If cold weather puts you off stepping outside—let alone making it to the gym—you’re in the right place.
Here at Fit&Well we're big fans of simple, effective home workouts. Many of us are already time-strapped, so full-body workouts requiring a gym trip can be challenging.
However, a 20-minute session you can do from the comfort of your living room? That changes things. Whether it’s before the school run or after work, you can fit this in at any time. Wear your PJs or your favorite gym gear, whatever works for you.
Ready to start? Try this six-move circuit-style workout from certified personal trainer and health and mindset coach Chloe Thomas.
The moves work muscles across your entire body including your arms, core and legs without any equipment—just your body and a sprinkle of motivation.
How to do the full-body home workout
- Counter balance squat
- Kneeling push-up
- Glute bridge walkout
- Chair/triceps dip
- Plank leg lift to crunch
- Hamstring curl
Start the workout with a five-minute warm-up including a three-round circuit of air squats, jumping jacks, arm circles and mountain climbers. Aim for 15-20 of each to get the blood pumping, prepare your body for movement and to help prevent injuries.
For the workout, perform each exercise for 40 seconds, then rest for 20 seconds before moving on. Once you've finished all six exercises, rest for 90 seconds then repeat the circuit.
Want more of a challenge? Thomas suggests doing all three rounds with no rest. Always finish the workout with five minutes of stretching to minimize aching muscles (DOMS) the next day.
Counter balance squat
Reps: 40 secs
- From standing, raise your left leg off the ground into a tuck.
- Lean forward slowly, engaging your core and extend the left leg behind you, keeping the knee bent.
- Start to squat on your right leg, squeezing your glute for support.
- Lower yourself as far as you can on the right leg
- Push up through your standing foot back into your starting position.
- Do 20 seconds on one side, then switch legs and repeat. If you struggle with the move, you can put one hand on a raised surface for balance or do normal squats instead.
Kneeling push-up
Reps: 40 secs
- From your knees, lean forwards and place your hands under your shoulders and knees just behind your hips. Your feet can be raised or resting on the floor.
- Lower yourself as far as you can toward the floor, keeping your elbows tucked in—no flaring out—and back flat.
- Push back up to the starting position and repeat.
Glute bridge walkout
Reps: 40 secs (20 seconds per side)
- Lying on your back with knees bent, push through your feet and lift your glutes off the floor. Your head and shoulders remain on the floor.
- Extend your right foot, keeping your glutes squeezed and your hips high.
- Extend your left leg to join the right, keeping your core and glutes engaged and hips up.
- Walk your legs back in and repeat the other way.
Triceps dip
Reps: 40 seconds
- Sit on the edge of a chair, legs at 90° angles and hands holding the edge, fingers pointing forward.
- Lower yourself by bending your arms, keeping your elbows close.
- Pause when your arms are at 90° angles then push yourself back up to the starting position.
- Make it harder by extending one or both legs out.
Plank leg lift to crunch
Reps: 40 secs (20 secs on each side)
- Start in a full plank with your arms under your shoulder and core tight.
- Lift one leg up as high as you can, keeping your core engaged and avoiding raising your hips too much.
- Lower the leg and crunch it into your chest.
- Repeat on the other leg.
Hamstring curl with towel
Reps: 40 secs
- Lying on your back, lift your bum off the floor and place your feet on a towel or cloth, so that they will slide across the surface easily.
- Slide the cloth as far as you can, keeping hips high and core engaged.
- Return to the starting position and repeat.
Benefits of bodyweight training
Bodyweight training is ideal for anyone looking to improve their physical fitness and strength without expensive equipment. It's easily adaptable and can be done anywhere—at home, outdoors or even while traveling.
"Bodyweight exercises are ideal for those with limited space, as they utilize resistance using just your bodyweight to help create muscle tension, which in turn boosts both your strength levels and general fitness,” explains Thomas.
"Being able to work with your own weight can help you to develop functional strength and is a great way to build lean muscle tissue as well as body control and confidence in your own abilities," adds Thomas. "Just look at gymnasts—they largely use their own body weight and are incredibly strong and flexible with fantastic overall body composition.”
As your fitness improves, bodyweight exercises can become more challenging by adjusting your reps, tempo, rest times and even adding explosiveness with plyometric moves such as squat jump and lunge jump.
