the gradual increase of stress placed upon the body during exercise. When thinking about progressive overload we commonly think of getting stronger and adding more weight to the bar. However, it can also be done by:

  • Doing more repetitions each week (10 press ups in 30 seconds in Week One, 15 in Week Two and so on.)
  • Technique: Technique is not usually seen as a progressive overload method… but it should be. Anyone can have bad form and perform a push up or pull up. Yet it is a different story when it comes to executing an exercise with perfect form. The better our technique, the better we work the intended muscles!

Progressive overload is something you should always strive for to get results.

What is HIIT? HIIT is high intensity interval training. It’s a great way to burn calories. Why? When you do a short burst of HIIT (all-out effort), your body can’t get oxygen to where it needs to go fast enough and anaerobic metabolism predominates. This is very inefficient, but it lets you produce short bursts of speed or high energy.

As HIIT pushes the body’s threshold to continue without oxygen after HIIT has finished, the body experiences an ‘afterburn’ effect for several hours. This is known as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) which means you continue to take in more oxygen and burn more calories long after your workout has finished. Your body will be busy repairing those muscle proteins, which also expends energy.

By pushing yourself to the maximum for short bursts, you can actually stretch out the impact for longer.

What do I need to do HIIT?

Your home workouts are going to greatly depend on the equipment available to you, but here are the basics:

  • Your body
  • A mat
  • Resistance bands (available from Amazon – get a bundle which includes light, medium, heavy, extra heavy.) I would buy a couple of these sets, if more than 2 people want to join in.
  • A timer (you can interval timers for free, on the App store).

Optional

  • Skipping rope
  • Dumbbells (replace with bands)
  • Barbell (replace with bands)

If I do HIIT each day, will I shed fat quickly?

There are a few key principles to training and nutrition to ensure results. A key principle you will hear me talking about routinely is that of ENERGY BALANCE. Calories in versus calories out, which is essential for understanding fat loss and also body fat gain.

Remember: Without a calorie deficit there is no fat loss – no matter how many times you workout. See my earlier post about working out how many calories you should be eating whilst working from home.

Ok! Now, what does the workout look like? Is it easy enough for my children to do?

We may have up to three months’ working from home with the family. I have set a basic programme which is easy to follow in principle and you can choose to switch up the high intensity exercises every week, to avoid boredom. It’s also safe for children to participate in.

This programme will help in burning fat and building muscle!

The programme is simple:

  • Choose 5 HI (high intensity exercises) to help burn fat. You must go all out for 30 seconds – 100% all-out effort required!
  • Stick with the same 5 resistance exercises to build muscle. I want you to focus on the muscle we are working – mind muscle connection ensures you get the best muscular development possible
  • Each family member starts on one set and rotates. Enables up to 5 family members to join in!
  • Note: to adhere to progressive overload, you will complete the same resistance training each week, to gain strength (and muscle). Remember to keep track of how many repetitions you manage each week, or which level band you are using to progress upwards.

Example HIIT Circuit

  • 5 x sets = 25 minutes
  • 1 x set = 5 high intensity exercises (30 seconds), with 5 resistance exercises (30 seconds). Each set lasts 5 minutes.
30 SECONDS EACH Set 1

5 Minutes

 Set 2

5 Minutes

 Set 3

5 Minutes

 Set 4

5 Minutes

 Set 5

5 Minutes
HI

 

 High Knees Burpees Squat jumps Mountain climbers Star jumps
Resistance

 

 Chest: Press Up Chest: Press Up Chest: Press Up Chest: Press Up Chest: Press Up
HI

 

 High Knees Burpees Squat jumps Mountain climbers Star jumps
Resistance Shoulders: Lateral Raise (Band) Shoulders: Lateral Raise (Band) Shoulders: Lateral Raise (Band) Shoulders: Lateral Raise (Band) Shoulders: Lateral Raise (Band)
HI High Knees Burpees Squat jumps Mountain climbers Star jumps
Resistance Back: Backwards Row (Band) Back: Backwards Row (Band) Back: Backwards Row (Band) Back: Backwards Row (Band) Back: Backwards Row (Band)
HI High Knees Burpees Squat jumps Mountain climbers Star jumps
Resistance Triceps: Dip Triceps: Dip Triceps: Dip Triceps: Dip Triceps: Dip
HI High Knees Burpees Squat jumps Mountain climbers Star jumps
Resistance Biceps: Curl (band) Biceps: Curl (band) Biceps: Curl (band) Biceps: Curl (band) Biceps: Curl (band)

HIIT Exercise Options:

Choose 5 HI exercises to include in your workout – mix them up to avoid boredom! Please Google them before performing them, to ensure you are doing them correctly.

High knees Sprints Shoulder taps
Burpees Chair step ups Prisoner walk
Squat jumps Skipping Sprint on spot
Mountain climbers Skaters Frog pumps
Star jumps Duck walk Walk out push ups
Plank jacks Crunches Heel taps
Jumping lunges Step Up Lunges Elbows to hand plank
Tuck ups Frog jumps Bear crawl
Flutter kicks Fast feet High knees and punch
Alternating curtsy lunges Plank rotations Bicycles

Resistance Exercises:

Remember to make a note of how many you complete each week on average, or the intensity of band you are using, so that you can progressively overload the muscles.

 

Chest: Push up

Method

Please do press ups on your knees, if you need to.

  

Shoulders: Lateral raise (bands)

Method

Hold one end of the band, whilst pulling the other end up and out to the side. Alternate half way through.
Back: Backwards Row (Band)

Method

Place the band under your foot and pull the band back until you can feel the squeeze between your shoulder blades. Neutral spine position.

  

Triceps: Dip

Method

The further you stretch out your legs, the harder it is. Bend arms to 90 degrees, or until you feel your triceps burn

 

Biceps: Curl (band)

Method

Place the band under your heel or alternate hand and drive the band upwards, into a bicep curl motion. Alternate halfway through.

Helpful tips:

Write out each exercise on a piece of paper and place them at different stations in the garden. This way, everyone will remember what they’re meant to be doing!