Get fit in 30 days!

LOSE WEIGHT EXERCISES

The January cover-dated issue of Women’s Fitness magazine featured a 30 day get fit plan – here’s the exercises from that plan fo those who want to lose weight. Combine these moves with regular cardio sessions for best results.

 

Squats

• Stand upright with your feet hip-width apart
• Bend at your hips to move your chest forwards and your knees to move your butt backwards, as though you were about to sit on a chair behind you
• Squat down keeping your knees above your ankles
• Stand straight without locking your knees
• Repeat

Shoulder press

• Stand upright or sit down in a chair with your feet hip-width apart
• Hold a dumbbell in each hand by your shoulders
• Lift the dumbbells above you by straightening your arms
• Bend your arms to lower your weights back to the start position
• Repeat

Wide squats

• Stand upright with your feet wider than shoulder-width apart and with your toes turned out
• Sit back into a wide squat position making sure that your knees stay in line with your hips and ankles
• Return to the start position
• Repeat

Box push-ups

• Position yourself on your hands and knees on the floor or a mat
• Walk your hands forwards to reduce the angle at your hips a little
• Your hands will be a little wider than shoulder-width apart
• Lift your feet off the floor
• Bend your arms and lower your chest to the floor forwards and between your hands
• Press through your arms to return to the start position
• Repeat

Dynamic lunges

• Stand upright with feet hip-width apart
• Take a large step forward with your left leg
• Keep your upper body upright, bend your front leg until your back knee almost touches the ground
• Aim to get both knees to approx. 90-degrees
• Stand straight by driving off your left leg
• Repeat
• Swap legs and repeat

Single-arm rows

• Hold a dumbbell in your right hand, lean forwards and support yourself with your left arm on a chair or bench
• Relax your shoulders, tighten your abs and lift the weight by pulling your right elbow up as high as you can
• Straighten your arm to lower the weight and repeat the movement
• Keep your top half flat at all times, don’t let your shoulder drop towards the floor or rise up as you lift the weight
• Switch sides

Front plank

• Lie face down with your body supported on your forearms
• Keeping your knees in contact with the ground, lift your hips off the ground until your body forms a straight line from your shoulders to your knees
• Then lift your knees from the ground so your body forms a straight line from shoulders to ankles
• Hold your stomach tight to keep your body straight while breathing deeply and evenly
• Hold for 10 seconds then relax
• Then hold for 15 seconds and relax
• The more you practice this exercise, the longer you can aim to hold the position – try aiming for 60 seconds off the ground by the end of your first week.

Side plank

• Lie on your side with the top half of your body propped up on your forearm
• Lift your hips to create a straight line from your shoulders to your feet
• Hold this position by tightening the whole of your abdominal area
• Breathe deeply as you hold and relax when you feel your hips beginning to drop
• Repeat for 5 holds on one side and then repeat on the other side

Glute bridge

• Lie face up with your feet flat and knees bent
• Tighten your stomach muscles and then lift your hips off the ground to make a straight line from your knees to your shoulders
• Squeeze your butt really tight
• Hold this position for 5-10 seconds.
• Lower your hips to the ground
• Repeat x 5

Tabletop leg extensions

• Position yourself on the floor on your hands and knees
• Curve and arch your back and then find a neutral spine position with a fairly flat back
• Tighten your stomach muscles and relax your shoulders
• Extend your left leg behind you lifting your foot to the height of your body
• Keeping your body still, push your left foot away from you
• Lower your left leg and return to the start position
• Repeat on the other side

Glute bridge with leg lifts

• Lie on the floor, face up with your knees bent and feet flat and together
• Squeeze the muscles of your bottom (glutes) and lift your hips off the ground until you’re holding a straight line from your shoulders to your knees
• When you feel steady move weight onto one foot and lift the other foot off the ground
• Hold this position for 5-8 seconds squeezing your glutes. Keep your hamstrings relaxed
• Lower your foot and repeat on the other side
• Alternate legs, until you’ve performed 5 raises on each side and then lower your hips to the ground

Walk down half push-ups

• Stand upright with your hands on your thighs
• Roll down from your shoulders, bend your knees and place your hands on the floor in front of you
• Walk your hands forwards to a push-up position
• Place your knees on the ground
• Bend your arms and lower your chest to the floor between your hands
• Straighten your arms and repeat x 10
• Lift your knees and walk your hands backwards as you return to a standing position
• Repeat

Squat jumps

• Stand with your feet hip-width apart
• Sit into a squat
• Swing your arms to jump out of the squat as high as you can, land, check your balance and move into another squat
• Repeat

Bent over rows

• Hold a dumbbell in your right hand, lean forwards and support yourself with your left arm on a chair or bench
• Relax your shoulders, tighten your abs and lift the weight by pulling your right elbow up as high as you can
• Straighten your arm and repeat the movement
• Switch sides

Triceps extensions

• Stand upright with one arm by your side and the other arm holding a dumbbell above your head
• Keeping your elbow close to your ear, bend your top arm to lower the weight down behind your head
• Keep your head up and eyes forward throughout the movement. Keep your shoulders relaxed
• Straighten your arm to return to the start position
• Repeat before switching arms

Shoulder raises

• Begin with your arm by your sides with a dumbbell in each hand
• Keeping your shoulders relaxed, lift the weights out to the sides
• Your elbows should be slightly bent and palms to the floor
• When you reach shoulder height, lower the weights to the start position
• Repeat

Bicep curls

• Stand upright with your feet hip-width apart and knees slightly bent
• Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing forwards
• Keeping your elbows at your sides, curl your arms up to the front
• Straighten your arms and repeat

Rear flyes

• Stand up straight with a dumbbell in each hand
• Bend your knees and lean forward from the hips to 45-degrees
• Hold the weights slightly out to the front with your palms facing inwards
• Keeping your elbows slightly bent raise the weights up to the sides
• Squeeze your shoulder blades together at the top of the movement
• Lower the weights slowly
• Repeat
• If at any point your lower back feels unstable, bend your knees slightly more

Deadlift

• Stand upright with your feet together holding a dumbbell in each hand in front of your thighs
• Maintaining a slight angle at your knees, bend forwards at your hips and move the weights away from your thighs until your top half is at a 45 degree angle
• Keep your shoulders back as you move
• Squeeze your glutes to return to standing
• Repeat

Chest flyes

• Lie face up with your knees bent and feet flat
• Hold a pair of dumbbells above your chest with your palms facing inwards
• Maintain a very slight bend in your arms throughout this movement
• Keep your tummy tight
• Slowly lower the weights towards the floor
• Just before your arms touch the floor, squeeze your chest muscles to lift the weights back to the start position
• At the top of each movement make sure the weights are over your chest and not above your head
• Repeat

Alternate leg squat thrusts

• Adopt a push-up position on the floor
• Bend your right leg so that the knee comes up towards your shoulder on that side
• Support your weight on your arms but keep your shoulders relaxed and your hips low
• Switch legs simultaneously bringing your left knee up to your chest on that side and straightening your right leg
• Repeat

Glute bridge hold

• Lie face up with your feet flat and knees bent
• Tighten your stomach muscles and then lift your hips off the ground to make a straight line from your knees to your shoulders
• Squeeze your butt really tight
• Hold this position for 5-10 seconds.
• Lower your hips to the ground
• Repeat x 5

Rear lunges

• Stand upright with feet hip-width apart
• Take a large step backwards with your left leg
• Keep your upper body upright, bend your left leg until your knee almost touches the ground.
• Stand straight by driving off your left leg
• Repeat
• Swap legs and repeat

 

GET FITTER EXERCISES

Want to push your fitness to new boundaries in 2021? Perform these moves regularly – ideally three to four sets three times a week.

 

Side step squats

• Stand upright with your feet hip-width apart
• Take a large step to the side with your right leg
• Sit into a wide squat position
• Keep your knees in line with your ankles and hips
• Drive off your right leg to return to standing
• Repeat this time stepping to the left
• Keep alternating legs with a steady rhythm

Calf raises

• Hold a dumbbell in each hand
• Stand upright with your feet hip-width apart
• Lift your heels and stand up onto your toes
• Slowly lower your heels back to the floor
• Repeat

Squat pulses

• Stand upright with your feet hip-width apart
• Sit back, bending at your hips and your knees as though you were about to sit on a chair
• Keep your knees above your ankles
• Lower your hips as far as you can and then straighten up halfway to the start position before lowering your hips again
• Repeat these half squats x 10
• Stand straight without locking your knees
• Repeat

Chair dips

• Sit on the edge of a chair with your hands by your bottom, fingers facing forwards
• Extend your legs in front of you and lift your bottom off the chair
• Lift your chest to pull your shoulders back and then bend your elbows to lower your body towards the floor
• Keep your back close to the chair as you lower your body and then straighten your arms to lift your body back to the front of the chair
• Repeat

Lunge jumps

• Stand upright and step forwards into a lunge position
• Bend both knees to adopt a deep lunge and then quickly spring up into a jump, landing with your feet in the same position
• Repeat x 15 and then swap your leading leg
• Throughout the sequence on both legs, aim to maintain a rhythm of one jump per second

Mountain climbers

• Adopt a push-up position on the floor
• Move your right foot to place it to the outside of your right hand
• Return your right foot to the start position
• Move your left foot to place it to the outside of your left hand
• Return your left foot to the start position
• Repeat

Table top supermans

• Position yourself on the floor on your hands and knees
• Curve and arch your back and then find a neutral spine position with a fairly flat back
• Tighten your stomach muscles and relax your shoulders
• Extend your left leg behind you lifting your foot to the height of your body. At the same time extend your right arm in front of you
• Keeping your body still, push your left foot and right hand away from your body
• Lower this arm and leg to return to the start position
• Repeat on the other side

Skater leaps

• Stand on your left foot to the left of a straight line marker or skipping rope or similar on the ground
• Sit back into a single leg squat keeping your knee above your ankle
• Swing your arms and jump up and sideways so that you land on your right leg on the other side of the line
• Land, bend your knee, sit into a single leg squat on your right leg, jump out of it returning to your start position
• Keeping a steady rhythm jump side to side over the line for 20 jumps

More information

You can find the full 30-day training plans for weight loss and getting fit, in the January issue of Women’s Fitness, on sale now, starting on page 36. You can find the magazine in all good retailers or you can buy it directly with free postage from the Kelsey shop here.