7 WORKOUT IDEAS FOR BEGINNERS

Stack House have put together 7 beginner workouts that are great for anyone looking to get started in exercise and for those who need some guidance on what exercises to undertake. Like so many people, exercise can be daunting and confusing – you’re not sure what to do, when to do it and how to do it. Anyone new to fitness or starting a new exercise plan might need some help and guidance; keep reading for some advise, ideas and demonstrations on exercise routines for beginners.

Our Personal Trainers have created 7 workout routines which can be undertaken at home or in the gym. Our workouts have been split into categories which will help you organise your sessions and focus on specific body parts and muscle groups. The majority of our workouts do not require the use of equipment, however, as you develop in strength, coordination and confidence you may wish to add in resistance.

Resistance will enhance your workout and give your body an extra challenge while you work towards hitting your goals. Adding resistance and additional weight to your workout has many benefits such as increasing muscular endurance and strength, improving your core and muscular stability  as well as enabling muscle growth. Dumbbells, barbells, resistance bands and machines are great pieces of equipment for added resistance. If you are working out at home you can use water bottles, a rucksack filled with heavy items or anything that you can comfortably grip or carry.

For demonstrations of our workouts, check out our YouTube channel. Give us a like, share and subscribe for regular notifications on all things health and fitness.

Here are your 7 workout ideas for beginners. Enjoy!

WORKOUT 1: FULL BODY

Plank exercise

Full body workouts are a great way to train if you can only manage to exercise a couple of times a week. This is because you will be able to activate and work on all the major muscle groups in just a couple of sessions. Likewise, if your goal is to build your activity level, if you are returning back to exercise from having a rest break or if you are looking to introduce your body to fitness, this way of training can be hugely beneficial.

We recommend that your sessions include compound movements for maximum benefit, these are: squats, deadlifts, bench, dips, press ups, pull ups and planks as these movements put greater demand on the body and require 2 or more muscles to work at the same time. You will also be able to make progress, track your results and improve on your reps/sets and weights used (progressive overload). This is where you will see the benefits of training the full body. Below is an example of a full body workout which can be completed with out without additional weight.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Perform each exercise one after the other
15 reps per exercise
Rest for 2 minute and repeat
5-6 rounds

1. BODYWEIGHT SQUAT

2. PRESS UPS (ON FEET OR KNEES)

3. BODYWEIGHT ALTERNATE FORWARD LUNGES

4. PUSH PLANK

5. PRONE W PRESS WITH TOWEL

6. LEG RAISES

7. CHAIR DIPS

WORKOUT 2: SINGLE ARM AND LEG WORKOUT

Lunge Exercise

Unilateral exercise is when you train one limb at a time. Benefits of doing so will improve core stability and correct any imbalances there may be in the muscles of that limb. Combining unilateral exercise with bilateral exercises (using two limbs) will provide greater benefits overall; such as decrease risk of injury and improve the muscles stimulation.

Perform 3-4 reps of 12-15 reps per exercise
45-60s rest between sets
Equipment needed – Dumbbell/kettlebells or something you can comfortably hold and lift for multiple reps

1. REVERSE LUNGES

2. SINGLE ARM BENT OVER ROW (reps each side)

3. SINGLE ARM CHEST PRESS ON FLOOR (reps each side)

4. HALF KNEELING SHOULDER PRESS

5. SIDE PLANKS (TILL FAILURE) NO WEIGHT

WORKOUT 3: HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING (HIIT)

Box Jump Exercise

HIIT training has many benefits which include burning a lot of calories in a short amount of time. HIIT workouts are usually short, ranging from 10 – 30 minutes and involve burst of high intensity at intervals. This will also increase your metabolic rate, which results in burning calories even though you have finished exercising. HIIT also has the added benefit of improving your blood pressure, resting heart rate, oxygen saturation and blood sugars. Below is an example of a HIIT workout to get you started.

INSTRUCTIONS:

30 seconds on 30 seconds off
6 rounds
60 seconds rest in between rounds

1. HIGH KNEES

2. BURPEES

3. MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS

4. SQUAT JUMPS

5. PRESS UPS

6. LATERAL SHUFFLE (TOUCH THE GROUND)

7. LUNGE INTO HIGH KNEE (REST 30 THEN DO 30 SECS ON OTHER SIDE)

WORKOUT 4: CORE

Abdominal Crunch Exercise

Core exercises work on your abdominal muscles. The core stabilises your entire body in every movement, so you will be using your abdominal muscles in day to day activities and during exercise. However, giving your core its own focussed workout has numerous benefits, such as injury prevention, strengthening your abdominals and improving your core control and movement. Here are 7 exercises hitting all your abdominal muscles.

30 seconds on 20 seconds off
20 minutes
3 rounds
1 minute rest after each round

1. ABDOMINAL CRUNCH

2. PLANK

3. LEG RAISES

4. RUSSIAN TWIST

5. FLUTTER KICKS

6. ALTERNATING KNEES TO CHEST IN PRESS UP POSITION

7. KNEES UP CRUNCH

WORKOUT 5: LEGS

Barbell Lunges

3-4 sets per exercise
12-15 reps
60 secs rest (30-45 secs if bodyweight)
Bodyweight or can use dumbbell/kettlebell or something you can comfortably hold and lift for multiple reps

1. BRIDGE RAISES

2. SQUATS

3. WALKING LUNGES (NO ROOM – DO REVERSE LUNGES)

4. STEP UPS ON STEP/CHAIR/BOX/SOFA

5. SLIDING LEG CURLS ON FLOOR (WOODEN FLOOR OR ANYTHING FLOORING WITH NO GRIP)

6. PUSLE SQUATS FINISHER 30-45 SECS

WORKOUT 6: UPPER BODY RESISTANCE BAND WORKOUT

Resistance Bands for Workout

Working out with a resistance band is great for many reasons. It is a convenient piece of equipment that doesn’t take up any room so can be used at home or carried with you to be used anywhere anytime. Bands are great for adding additional resistance to your movements as it encourages you to use many stabilising muscles which in turn promotes a more effective way of exercising. They can be used by individuals at any levels of fitness, for injury prevention and also injury rehabilitation. Additionally, bands can be used on their own or with other equipment such as a barbell.

3-4 sets per exercise
15 reps
45 secs rest
Resistance bands required, double or single arm if band is too short

1. RESISTANCE BAND SEATED ROWS

2. PRESS UPS (BANDED IF YOU CAN)

3. RESISTANCE BAND LAT PULLDOWNS (STANDING, KNEELING OR SEATED)

4. KNEELING RESISTANCE BAND SHOULDER PRESS

5. BENT OVER ROWS WITH BAND

6. STANDING CHEST PRESS (WITH BAND WRAP BEHIND POLE)

7. LATERAL RAISES WITH BAND

8. BICEP CURLS WITH BAND

9. TRICEP EXTENSIONS WITH BAND

WORKOUT 7: HIIT

Mountain Climbers Exercise

Complete as many rounds as you can in 10 minutes
20 reps per exercise
Rest is down to you! Try to beat your score each time you attempt this workout
Equipment needed for 1-2 exercises: kettlebell/dumbbell or something you can comfortably hold and lift for multiple reps

1. FULL RANGE SQUATS (USE WEIGHT IF YOU WANT TO)

2. SHOULDER TAPS IN PRESS UP POSITION

3. BURPEES WITHOUT JUMP

4. SKI HOPS

5. CLEAN AND PRESS (WEIGHT REQUIRED, 10 REPS EACH SIDE)

6. STEP UPS (STEP/CHAIR/SOFA/BOX) (10 REPS EACH SIDE)

7. MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS (1 KNEE TO CHEST = 1 REP)

We hope you have found these workouts exciting, challenging and sweaty! We would love to hear from you, share your results with us by email or on Instagram or Facebook.

Workouts designed by Reece Moir and Damion Elliott.