Summer 2021 Full Body Workout

We’re all waiting for summer to arrive. But some people may feel like they need to tighten up their body before hitting the beach. Working out can be tough, especially if you don’t know where to begin. The best exercise for those a little unsure of themselves is a full body workout. This is a great way to get your body into shape; there’s typically less soreness than working hard on one area at a time, and you can mix up your favorite exercises to create different workouts for different days. Below are some example movements and quick guidelines on how to perform them. If you need a little more instruction, check out the Fitness Buddy App.

Lunges

Start standing with your feet together. Step your right foot forward and bend your left knee to lower down until it touches the ground. Then push off with your right foot to return to a standing position. Repeat for the other side.

Lateral pull down

Start seated with your arms straight above you and your hands on the pull down bar. Keep your shoulders down and chest lifted but not arched. Pull the bar down, keeping your elbows pointing down and your shoulders away from your ears.

Push ups

Start on the floor in a straight arm plank position with your hands slightly wider than your shoulders and your feet together. Keeping your body in a straight line, bend your elbows, lowering your body towards the floor. Stop when your elbows get to 90 degrees, then push back up.

Step ups

Find an elevated surface such as some stairs, a chair, a bench, or a box. Step your right foot onto the box and push yourself up. Keep your right knee pointing outward and stand up fully. Lower back down in a controlled manner, then repeat. Don’t forget to switch legs.

Shoulder press

You can be seated or standing for a shoulder press, but remember to squeeze your abs to protect your back. Holding dumbbells, start with your arms bent at 90 degrees in front of you. Press the weight above your head by straightening your arms, then slowly return to the starting position.

Pull ups

Start in a hanging position from the pull up bar. Keeping your shoulders lowered away from your ears, pull yourself up. Make sure you keep your elbows in line with your torso. Then lower back to the starting position. You can vary your arm position to adjust the difficulty — the wider your arms are stationed on the bar, the more challenging the pull up will be.

Mixing it up

With a few basic exercises in your routine, you now need to mix them up to create a full body workout. Take four of these exercises and perform four sets of 10 reps each for a quick but full body workout that you can start doing every day to build up your fitness.

When that gets too easy, increase the weight, slow down the movements, or add a few more exercises into the routine. Do this workout three times a week (with some cardio sessions in between) and you’ll start seeing the results — just in time for summer.

Maddy has worked in the health and fitness industry for 5 years. She has a bachelors in Exercise Science and has recently received her Masters in Exercise Physiology. She has worked with a wide demographic of clients as a Personal Trainer and loves helping people reach their goals and continue to grow.  She is an outdoor enthusiast and dedicates her workouts to rock climbing, hiking and whatever new experiences may come her way.

Main Photo Credit: Aleksandr Khmeliov/shutterstock.com; Second Photo Credit: Undrey/shutterstock.com; Third Photo Credit: Jacob Lund/shutterstock.com; Fourth Photo Credit: Master1305/shutterstock.com