The agony on the faces of rowers at the end of The Boat Race let you know just how hard it is to maintain the effort they put in through the event. That performance is built on months of demanding training.

If you want a little taste of that training, then try this progressive rowing workout from Patrick Ryan, chief coach of Cambridge University Boat Club’s Women’s Programme, which builds in intensity over three 10-minute blocks.

“The 3 x 10-minute session is a key part of our athletes’ development and one that we revisit throughout the season,” says Ryan. “It targets aerobic training, the base of any great Boat Race performance, and focuses athletes on building an aerobic base and making sure that their speed increases with each increase in [stroke] rate.”

Warm-up

“We warm up for half an hour, starting with some stretching and mobility exercises for 10 minutes, getting the blood flowing before athletes get on the ergo [rowing machine],” says Ryan. “Once you get on the ergo, work through the stroke, addressing both technique and intensity as you move through the warm-up.  

“Start by using arms only. Weight on the back of the seat, reaching out to straight arms and drawing back to your xiphoid process [the bottom of your sternum]. You’re looking to increase the handle’s speed through the stroke without snatching. Do this for about a minute.

“Next it’s arms and body. Once your arms are straight, rock your hips forward and transfer your weight onto the front of the seat and feel a little stretch in your hamstrings, but not too much. This sets your body position for when you move out to the full rowing stroke. Start the drive by swinging back with straight arms, using your arms to keep accelerating the handle into your body. Do a minute or two of this, at a 3-4/10 intensity, then we start to bring in the legs.”

From there, Ryan suggests working through a quarter slide, half slide, three-quarter slide and then into a full slide, as detailed below. The catch is the position you adopt before you drive back with your legs.

“Quarter slide: From the arms and body movement above, let your knees come up a few inches and roll into the catch,” says Ryan. “Drive with your legs and arms straight, then swing into the finish.

“Half slide: The next few positions are building on the quarter slide position and compressing the legs more and more into the catch so that the stroke can get longer and stronger.

“Three-quarter slide: keeping your body at the same angle, and very nearly coming forward until your shins are upright.

“Full slide: this is at the length you’re going to do the workout.”

Finish off your warm-up with some higher-intensity intervals based on your stroke rate (strokes per minute, which Ryan refers to as simply rate), and rate of perceived exertion (RPE) to get yourself ready for the workout proper.

“Once you’ve been rowing at full slide at low intensity for a few minutes, open up a bit by rowing at a higher intensity and rate for a minute,” says Ryan. “Row at rate 24 for a minute at about 8/10 intensity, then row at your easier aerobic pace for a minute. Then it’s time to open up again, rating 28 at about 8/10 intensity for 30 seconds and recovering at your easier aerobic pace for 90 seconds. Finish your warm-up by rowing for 15 seconds at rate 32 at a high intensity.”

30-Minute Rowing Workout

The workout is broken up into three 10-minute blocks (or “pieces” as they are called in rowing circles) with 90 seconds of rest in between them. For each piece, Ryan has given a stroke rate to hit, along with a target intensity based on RPE, plus guidelines for the power (in watts) you’ll put out if you’re used to using those.

Ryan suggests that for each 10-minute piece try and record your average watts and heart rate. Then when you next do the session you’ll be able to track your improved fitness.

“When you revisit the session later, remember your watts from the last time you did this session, and keep the stroke rate the same as previously,” says Ryan. “If your training is working, you’ll see your heart rate drop and perceived exertion drop if you keep the watts the same, or if you go by perceived exertion and heart rate, you’ll see your watts increase significantly!”

Piece 1

Time 10min Rest 90sec

“If you know the watts you would normally pull rating 18, you’re looking to pull about 20 watts more and rate 22 for this 10-minute piece,” says Ryan. “If you don’t know what your pace should be, I’d want you to do this first piece at an RPE of 5/10. Use this piece to establish consistency— no great peaks or troughs in output.

“Take 90 seconds rest. You should finish this piece ready to go for the next piece—bank it when you can, this workout will bite later.”

Piece 2

Time 10min Rest 90sec

“Take it up two rating points for the second 10 minutes, so you’ll be rating 24 for this section of the workout and increasing your wattage from the first piece by about 10 watts,” says Ryan. “This should take you to 7/10 RPE and your heart rate will probably be 10bpm higher. As the intensity increases, focus on the stroke: start the drive with your legs, opening the back when the legs are nearly down, and finishing with your arms.”

After another 90 seconds of rest, go into the third 10-minute block.

Piece 3

Time 10min Rest 90sec

“We do this final 10-minute piece at rating 26, at a 9/10 intensity. Consistency is key in this piece as it is when racing the Boat Races—you cannot afford to drop intensity at any point, but you also can’t afford to blow up! If you’ve got anything left in the last 30 seconds, maintain the rate and squeeze on a bit.”

The Gemini Boat Race 2024 takes place in Putney on Saturday 30th March, with the Women’s Race starting at 2:46pm GMT and the Men’s Race at 3:46pm GMT. The event will be broadcast live on BBC One from 2pm GMT.

Read our Concept2 RowErg review to find out why it tops our list of the best rowing machines.

If you want to use your training time as effectively as possible, add these beginner treadmill workouts to your gym routine. They’re both designed by Fran Bungay, head coach for the Training Today App and Goal Specific Coaching, and use the incline and speed settings on a treadmill to program interval runs that will get you fitter and help you lose weight.

While you can just step onto a treadmill and run at a steady pace for your workout, you’ll get more out of short sessions in particular by doing intervals which raise your heart rate and effort level, and burn more calories.

How To Do These Beginner Treadmill Workouts

Bungay has put together two beginner treadmill sessions to try, one with intervals based on speed and one on incline. You’ll be using the 1-10 RPE scale (rate of perceived exertion) to judge your effort, where 10 is maximum effort. This might feel hard to judge at first, but whatever you do will result in a great workout and you’ll get more adept at judging your effort levels over time.

Each workout begins with a warm-up and ends with a warm-down. Don’t skip either of these.

The main workout involves sections of work and recovery intervals. The instructions for each section are written as “5 x 1min at 8/10 RPE, 1min walk recovery”. This means you do five sets of the following: run for one minute at an effort level of 8/10, then recover for one minute while walking.

Beginner Interval Treadmill Workout

Do the entire workout with the treadmill set at a 2% incline.

Warm-up

5min walk 

5min building up to jogging to finish at around 6/10 RPE 

Workout

5 x 1min at 8/10 RPE, 1min walk recovery

3 x 2min at 7/10 RPE, 1min walk recovery

5 x 1min at 8/10 RPE, 1min walk recovery

Warm-down

2min at 6/10 RPE

2min at 5/10 RPE

1min walk 

Beginner Incline Treadmill Workout

Warm-up

Set the incline to 2% for the warm-up

5min walk 

5min building into a jog to 6/10 RPE

Workout

Aim for 7/10 or 8/10 RPE during the work periods, as you get fitter you might want to increase the pace on the lower incline section.

3 x 1min at 6% incline, 1min at 2% incline, 1min walk recovery

3 x 2 min at 4% incline, 2min at 2% incline, 1min walk recovery

Warm-down

2min at 6/10 RPE

2min at 5/10 RPE

1min walk

Find out which treadmills are worth buying with my guide to the best treadmills.

A great bodyweight HIIT workout keeps things simple. It lines up several of the best bodyweight exercises and asks you to rattle through them with minimal rest. That’s exactly what you can expect from this workout put together by personal trainer Steve Ahern from Goal Plans powered by MuscleFood.

You need 30 minutes, a bit of clear space and the workout is suitable for all fitness levels since you’re working to time rather than trying to hit a certain amount of reps. There are a number of high-impact exercises, however. If you think that might pose a problem, try this beginner HIIT workout with the regressions.

How To Do This Bodyweight HIIT Workout

The workout uses a 20/20/20 format where you do exercise A for 20 seconds, switch straight into move B for 20 seconds, then rest for 20 seconds. There are seven sections to the workout, and in the first six, you’ll do four rounds of a pair of exercises and rest only after the second move. Then in the last section, you do all 12 exercises for 20 seconds each back-to-back for a tough finisher. The whole workout will take just under 30 minutes.

Bodyweight HIIT Workout Overview

• 1A Unweighted squat 4 x 20sec
• 1B Push-up 4 x 20sec
• 2A Alternating reverse lunge 4 x 20sec
• 2B Burpee 4 x 20sec
• 3A Jump squat 4 x 20sec
• 3B Jump lunge 4 x 20sec
• 4A High knees 4 x 20sec
• 4B Mountain climber 4 x 20sec
• 5A Hand walk-out 4 x 20sec
• 5B Plank 4 x 20sec
• 6A Reverse lunge with hold, right foot forward 4 x 20sec
• 6B Reverse lunge with hold, left foot forward 4 x 20sec
• 7 Every exercise above 1 x 20sec

Bodyweight HIIT Workout Form Guides

Click or press the title for an in-depth form guide to each exercise.

Section 1

1A Unweighted squat

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 0sec

“Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart with toes slightly pointed outwards,” says Ahern. “Shift your hips back and bend your knees to lower into a squat position. Keep your chest up when executing the movement, with your back straight, and push through your heels to come back to standing.”

1B Push-up

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 20sec

Start on your hands and toes, with your arms and legs extended, hands underneath your shoulders and body in a straight line from head to heels. Bend your elbows to lower your chest to the floor, then push back up. “Make sure to keep your elbows in when pushing back up,” says Ahern.

Section 2

2A Alternating reverse lunge

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 0sec

“Take a step backwards and drop your rear knee as close to the floor as possible while keeping your back straight and chest up,” says Ahern. “Push back up and keep switching legs until the allocated time is up.”

2B Burpee

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 20sec

From standing, fold at your waist and place your hands on the floor in front of your feet. Jump your feet back so you land in the top push-up position. Jump your feet back to your hands, then jump straight up, landing softly.

Section 3

3A Jump squat

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 0sec

“This exercise adds a jump to a squat,” says Ahern. As you rise out of a squat jump straight up. Land softly and immediately lower into the next rep.

3B Jump lunge

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 20sec

“Take one step backward and drop your knee as close to the ground as you can, then jump up and switch legs in mid-air, landing with the other leg behind you,” says Ahern. Continue jumping and switching legs in mid-air.

Section 4

4A High knees

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 0sec

“Run on the spot, raising your knees to your chest,” says Ahern. Raise the opposite arm to the raised leg.

4B Mountain climber

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 20sec

“Start in a push-up position,” says Ahern. “Move one knee close to your chest while keeping your hips as still as possible. Switch legs in mid-air and keep your head down.” Continue switching legs at pace.

Section 5

5A Hand walk-out

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 0sec

“From standing, fold at your waist and place your hands on the floor in front of you. Walk your hands into a push-up position, hold for a second and then move your hands backwards and come to standing,” says Ahern. “Don’t allow your hips or back to dip.”

5B Plank

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 20sec

“Support your body on your forearms and toes,” says Ahern. “Keep your back parallel with the floor, don’t raise your hips and keep your head down. Make sure to contract your core area while performing this exercise.” Hold this position for the allotted time.

Section 6

6A Reverse lunge with hold, right foot forward

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 0sec

“Step your left foot backward and drop into the reverse lunge position and stay there for the allotted time,” says Ahern.

6B Reverse lunge With Hold, Left Foot Forward

Sets 4 Time 20sec Rest 20sec

“Step your right foot backward and drop into the reverse lunge position and stay there for the allotted time,” says Ahern.

Section 7

Rest for an additional 60 seconds before doing the final round, where you tackle all 12 moves from the workout in a row without rest. Use the form instructions from above and perform each move for 20 seconds.

Need help deciding on your next pair of workout shoes? Use our guide to the best gym trainers to find the right pair for you.

Anyone who’s jumped on an air bike and put the pedal to the metal will know this cardio machine is a nasty piece of work. It batters your arms, legs and lungs—leaving you feeling like a lactic-filled sack. 

If you’re the sort of person still reading after that intro, I’ve got something for you: a brutal air bike workout that takes five minutes.

I stumbled across it in the Assault Fitness newsletter and couldn’t resist trying it. It promptly reduced me to a jelly-legged mess, so I thought I’d pop it here for Coach readers to try too. Sharing is caring, after all. 

How To Do Assault Fitness’ Air Bike Workout

For time (as fast as possible):

• Air bike x 21 calories
• Burpee x 9
• Air bike x 15 calories
• Burpee x 15
• Air bike x 9 calories
• Burpee x 21

This is a twist on the popular 21-15-9 CrossFit workout format. Instead of doing descending reps for both exercises, the burpees start at nine and finish at 21 and the air bike calories start at 21 and finish at nine.  

The aim is to finish it as fast as possible—all gas, no brakes. 

What Happened When I Tried This Air Bike Workout

“You looked like you were in pain,” a fellow gym-goer told me after I finished this workout. I laughed. I was in pain. 

It all started so promisingly too. I put the hammer down to try and race through the opening 21 calories on the bike and the first 10 calories flew by. Say what you want about an Assault Bike, if you give it your all the calories tick up quickly.

Then things started to slow down. My heart rate spiked, my quads started to feel heavy and I found it increasingly hard to generate power through the pedals. The air bike’s monitor told the story, with my RPM plummeting and the calories creeping up in 0.2 increments towards the end of the set. 

I eventually made it to 21, dismounted and cranked through the burpees. My speed isn’t amazing on burpees but I can keep going—fall down, get up, small jump, repeat. 

Then it was back to the bike. As is always the case for an average athlete like me, the 21-15-9 format is too long to sprint and too short to relax into. 

So, rather than going full send as I did at the beginning, I found a maximum sustainable pace for the remaining two rounds, settling in at roughly 65-70 RPM, before pushing hard on the last set of 21 burpees.

I finished in 5min 13sec, shy of my sub-five target, then crawled off to a quiet corner to recover. 

Next time, I’d try to hold a consistent pace rather than sprinting straight out the gate. By doing this, I could avoid taking myself to exhaustion then slowing considerably, and hold a higher average speed throughout the workout to achieve a faster time. 

If you wouldn’t be seen dead near a cardio machine, then you may want to try adding conditioning workouts into your routine to help your cardio fitness keep pace with your strength.

The EMOM format is a great way to structure a conditioning workout. EMOM stands for every minute on the minute and in this type of workout you have one minute to complete a set amount of work, then you rest for the remainder of the minute. That sequence is repeated over a set period.

In the case of the session PT Liam Fletcher recently posted on Instagram, the EMOM lasts 20 minutes and you have to complete six alternating dumbbell snatches and three burpees over dumbbell every minute. 

Watch Fletcher's Instagram Reel where he demonstrates the two moves.

While 20-minute workouts are normally in the “short” category, this is a hard workout that will feel long because the volume of work adds up and each round feels harder. When that happens you’re faced with a difficult choice: “You either move through the reps faster so you can rest for longer, or if you move slowly, you’ll have less rest,” says Fletcher.

A steady pace from the start is the smartest way to approach an EMOM. “Ideally, you want to find a consistent pace, so choose your weight wisely,” says Fletcher. “If it’s too easy you can increase the weight in the next round.”

If you’re unfamiliar with the dumbbell snatch, it’s also worth starting with a light weight until you’re confident with your form to avoid injury.

"To do the snatch, stand over the dumbbell with your feet shoulder-distance apart," says Fletcher. “Distribute your weight evenly through your feet. Keeping your core engaged throughout, hinge at your hips while keeping your and back straight, then lift the dumbbell off the floor. Drop quickly under the weight into a quarter squat, keeping your elbow high throughout the movement.”

For more guidance, read Coach’s dumbbell snatch form guide.

For help choosing the right dumbbell for you, read Coach’s guide to the best dumbbells.

Whatever your reasons for working out, you should include routines that get your heart rate up and increase your aerobic capacity.

Whether you’re a CrossFitter looking to move faster and more efficiently, or your main focus is strength training but you want to incorporate conditioning sessions into your routine, personal trainer Tess Glynne-Jones recently shared a 30-minute workout that you need to try.

It’s an AMRAP workout, which means the aim is to complete as many rounds and reps as possible within the 30-minute time frame. 

The routine is mostly made up of bodyweight exercises but you’ll also need a pull-up bar, a medicine ball for wall balls and a cardio machine that tracks calories burned, such as a BikeErg, SkiErg or rowing machine.

Take a look at Glynne-Jones’s Instagram Reel where she takes you through each move.

Although this session is meant to be challenging, you should pace yourself so that you don’t exhaust yourself in 10 minutes.

Glynne-Jones says that you should inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth throughout this workout, using your breath to monitor your work rate. That means if you’re no longer able to breathe like this, you need to lower the intensity.

Concentrate on maintaining good form throughout, not only to reduce the chance of injury, but to conserve energy—30 minutes is a long time to be working without regular rest periods, although this will help to improve your muscular endurance.

Another good tip for working out smartly is this wall ball tip from CrossFitter Aniol Ekai. “Don’t stay with your arms outstretched at the top of the movement,” says Ekai, who points out that when you’re performing hundreds of wall balls, as you will in this workout, that’s minutes you’ll be spending with your arms above your head, and that extra effort adds up. You can read more tips from Ekai in our wall ball form guide.

If you haven’t mastered the toes-to-bar movement yet, Glynne-Jones suggests performing the V-sit. That’s still a challenging abs move and you’ll find more regressions in our V-sit exercise guide to find a movement to suit your current level of fitness.

Hulking bodies stumble forward, faces contorted with pain. 

Not the description of a Renaissance painting or a zombie apocalypse, but the closing stages of Acid Bath at the 2018 Dubai Fitness Championships. It was the first time the world had seen the CrossFit workout which has since become synonymous with suffering in fitness. 

What is the Acid Bath workout? You have to complete 500m on a Concept2 SkiErg, 500m on a Concept2 RowErg and 1,000m on a Concept2 BikeErg as fast as possible. It seems simple but it’s its own special kind of awful.

“Right as the workout finishes, that’s when the pain starts,” five-time fittest man on earth Mat Fraser told film crews at the Dubai event.

CrossFitters tend to like hard things, so when a friend suggested a detour from my usual training to attempt the Acid Bath workout during a Saturday session, my curiosity got the better of me.

Acid Bath Workout

Complete the following for time.

1. 500m Concept2 SkiErg
2. 500m Concept2 RowErg
3. 1,000m Concept2 BikeErg

What I Learned Doing The Acid Bath Workout

1. The Aftermath Is Worse Than The Workout Itself

The workout isn’t a walk in the park. My heart rate spiked immediately, the skiing obliterated my core, and by the end, my legs felt like lead. 

Initially, however, I didn’t think it was as bad as everybody says. There was a point on the rower when I felt fairly calm and in control even though I was working hard. 

The discomfort in my muscles wasn’t overwhelming once I finished, what I didn’t realize was that the worst was yet to come. 

A minute or two after finishing I, along with two others who had done the workout with me, collapsed into a heap, lungs gasping for air and stayed there for a good 15 minutes unable to properly catch my breath. The only time I’ve experienced something similar is after attempting Fran (21-15-9 of thrusters and pull-ups).

2. Pacing Goes Out Of The Window

I know that, of these three movements, rowing is a strength and skiing is a weakness, so for a longer workout made up of these movements I would aim for a steady pace on the SkiErg, saving my energy to excel on the RowErg.

But this is a short workout. Male athletes in Dubai were given a six-minute time cap to get it done, while female competitors had only a marginally more generous seven minutes. 

I aimed to spend 1min 40sec on each machine, so I had to drop the hammer from the off  and flirt with pushing myself too far and blowing up. 

Even with my nemesis the SkiErg slowing me down, I made up time in the row and bike segments to finish in 5min 33sec.

For context, the male winner in Dubai was Roman Khreniikov with a time of 4min 54sec, while Laura Horvath won the female side with 5min 23sec.

3. Transitions Are Important 

As with many other CrossFit workouts, this test is “for time”, which means complete it as fast as you can. I could have completed it marginally faster if I hadn’t lost a few seconds clumsily transferring between machines. 

I hadn’t preset the damper on my rower to the setting I wanted, and getting off the machine my heel caught in the footplate. 

If a workout with transitions crops up in competition like the CrossFit Open, these seconds could be enough to move you up or down the leaderboard.

You might assume that equipment-free workouts are less challenging than routines with weights, but bodyweight sessions can be just as hard. Not only can they boost your fitness and build muscle, they can help to improve your coordination, power and speed. That’s especially helpful if you play sport, or take part in CrossFit or HYROX.

Personal trainer Ella-Mae Rayner has shared a routine on Instagram that will leave even the fittest of people breathless and sweaty.

It’s made up of eight bodyweight exercises, including some well-known movements such as the star jump and burpee. It’s a great way to work on your cardio fitness at the gym if you’ve had your fill of treadmill workouts, or as a way to work out from home equipment-free.

Take a look at Rayner's Instagram Reel below where she demonstrates each move.

Do each exercise for 45 seconds and then rest for 15 seconds. Complete the circuit four times in total, with one minute of rest between each round. You might be surprised how quickly this workout will get you out of breath, but remember it’s 35 minutes long so find a steady pace and try stick to it throughout.

The plyometric exercises such as the jump squat and jump lunge in this routine require a pop of power and speed, and these moves can help to strengthen your bones and joints, too. 

They are high-impact though, so take it slow if you’re just starting to exercise or coming back from a break. You can always remove the jumps from each exercise, performing unweighted squats and lunges instead, then progressing to the harder variations as your fitness increases.

If that’s still too hard, try this beginner HIIT workout instead.

Need help choosing? Our guide to the best gym trainers can help.

The expert coaches at Training Think Tank—a monthly training program designed to improve your competitive skills in CrossFit—work with some of the world’s best CrossFit athletes. People like Alexis Raptis, Noah Ohlsen and Travis Mayer, to name a few. 

While I’m not an elite athlete I have been using the online training platform for the last couple of months.

I’ve made good progress in a short space of time, particularly on gymnastic skills like muscle-ups and handstand walking, but my favorite Training Think Tank workout is one of the most straightforward: a two-move CrossFit workout that alternates between the rowing machine and burpees.

That makes it accessible to anyone with a gym membership (or a rowing machine at home). The ideal rower is a Concept2 RowErg (Coach’s pick of the best rowing machine), which is often found in commercial gyms and is almost always used in CrossFit boxes, but any rower will do. Just brush up on good rowing form before strapping in. 

Being a generous sort of person, I decided to share it with Coach readers (with the coaches’ blessing, of course). Read on to find out the finer details, what represents a good time, and the lessons I learned while tackling it. 

How To Do Training Think Tank’s Rowing And Burpee Workout

10 rounds for time (time cap 33min):

1. Row x 500m
2. Burpees x 15

Rounds for time is a common workout format in CrossFit. It just means completing the workout as quickly as possible, but with a total of 5km of rowing and 150 burpees to complete in under 33 minutes, you have to pace the workout smartly.

The Training Think Tank team advises that you find a pace you can sustain comfortably and stick with it, leaving a little bit left in the tank for a “big kick at the end. Do not go at a max effort then blow up early.” 

The coaches say an elite score would be to finish the workout in less than 27 minutes. RX athletes (people who can tackle competitive CrossFit workouts without modifications) will be able to finish in under 30 minutes, while others should aim to finish within the time cap.

What I Learned Trying This Workout

My relatively long limbs are an advantage when rowing and I found I was initially able to hit my target pace of 2min/500m without too much difficulty.

Buoyed by this strong start, I added more power to my stroke and my pace quickened. My 500m splits fell to 1min 50sec, and the burpees didn’t seem too draining either. I was finishing each of the first few rounds in under three minutes, putting me on track for an RX time.

However, before long I was breathing hard and running out of steam. With a significant chunk of the workout still to go, I eased off and returned to my target pace, which I clung to for the last few rounds until the end. 

With one final push in the last interval, I finished the workout in 31min 44sec. I was happy with that time, but a steadier approach with more consistent pacing would have been more effective. The coaches were right. Stick with a sustainable pace—even if it feels easy in the early stages—until the final sprint.

Running outdoors in the cold is not for everyone, but continuing to train can make a huge difference to your performance once races return. That’s where treadmill workouts come into their own, and the off-season is a great time to add strength work into your routine too.

You can slot both elements into the same session if you use this treadmill interval workout from Technogym ambassador, certified personal trainer and avid runner Rhiannon Bailey. 

The workout alternates between treadmill intervals and dumbbell circuits.

Bailey has suggested speeds for the treadmill intervals for different fitness levels.

For beginners, she recommends setting the treadmill to 4km/h when jogging, 8km/h for running and 12km/h when sprinting. If you complete the workout at those speeds without breaking a sweat, advance to 6km/h, 10km/h and 14km/h, or 8km/h, 12km/h and 16km/h. 

Remember, the key to interval running is to be able to maintain the pace across the session. If you’re going all-out on the first interval drop the speeds down a level.

Bailey insists you warm up before tackling this workout and so do we. This gym warm-up routine has a sequence specifically designed to be used before tackling a treadmill session.

Treadmill Section 1

Begin with a brisk walk, perform four sets of the jog-run-sprint sequence, then finish with a brisk walk.

1 Brisk walk

Sets 1 Time 60sec

2A Jog

Sets 4 Time 60sec Speed 4km/h, 6km/h, 8km/h

2B Run

Sets 4 Time 45sec Speed 8km/h, 10km/h, 12km/h

2C Sprint 

Sets 4 Time 30sec Speed 12km/h, 14km/h, 16km/h

3 Brisk walk

Sets 1 Time 60sec

Dumbbell Section 1

Complete one set of each exercise below. Work for 45 seconds and rest for 15 seconds. If you’re unfamiliar with any exercise, click the link for a form guide.

1. Goblet squat
2. Hammer curl to shoulder press 
3. Romanian deadlift
4. Lateral lunge
5. Renegade row
6. Russian twist

Treadmill Section 2

Begin with a brisk walk, perform four sets of the run-sprint-jog sequence adjusting the incline as directed, then finish with a brisk walk.

1 Brisk walk

Sets 1 Time 60sec

2A Incline run

Sets 4 Time 30sec Speed 8km/h, 10km/h, 12km/h

Set the treadmill to an incline.

2B Incline sprint 

Sets 4 Time 30sec Speed 12km/h, 14km/h, 16km/h

2C Jog

Sets 4 Time 30sec Speed 4km/h, 6km/h, 8km/h

Remove the incline while you recover.

3 Brisk walk

Sets 1 Time 60sec

Dumbbell Section 2

Complete one set of each exercise below. Work for 30 seconds and rest for 15 seconds. If you’re unfamiliar with any exercise, click the link for a form guide.

1. Lateral lunge
2. Dumbbell clean and press 
3. Dumbbell bench press 
4. Glute bridge
5. V-Sit 
6. Burpee

If you’re considering investing in a treadmill for home, check our guide to the best home treadmills for essential buying advice and tried-and-tested recommendations. And once you’ve bought one, get started using our treadmill workout plan. You can also find more running and strength workouts in the Technogym App.

My favorite workouts don’t cram in complicated moves for the sake of it. Instead, they deliver the intended stimulus with a minimum of fuss. 

That’s exactly what this workout from elite coach Michele Letendre does. Letendre trains five-time CrossFit Games podium athlete Pat Vellner and 2023’s Fittest Women On Earth Laura Horvath, and Letendre made six appearances at the CrossFit Games herself. In other words, she knows a thing or two about hard work and effective training.

In her Instagram Reel sharing this workout, Letendre says this type of session helped Vellner fine-tune his pacing strategies and “improve his power endurance”.

Letendre has taken the 21-15-9 rep format—a standard CrossFit Workout—and combined it with a longer EMOM to create an 18-minute conditioning workout.

You have six minutes to complete 21 calories on an exercise bike and 21 kettlebell goblet squats, another 15 calories on the bike and 15 goblet squats, then a final nine calories and reps of each. Rest for any time remaining on the timer, then repeat two more times for a total of three rounds.

According to Letendre, you should aim to complete the sequence in four to five minutes, giving you enough time to get your breath back and go again, but advises you to take a bit longer to complete the first round.

“You have to be willing to sacrifice rest time in the first interval to set yourself up for the next two,” Letendre wrote on Instagram. “High intensity is the goal, but not maximal intensity. Keep some in the tank and give it everything you’ve got on the last one.”

You can use any exercise bike as long as it counts calories on its monitor. Letendre opts for a Concept2 BikeErg in the Reel, while the version of this workout shared on CrossFit.com prescribes the Rogue Echo Bike (an air bike). 

The suggested kettlebell weight is 32kg for men and 24kg for women, but don’t hesitate to scale the workout to your ability with a lighter kettlebell.

“When I wrote this one I wasn’t sure it was doable, but with some scaling, I actually managed it,” Letendre wrote.

You can also adjust the rep scheme to 18-15-9 or 12-9-6.

Almost all of my strength sessions end with finishers. As much as I enjoy lifting weights, I love the endorphins I get from raising my heart rate with a conditioning workout. If I can do both in the same session I leave the gym feeling confident that I’ve challenged myself.

Following a full-body session that involved heavy thrusters and some CrossFit gymnastics skills work, I decided to try a new finisher from personal trainer Ali Kabba.

Take a look at Kabba’s Instagram Reel where he demonstrates each of the exercises.

It’s a 20-minute EMOM workout made up of four exercises. EMOM stands for every minute on the minute, so you perform the reps of one exercise in a minute, resting for the remainder of the minute, then moving on to the next exercise.

The quicker you complete the reps, the more rest you’ll have. For example, if you can complete the 15 kettlebell swings in 30 seconds, you have 30 seconds to rest.

Keep cycling through the exercises until the 20 minutes is up. Typically, the first few rounds feel easy, but as the minutes go by the short rest periods add up and your heart rate stays high.

You need a few pieces of equipment for this routine: a kettlebell, a medicine ball and a rowing machine, although you could opt for a different form of cardio such as the air bike or treadmill.

This is a workout that is designed to improve your cardio fitness, but I also wanted to develop my strength, so I chose fairly challenging weights: 35lbs/16kg for the kettlebell swings and 44lbs/20kg for the medicine ball slams.

I pushed myself moderately hard during the first round, then tried to match my time for the next five rounds.

The time I took to complete each exercise varied quite dramatically. For example, I was usually able to do 15 kettlebell swings in under 30 seconds, but completing 15 calories on the rower took me around 50 seconds. It would have been a good idea to try each exercise first and adjust the reps or calories accordingly, making sure I had more than 10 seconds of rest at the end of the first round. 

However, this was a fun and challenging workout, and I’ll definitely add it to my repertoire of finishers. I’ll just target 12 calories on the rower next time.

Mat Fraser has won the CrossFit Games five times, dominating the sport from 2016 to 2020 and finishing with close to double the points of his nearest rival in his final year. 

So, when Fraser speaks, the CrossFit community listens. And when he sets a fitness challenge via his programming brand, HWPO Training, you can bet your bottom dollar most of them are going to give it a go. 

You should try it too. Here’s how.

How To Do Mat Fraser’s Fitness Challenge

Seven-minute AMRAP of:

• Burpee x 7
• Push-up x 7
• Unweighted squat x 7

AMRAP stands for as many reps/rounds as possible. Set a timer for seven minutes then do as many rounds of burpees, push-ups and unweighted squats as you can in that time.

The number of rounds, as well as the reps of any incomplete rounds, is your score. 

Complete the workout and you might get more than a solid sweat and a pair of heaving lungs.

“To celebrate the hard workers around the world and the launch of HWPO annual program pricing, we’re giving away a free year of memberships every day for seven days [between November 20 and November 26],” says Fraser. 

“Complete this workout, post it on social [Instagram], tag @hwpotraining, and we’ll pick one winner each day who showed up and took on the challenge.”

Your post can be a video, picture, screenshot or just your score—there’s not going to be any need for Spielberg-esque filming or an in-person judge.

HWPO Training has several programs available. These include HWPO Flagship for those looking to improve for CrossFit competition, HWPO60 for people who are pressed for time but still want a challenging training session, and HWPO Sweat which delivers 45-minute bootcamp style workouts with minimal equipment. 

I followed the HWPO Flagship track last year and was impressed by its no-nonsense approach to training.

While it did include the type of fancy movements and killer WODs (workouts of the day) associated with CrossFit, the bedrock of the program was straight strength and cardio-boosting protocols.

I improved my engine with weekly rowing intervals and Fraser’s signature 40-minute EMOM workouts. My leg strength was also sent skywards thanks to a 12-week back squat cycle. 

If this sounds like something you might be interested in, you can try this seven-minute workout for a bitesize taste of things to come, or sign-up to HWPO Training for a 14-day trial.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) can be off-putting or simply too hard for beginners if they aren’t careful. This beginner HIIT workout from Natasha Ram, trainer at F45 Mill Hill in north London, has been designed to be adaptable to all levels of fitness, including absolute HIIT novices. The beauty of HIIT is that you can lengthen the workout or perform harder variations of each exercise as your fitness progresses.

“A HIIT workout can be as short or as long as you make it,” says Ram. “HIIT normally works on a timed basis rather than reps, so you can increase the number of intervals for a longer workout as your fitness improves.

“During your first HIIT workout, you should aim to give it your maximum effort for the first couple of intervals. Or if this feels too much, start with 70% effort until you feel comfortable with each movement, then ramp it up during your next session.

“If you are trying HIIT for the first time, slowly build your work-to-recovery ratio. You might start with 15 seconds of work to 45 seconds of recovery and, over several weeks, work towards 45 seconds of work to 15 seconds of recovery. As your fitness improves you can also incorporate weights like dumbbells or kettlebells.”

Beginner HIIT Workout

It’s always essential to warm up before any exercise, but especially before high-intensity workouts. This warm-up routine is ideal—we recommend committing it to memory and making a habit of performing it before any session.

Once you’re ready to begin, do the six exercises below in order, working for 15-20 seconds and then resting for 45 seconds to recover. 

1 Squat jump

Time 15-20sec Rest 45sec

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your toes pointing slightly outwards. Lower your body by bending your knees and pushing your hips back as if you’re sitting in a chair. Keep your chest facing forward and your back straight, and make sure your knees do not go forward past your toes. 

Once your thighs are parallel with the floor, or as close as you can get to that position, explode upwards by pushing through your heels. Jump as high as you can, extending your arms above your head to help keep your balance. Land softly by bending your knees and hips to absorb the impact. As you land, go immediately into another squat to prepare for the next jump. 

To make this exercise easier, rise onto your toes instead of jumping. 

2 Inchworm into push-up 

Time 15-20sec Rest 45sec

This exercise helps strengthen your core, arms, chest, and shoulders while also working on flexibility. Stand with your feet hip-width apart and your arms at your sides. Take a deep breath in, and as you exhale, hinge at your hips to bend forward at the waist. Keep your legs straight as you lower your hands toward the floor. 

Walk your hands out in front of you until your body forms a straight line from head to heels and your hands are directly under your shoulders. From this position, perform a push-up by bending your elbows to lower your chest toward the floor, keeping your body in a straight line throughout. 

You can make this easier by dropping your knees first. Push back up, walk your hands back toward your feet and stand up.

3 Mountain climber

Time 15-20sec Rest 45sec

Begin in the starting position for a push-up, with your hands directly under your shoulders and your body in a straight line from head to heels. Engage your core by tensing your midsection. Keeping your back straight throughout, bring your right knee as close to your chest as you can. Quickly return your right leg to the starting position while bringing your left knee toward your chest. Keep alternating your legs as if you’re running in place, in a fast but controlled manner. 

4 Plank shoulder tap

Time 15-20sec Rest 45sec

This exercise is excellent for building core stability and improving shoulder strength. Begin in the starting position for a push-up, with your hands directly under your shoulders and your body in a straight line from head to heels. Engage your core by tensing your midsection and your glutes by squeezing your butt. 

Keeping your body in a straight line and your hips as still as possible, lift one hand off the floor and tap the opposite shoulder. Return your hand to the floor and repeat on the opposite side. Continue to alternate tapping your shoulders with each hand while maintaining a strong plank position. 

To make this exercise easier, perform the move on your knees instead of your toes.

5 Burpee

 Burpees can be challenging, but they are a highly effective exercise for improving cardiovascular fitness, and building strength and coordination. 

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Bend at your hips and your knees to place your hands on the floor just in front of your feet. Jump your feet back so you end up in a push-up position. Bend your elbows to lower your chest to the floor. Push yourself back up, jump your feet forward so they’re next to your hands, then explosively jump straight up raising your arms overhead. Land softly on the balls of your feet and start the next repetition. 

You can make burpees easier by skipping the push-up, or dropping to your knees to do them, and/or by walking the feet out if needed.

6 Triple-switch high knee 

High knees are effective for improving cardiovascular fitness, strengthening your core and enhancing lower-body endurance. You can adjust the intensity by increasing your pace or the height of your knee lifts. 

Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Run in place, lifting your knees so your thighs are parallel with the floor or as high as you can. Raise your left arm as you lift your right knee, and vice versa. Keep your core engaged and your back straight. Every third high knee, pause for a moment with the knee raised, and then continue.

One of the things I love about CrossFit is that, even though I’m far from being the fittest person at my gym, I can still attempt a challenge set by a former holder of the title Fittest Man On Earth.

This 20-minute CrossFit workout comes from the mind of 2015 Games champion Ben Smith, and it’s so simple you can do it pretty much anywhere. The workout was posted to CrossFit.com as part of Smith’s two-week stint as a guest programmer. 

To do the workout, set a timer for 20 minutes. Run as far as you can during the odd minutes (for the avoidance of doubt, you begin on minute one), then, during the even minutes, perform 15 unweighted squats and rest for the remainder of the minute. Your score is the total distance accumulated during the 10 minutes of running.

“The goal is to match your distance each minute,” writes Smith in his post on Instagram. “You can mark a 1 min run from your house, and do 5 trips back and forth trying to work on pacing as the workout picks up!”

I didn’t listen to this advice and opted for a hilly one-kilometer park loop instead, which wound up being a mistake. 

My Score

It’s customary after completing a CrossFit.com workout to head to the comments below and share your score. Strava logged my score as 2.6km, or a little more than 1.6 miles. 

I was able to stick to Smith’s recommendation of “aiming to get at least 30 seconds of rest after each set of squats”, although I fell short of matching or beating the distance I ran each round. 

Everything started well. I hit 270m on the run, got through the squats and still had 30 seconds to catch my breath. The second, third and even fourth rounds didn’t feel too shabby either. Then things started to go downhill.

My quads began to tire from the squats and the next segment of my park loop included an unforgiving incline. The minute of running that followed was way short of the 250m average I’d set and the burning in my lungs had me questioning why I hadn’t picked darts or pool as my sport of choice.

So, my top tip: do this workout somewhere flat. 

While I was able to keep my rest times to at least 30 seconds, this breather felt shorter and shorter each round. By the final minute of running I was putting in what felt like a max-effort sprint. After the last set of 15 squats I collapsed spread-eagled on the grass, gasping for air and drawing funny looks from passersby. As the CrossFit crowd might say, “I’d had a good time.”

Smith’s stint as a guest programmer on CrossFit.com came after cameos from CrossFit Games competition director Adrian Bozman and general manager of sport Dave Castro, and it’s been my favorite.

I found the sport after watching the 2015 Fittest On Earth documentary on Netflix, in which Smith stars. Trying a cardio CrossFit workout from an athlete I’ve admired for some time added an extra incentive to push myself, and this challenge cleverly balanced accessibility with a lung-busting challenge. Smith wrote in his post that the workout is all about “doing the common uncommonly well”. 

I could be accused of tailoring my CrossFit training to focus on impressive gymnastic skills like muscle-ups and handstand walking, but simplicity should always have a place if you want to build the strength, skill and fitness needed for CrossFit. It doesn’t get much simpler than running and squatting!

We all know what it’s like to go through the motions in the gym. That’s where a bit of healthy competition comes in handy, motivating you to raise your game and train with more intensity.  

This engine-building CrossFit workout from podium-topping WIT Fitness athlete Joshua Al-chamaa, part of the 2023 CrossFit Games Invictus team, will harness your competitive streak. Get ready to be pitted against your most well-matched opponent: yourself.

In a three-minute window, you’ll power through a preset number of calories on an air bike before tackling 15 burpees over a rowing machine. In any remaining time, you’ll hop aboard the rower and try to rack up as many calories as possible. That’ll be your score. 

Once the clock hits zero, rest for two minutes then repeat this sequence. Your goal? To beat your previous calorie score on the rower. Continue this until you’ve finished five rounds to complete the workout.

“This workout is one of my favorites,” says Al-shamaa. “It’s great for burning calories, but also for when you want to take a break from strength training, focusing instead on getting your heart rate up and getting a sweat on.”

“Five sets is an easy number to be overwhelmed with, especially if you peak on the first one,” says Al-chamaa. “The goal is to push hard but keep your breathing controlled. You want to be able to give maximum effort without over-spiking your heart rate.”

Cardio CrossFit Workout

Complete the following in three minutes:

• 20 or 16 calories (choose based on your fitness level) on the air bike 
• 15 burpees over rowing machine
• Max calories on the rowing machine

Rest for two minutes then repeat for five rounds in total.

Ready to work hard? The sort of hard that would result in overtraining if you worked that hard every week? Alex Rennie, a level 3 personal trainer and head of fitness at the Rowbots studio, has just the thing. 

He has put together this circuit workout of five “stations”. You’ll be completing three rounds and closing in on one hour of pure hard work, so plan for close to two hours at the gym once you’ve included a warm-up, post-workout stretching routine and a protein shake (you may wish to consider using a recovery protein powder). 

“You’ll test both your body and mindset with this workout,” says Rennie. “Can you keep moving through a variety of movements with good form for a prolonged period of time? It’s not about how strong and fast you start; it’s all about how strong and fast you can finish.”

How To Do This Workout

For the first round, work for four minutes at each station, resting for 30 seconds between stations and two minutes after the final station. 

For the remaining two rounds, reduce the working time to two minutes but keep the rest periods the same.

You’ll need a rowing machine, a set of medium-weight dumbbells, a kettlebell and either an air bike or a BikeErg. 

Ready to go? Have some water to hand and a sweat towel—you’re going to need it!

Station 1

1 Row

Row as far as you can in the time allowed. Aim to maintain a challenging but steady pace. If you don’t row regularly, brush up on the correct rowing technique. 

Station 2 Dumbbell AMRAP (As Many Rounds As Possible)

Complete as many rounds of the following two dumbbell exercises as you can in the allotted time. 

2A Dumbbell snatch

Reps 4 each side 

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a dumbbell in one hand with an overhand grip, palm facing you. Keeping your chest up and back flat, push your hips back and bend your knees to squat down and let the dumbbell touch the floor. Drive through your heels to stand up explosively. Once the dumbbell reaches your hips, begin to pull the dumbbell up with your arm. As the dumbbell reaches your shoulder, flip your elbow underneath and press the dumbbell overhead. Reverse the move back to the start. Either do all the reps on one side then switch sides, or alternate with each rep.

2B Dumbbell lunge

Reps 8 each side 

Stand holding dumbbells by your sides. Take a big step forward and bend both knees, so the back knee brushes the floor. Your front knee shouldn’t travel beyond the toes. Push back up through the front heel to return to standing. Either do all the reps on one side then switch sides, or alternate with each rep.

Station 3

3 Air bike / BikeErg

Ride as far as you can in the allotted time, maintaining a challenging but steady pace across each effort.

Station 4 Kettlebell AMRAP

Complete as many rounds of the following two kettlebell exercises as you can in the allotted time.

4A Kettlebell swing

Reps 8 

Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, holding a kettlebell in front of you in both hands. Engage your core, then hinge forward at your hips and push your hips back, allowing the kettlebell to swing between your legs. Snap your hips forward to generate the momentum to swing the kettlebell up to eye level. Control the descent of the kettlebell and go immediately into the next rep. Keep looking forward and maintain a flat back throughout.

4B Goblet squat

Reps 8

Stand with your feet hip-width apart, holding the kettlebell upside down in both hands in front of your chest.  Keep your back flat and chest up as you bend your knees and push your hips back to lower into a squat. Pause once your thighs are parallel with the floor, then push up through your heels to come back to standing.

5 Bodyweight AMRAP

Complete as many rounds of the following two bodyweight exercises as you can in the allotted time.

5A Burpee

Reps 8 

From standing, bend over and place your hands on the floor in front of you. Jump both feet back so you end up in a push-up position. Bend your elbows to lower your chest to the floor, then push back up. Jump your feet forward and jump straight up. Land softly and go straight into the next rep. To make this easier, skip the push-up.

5B Butterfly sit-up 

Reps 8

Lie on your back with your knees bent and soles of your feet together, and arms extended behind your head. Brace your core, then raise your torso and reach out to tap the floor in front of your feet. Reverse to the start under control. 

If you’ve ever attended a workout class or trained at a gym, you’ve probably come across conditioning workouts. And you may well have found that very different types of session can be referred to as conditioning workouts. So you may well wonder: what does it actually mean?

To get the answer, we spoke to Emily Schofield, a certified personal trainer and gym manager at Ultimate Performance Los Angeles, to outline exactly what this style of workout is and if it might benefit you.

4-Move Conditioning Workout

“This is a very tough, very challenging conditioning session,” says Schofield. “The reason I’ve recommended it is to demonstrate that resistance training can also be incorporated into your conditioning sessions.

“The below is known as a ‘giant set’ in which you will perform the four moves listed below, back to back.” 

Perform 10 reps of each exercise, rest for 10 seconds, then move on to the next exercise. Rest for between two and four minutes after the final movement. Repeat that sequence for a total of four sets. 

1A Deadlift

Sets 4 Reps 10 Rest 10sec

Stand with your feet hip-width or slightly wider apart, with your feet under a barbell resting on the floor. Hinge forward at your hips, pushing your hips back and bending your knees to take hold of the barbell with your hands shoulder-width apart. Roll your shoulders back and down, and brace your core. Push through your feet to lift the barbell off the ground, straightening your legs and driving your hips forward. Reverse the move to lower the barbell to the floor under control.

1B Overhead press

Sets 4 Reps 10 Rest 10sec

Stand with your feet hip-width apart, holding a barbell in front of your shoulders with your hands shoulder-width apart and your elbows pointing forward. Push the barbell straight up, keeping your shoulders back and your head in front of your shoulders as the barbell reaches the overhead position. Move your head back as you lower the barbell under control.

1C Pull-up

Sets 4 Reps 10 Rest 10sec

Hang from a pull-up bar with your hands shoulder-width apart, palms facing forward. Engage your core and pull yourself up until your chin is over the bar, then lower slowly to a dead hang.

1D Back squat

Sets 4 Reps 10 Rest 2-4min

Stand with your feet hip-width apart, holding the barbell across the back of your shoulders with your hands wider than shoulder-width apart and palms facing forward. Brace your core, roll your shoulders back and down and, keeping your chest up and spine neutral throughout, push your hips back and bend your knees until your hips are below your knees. Push through your feet to return to standing.

Cardio can get a bad rep among gym-goers, but that’s probably because they’re thinking of low-intensity steady-state cardio – which can become a bit ponderous even with a podcast – rather than a conditioning workout like this one. It’s been created by Sarah Ryder, a level 3 personal trainer and founder of BEAR Fitness. She was also a recruit on SAS Who Dares Wins, which might give you a hint of what you’re in for. 

“This is a fantastic workout because it’s a great one for cardio lovers to keep coming back to – but it’s not for the faint-hearted,” says Ryder.

“Conditioning pieces can sometimes make you feel like you are a hot mess from start to finish. This workout can allow you some time to recover between blocks and the ability to choose what you will get from the session.”

The cardio workout is split into three blocks of work, each just 12 minutes long, and you’ll need a treadmill and two of CrossFit’s most loved (or hated!) pieces of cardio equipment – the SkiErg and the assault bike.

You have to cover a set distance on each block, but you don’t start the next block until the 12 minutes of the block has elapsed. The quicker you complete the distance the longer you have to rest.

Want to make it harder? Increase the distance in each block and speed up. For instance, if  you’re a fast runner, set yourself the distance of 3km and aim to run at a pace of 4min/km, or faster if you want a breather before starting the next block.

If you find one of the blocks is harder than the others, work on that one with our treadmill workout plan, SkiErg workouts or assault bike workouts.

1 Run 2km

Time 12min

Use a curved self-powered treadmill if one is available to test your stamina a little more.

2 SkiErg 2km

Time 12min

Set the damper on the SkiErg between six and eight. Find a comfortable rhythm that you can maintain for the duration. 

3 Assault bike 5km

Time 12min

The formula for bulking up is simple enough: hypertrophy-focused lifts and increasing your calorie intake to support muscle growth. At a glance, this sounds like an attractive prospect, and many people throw themselves into it, regularly ravaging the McDonalds menu while making cardio a distant memory; a dirty bulk, if you will. 

But we’re here to tell you that you don’t need to ditch cardio when you’re trying to pack on mass. We have a pretty impressive reference point, too: coach, former professional bodybuilder and two-time Mr Olympia top 10 finisher Steve Cook. 

“Doing too much cardio while trying to bulk can be counter-intuitive,” Cook writes on the Instagram account of his training app, Fitness Culture. “That being said, I like to add at least three days of cardio, even when my goal is to gain size.”

This doesn’t mean he’s smashing 10K PBs thrice weekly. Instead, he uses a combination of workout styles to ensure he stays fit and mobile without taking away from his muscle-building efforts. 

Each week Cook incorporates one bout of low-intensity steady-state training (or LISS), one HIIT workout and one circuit-style session like the one in the video below. Give it a go for yourself, and refer back to Cook’s clip if you need any pointers on form or performance. 

This circuit session involves five rounds of rowing, burpees, planks, skipping and medicine ball slams. These movements put your whole body to work, raising your heart rate and boosting your cardiovascular fitness. You’re never doing any given movement for more than a minute, making this session well suited to anyone who finds steady-state cardio monotonous. 

And these aren’t the only reasons Cook likes to include cardio in his bulking routine. He also says these workouts “help recovery by improving blood flow and the rate at which metabolic waste can be removed” and “keep me athletic and able to move”. 

His second session, a HIIT workout, will have similar effects to the circuit workout above. The third is another matter entirely. LISS requires you exercise at a slow and sustained pace, raising your heart rate to a comfortable level and keeping it there. A common yardstick is that you’re able to hold a conversation. 

It’s a great way to build a base level of cardiovascular fitness and is much safer than more intense exercise styles. It doesn’t require anywhere near the same amount of recovery time either. Examples of LISS include walking, cycling or spending more than 20 minutes on any exercise machine at a slow, maintainable pace. 

Looking to run a little quicker? Or maybe just build your cardio fitness? No matter what you’ve heard, neither goal requires slogging it out on a treadmill for hours at a time.

Dr Folusha Oluwajana is a level 3 personal trainer and practising NHS GP, who’s helped Coach readers before with a selection of knee-strengthening exercises. Now Oluwajana has created an exclusive treadmill interval workout that’s aimed at increasing your speed and endurance – and takes just 15 minutes.

“Whether you’re training to improve your 5K time or just to improve your fitness, this workout is for you,” Oluwajana says. “This type of training will help you maintain a higher work rate for longer by improving your body’s ability to clear lactate from the blood during exercise.”

Lactate is made when there isn’t enough oxygen available during intense exercise to break down glucose into energy. Your body then converts the lactate into energy without the need for oxygen.

For a different kind of session, try one of these treadmill workouts, or follow this treadmill workout plan to include different types of run in your training.

Treadmill Interval Workout

This treadmill workout consists of six two-minute blocks, with each block cycling through three paces: jogging, running and sprinting pace. Each time you do the workout – twice a week is recommended if you want to improve – aim to increase the pace of each.

Begin with a one minute warm-up, walking at a brisk pace and pumping your arms. Then complete the jog-run-sprint combination six times. Struggling? After three blocks, take a two-minute walking rest, then go on to complete the next three rounds. 

1 Jog

Time 60sec

Run at a speed that allows you to maintain a conversation.

2 Run

Time 30sec

Run at a challenging pace, but hold something back for the sprint coming next. 

3 Sprint 

Time 30sec

This pace should be all-out: core engaged, arms pumping, high knee drive and breathing fast. You should feel spent by the end of the sprint and desperate to recover with a jog.

More Sessions On The Treadmill

• The Running Workout That Coach Rory Knight Swears By
• The 20/20/20 Aerobic Capacity Workout
• Sharpen Up Your Speed, Strength And Stamina With This 15-Minute SkillMill Treadmill Workout

Anaerobic workouts should be used sparingly. 

They’re intense, put your central nervous system under acute stress and will send your heart rate through the roof. But for those very same reasons, anaerobic workouts are also ruthlessly effective at improving your athletic potential. 

“Anaerobic exercise is any activity that breaks down glucose for energy without using oxygen,” says Claire Wright of 1Rebel (formerly known as Core Collective), who has devised this 15-minute anaerobic workout for you to tackle in your next gym session. 

Anaerobic Workout vs Aerobic Workout

The difference between anaerobic and aerobic exercise boils down to your body’s supply and demand of oxygen.

A walk in the park, light jog or cycle is an example of aerobic – “with oxygen” – workout. It occurs when your muscles have an adequate supply of O2 required to sustain your current effort levels, and accounts for most of our daily activities.

A short sprint during a five-a-side football match or a Tabata session alternating 20-second all-out sprints with 10-second rests are typical examples of an anaerobic – “without oxygen” – workout. 

At this level of intensity, the cells in our muscles use up oxygen faster than it can be replenished. Without available oxygen, the cells are forced to draw on energy sources stored in the muscles via a process called glycolysis.

Your ability to sustain this level of intensity is known as your lactic threshold and it’s something you can train and improve, just like your speed and strength. 

How To Boost Your Lactic Threshold

This 15-minute every-minute-on-the-minute (EMOM) workout is designed to overhaul your anaerobic capacity and, like your heart rate, push your lactic threshold through the roof. 

“To increase your anaerobic capacity, you first have to burn through the maximum amount of energy you can produce via glycolysis,” says Wright. “That means performing repeated short, yet hard efforts above your lactate threshold.” 

The best – and safest – way to achieve this is to use your gym’s cardio equipment, meaning you can perform these hard, short efforts while minimising impact to your joints and track your output with each interval to keep you at the required level. 

“Make no mistake, this workout will challenge you mentally and physically,” Wright says, stressing the need to start with a comprehensive dynamic warm-up that will steadily increase your heart rate. 

15-Minute EMOM Anaerobic Workout

Once warmed up, pick either your gym’s exercise bike, rowing machine or SkiErg, then follow this pattern for the next 15 minutes. On minute one, go for broke on your choice of cardio machine for 45 seconds, resting for the remainder of the minute. On minute two, perform eight to 10 burpees, aiming to complete them within 30 seconds, resting for the remainder of the minute. On minute three, rest completely and reset for the start of the next round. 

Repeat five times in total, then make sure to warm down gradually and stretch. 

“Use this anaerobic workout periodically to provide you with feedback on your training adaptations and as a benchmark of your overall fitness levels,” says Wright.  

Minute 1: Bike / Row / SkiErg

Time 45sec max effort 

Pick your weapon of choice and sprint hard for 45 seconds, aiming for a 9/10 rate of perceived exertion (RPE). Rest the remaining 15 seconds. 

Wright says: “Try to hold on for the same number of calories burned all the way through each round, plus or minus 1-2 calories. Every effort on the machine should feel like a sprint.” 

Minute 2: Burpee over rower (or dumbbell) 

Reps 8-10 

If using the rower, perform a burpee next to the machine, and when you reach the jump stage, explode laterally over the rower and go into the next burpee. If not using the rower, jump over a dumbbell instead. Aim to complete all reps in less than 30 seconds, remembering to take deep breaths in at the top or bottom of each move. 

Wright says: “Push to get the burpees done in under 30 seconds and allow for a good 90 seconds of rest. Scale the burpees where required.” 

Minute 3: Rest

Time 60sec

Resist the urge to melt into the floor. Keep moving, taking breaths deep into your chest, allowing your heart rate to lower gradually in preparation for the next round. This is your chance to reset and recover. 

Wright says: “Think about the round you’re on and determine if you need to slow down or hold, or have enough left in the tank to step up the pace.” 

There’s a saying in the fitness world, “in the bin”, which describes the feeling after an especially brutal workout. Your heart rate is through the roof, you’ve used every ounce of energy and you can’t do another thing.

This 60-minute session is great for improving your stamina, but it will leave you well and truly binned.

I do workouts like this when I’m full of energy and ready to sweat hard. It can feel like a slog to start with, but each round is over quicker than the last and begins to feel easier. An hour might seem like a long time, but if you work hard it can be over sooner. 

If you have a friend of a similar fitness level, invite them along because you’ll probably put in a lot more effort in a bid to outpace them – or keep up.

60-Minute Stamina Workout

You need three bits of cardio equipment: an air bike, a rowing machine and a SkiErg. Yes, it’s a bit of an equipment-hogging workout, so performing it when your gym’s less busy is a good idea.

It’s a descending ladder workout consisting of five rounds. With each round the distance or calories you need to log on each machine goes down.

Round 1 

Air bike 60 calories

Rowing machine 1,500m

SkiErg 1,500m

Round 2

Air bike 50 calories

Rowing machine 1,200m

SkiErg 1,200m

Round 3

Air bike 40 calories

Rowing machine 900m

SkiErg 900m

Round 4

Air bike 30 calories

Rowing machine 600m

SkiErg 600m

Round 5

Air bike 20 calories

Rowing machine 300m

SkiErg 300m

There’s something refreshing about stripping back your workout, getting rid of all the equipment you might normally use and just hammering out four straightforward moves as fast as you can. It’s the kind of bodyweight workout that fitness app Freeletics does well, which is why we asked its experts for this cardio session you can use to get fit anywhere, anytime.

The workout involves doing four of the best bodyweight exercises back to back, and it’s structured in a reverse ladder format so that you reduce the amount of reps you do each round. You rest when you need to, but remember the aim is to finish the session as quickly as you can.

If this session hits the spot, try one of these Freeletics workouts next. 

Bodyweight Cardio Workout

Complete four rounds of the following four exercises. Do 40 reps of each in the first round, 30 reps in the second, 20 in the third and 10 to finish off. Record your time for the entire session, then try to beat it next time you do the workout.

Because you should be working at pace from the off, it’s essential that you run through some warm-up exercises before starting the workout. This warm-up routine will do the job if you don’t have your own drill.

1 Crunch

Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet on the floor, and your arms extended behind your head, hands on the floor. Bring your arms forwards over your head and raise your shoulders off the floor to go into the crunch, touching your hands to your knees. Reverse back to the start. Count one rep when your hands touch your knees. 

A crunch has a smaller range of motion than a sit-up, so make sure only your shoulders come off the ground and your lower back stays pressed firmly into the floor.

2 Reverse lunge

From standing, step back with one foot, keeping your front foot flat on the floor, and bend both knees to lower into a lunge. Make sure your back knee lightly touches the ground, below your hip. Count one rep when you return to a standing position. Alternate sides with each rep. One side counts as one rep, so perform 40 reps total in the first round, not 40 each side.

3 Scissor kick

Lie on your back with your legs straight and arms at your sides. Lift your head, keeping your shoulder blades on the ground. Lift your feet, keeping your legs straight and your lower back pressed into the floor. Keep your feet lifted and cross one foot over while lowering the other. Alternate sides. Count one rep when one foot is above the other, so one side counts as one repetition.

4 Squat

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, toes pointed out slightly and your back straight. Bend your knees and push your hips back, lowering until your hips are below your knees. Keep your centre of gravity over your heels and push through your heels to return to standing.

While the popularity of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) might have reached new heights in the past few years it’s far from a new concept. Over 100 years ago Finnish runner Hannes Kolehmainen spiced up his training for the Olympics with interval runs, and hard-working Hannes was rewarded for his endeavours in the shape of gold in the 5,000m, 10,000m and cross-country events.

These days the term HIIT is used to describe a fairly wide range of training methods, which is why it’s not always clear what it is beyond the basics of work, rest, repeat. That description is not wrong, but it doesn’t get anywhere close to providing the full picture when it comes to what undertaking a HIIT workout actually involves.

Below you’ll find all the information you need on how to incorporate HIIT into your regular workout schedule, and how it can benefit you no matter what your overall goals are – whether you’re trying to lose weight, build lean muscle or knock a few seconds off your 5K PB. Crucially, you’ll also learn how often you should do HIIT workouts, because it’s not a style of training you should use every day – you’ll risk injury or burnout.

What Is A HIIT Workout?

While “hard work, short rests” is the essence of a HIIT workout, there are five main variables that can change the nature of your session massively. The first two are your work and rest durations. Working for 40 seconds and resting for 20 is significantly different to resting for 40 and working for 20, with longer work periods generally being better for improving endurance and shorter ones better for power.

Then there’s the intensity of the work periods. With HIIT you need to be pushing hard to get the most benefit from it, and it’s also important to try and maintain a consistent level of effort across the work periods. That means it’s not just about going all-out, because you won’t be able to sustain it across the HIIT workout.

“You need to know your target heart rate or understand the rating of perceived exertion (RPE),” says Philippe Ndongmo, a personal trainer at Dolphin Square Fitness Club in London. Rate the latter out of ten and try to keep the effort constant across every interval.

The fourth variable is the type of rest you do – are you stopping completely or engaging in active recovery, like pedalling slowly on an exercise bike? The latter can help flush out lactic acid ahead of your next work period.

Lastly there’s total volume, as in how many intervals you do. It’s easy to do too much with HIIT, which ends up being of no real benefit because by the end of the workout you’re unable to maintain the intensity. As a rule, start with low volume and go as hard as possible. When it feels easy, add a round or two, but drop the RPE slightly.

That’s just about it. There aren’t any hard and fast rules when it comes to HIIT workouts in terms of the type of exercise you do. they can be done with bodyweight exercises, cycling, running or weights, just as long as you’re able to do it at a high intensity. That makes some disciplines more suitable than others. Rattling out efforts on an exercise bike is significantly less dangerous than trying to do heavy barbell squats at a furious pace (please don’t do heavy barbell squats at a furious pace).

You can cycle through a circuit of different exercises for your HIIT session, or stick to one or two for all of your reps. The latter makes it easy to hit your time targets because you don’t have to switch exercise equipment during your rest periods, but doing a circuit containing a variety of moves means you can target more muscle groups during your workout.

The Benefits Of HIIT Workouts

Let’s start with the calories you’ll burn, which are many, not only during the HIIT workout but also in the hours afterwards. The latter comes from the excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) effect, where your body burns more calories as it returns to its normal resting state after a workout and adapts to the exercise you’ve done. The EPOC effect increases with the intensity of the exercise you do, which is why HIIT is such an effective fat burner.

HIIT also increases your VO2 max, which is the amount of oxygen your body can use and is an indicator of cardio fitness. This is why any cycling or running training plan worth its salt has some form of interval training in it. Increasing your VO2 max is key to working harder for longer, helping you log a 5K personal best, for example.

There are also logistical benefits to HIIT, like the fact your workout takes less time so you can fit it into a lunch break. And while it’s tremendously hard work, the short, sharp challenge of HIIT ensures you’ll never get bored with your training.

When To Avoid High-Intensity Workouts

If you’re feeling worn down in the first place, HIIT isn’t the session to go for. “A common mistake with HIIT is the assumption that it trumps steady-state cardio at all times, which isn’t true,” says David Jordan from personal training gym The Fitting Rooms.

“HIIT is highly effective because it requires less time and burns calories during recovery. However, to reap the benefits of HIIT you need to attack it with a lot of energy. On days when you’re feeling less than 100% or, more importantly, you’re sore from your previous workout and are at risk of pulling a muscle, then steady-state cardio is probably more effective – and safer.”

Finally, it’s important to consider how often you can do “real” HIIT. “It’s true that HIIT can trigger protein synthesis but it also causes protein breakdown,” says Jordan. “Doing several HIIT sessions a week would be catabolic so while you’d lose weight overall, some of that loss would be muscle mass.

“If building muscle is a goal, proper weight training still needs to be your primary focus with HIIT as a supplement. A training split of two weights sessions and two HIIT a sessions a week would keep you lean, while making sure you aren’t overtrained.”

Remember: it’s supposed to be short, intense and infrequent, not an everyday effort. Recovery days are vital both for avoiding injury and for ensuring you can actually work at the intensity required for effective HIIT. Simply put, if you’re doing four or five HIIT sessions a week, it probably isn’t real HIIT, and you’re probably going to get injured.

Types Of HIIT Workouts

Beginner: Timmons method

Developed by a team at Loughborough University, this HIIT workout is entry-level. Do 20 seconds of all-out work, followed by two minutes of active recovery (walking/freewheeling will do) or complete rest. Repeat three times, and you’re done.

Intermediate: 10-20

Also known as “reverse Tabata”, this HIIT workout doubles the rest and reduces the work intervals to shift the focus to anaerobic fitness. Use it if you’re aiming for power production, or if you don’t have the fitness for an all-out Tabata (explained below). Warm up for 10 minutes, then do six to eight rounds on a cardio machine.

Advanced: 10-20-30

Now things get complicated. In this plan, you’ll do five “blocks” of work, made up of 30 seconds at 30% intensity, 20 seconds at 60% and ten seconds all-out. Result? Lots of volume, at manageable intensity.

Nasty: Tabata

The most famous HIIT workout protocol is ideal for increasing VO2 max – as long as you do it right. Twenty seconds of all-out work, followed by ten seconds of rest, repeated eight times, improved endurance by as much as 30 minutes of steady-state cardio in a Queen’s University study. The key is keeping intensity high – if you can talk during the session, you’re getting it wrong.

7 HIIT Workouts To Try

1. Kettlebell HIIT workout For Fat Loss

A Louisiana University study that compared kettlebell swings, cleans and deadlifts with a more traditional sprint training programme found that maximum heart rate was only slightly higher in the sprints, while calorie expenditure was bigger with the bells.

Here’s one of our favourite circuits. Rest for 30 seconds at the end, then repeat for three to five rounds.

1. Alternating swing (30sec) Similar to the traditional swing but alternating arms at the top portion of the lift.
2. Clean and jerk (15sec left arm, 15sec right arm) Finish each 15-second work block by pressing the kettlebell over your head.
3. Goblet squat (30sec) Hold the kettlebell close to your chest and keep your back straight.

2. All-Out Exercise Bike HIIT Workout

There’s a reason lots of studies use exercise bikes: going all-out on the pedals isn’t too technical, injury risk is low and you can ruin yourself. For “supramaximal” efforts, which stimulate every available muscle fibre, the bike is the perfect choice.

When looking to improve the fitness levels of Premier League footballers in pre-season, strength and conditioning coaches at the country’s top clubs have a particular favourite in the Tabata protocol. It’s used up to four times a week and typically performed on an exercise bike. You can reap the same rewards by following the plan: 20 seconds sprint cycle; ten seconds rest or slower cycle; repeat for eight rounds.

3. Battle Ropes HIIT Workout For An All-Day Burn

In a College of New Jersey study, battle rope exercises beat 13 other exercises (including burpees) for energy expenditure and produced the highest average heart rate. The protocol: 15 seconds of single-arm waves, 15 seconds of double-arm waves, 60 seconds’ rest, repeated eight times.

4. Burpee HIIT Workout To Improve Endurance

In the same New Jersey study, burpees beat four other bodyweight moves and every free weights exercise for VO2 response. If you’re short on time and space, use the Wingate protocol: 30 seconds all-out, then four minutes of rest, done four to six times.

5. Sprint Workout To Increase Power

“Production training” workouts improve your ability to work at maximum effort with short rest. They are ultra-short, super-hard exercise intervals combined with long rests for a workout that’ll improve your power. Use them when you’re chasing a 500m row PB or preparing for a boxing bout.

1 Mountain slider

Work 15sec Rest 1min 30sec Rounds 6

Start in a press-up position with your feet on a pair of small towels or Valslides, then bring one knee and then the other up to your chest as fast as possible. Think of it like a crawling sprint.

2 Thruster

Work 15sec Rest 1min 15sec Rounds 6

Holding a light pair of dumbbells at shoulder height or a light barbell on your shoulders, drop into a squat. As you stand up, drive the weight overhead, then lower straight into the next rep.

6. Endurance HIIT Workout To Improve Your 5K Time

“Maintenance training” workouts use longer work intervals and slightly shorter rests to increase your body’s ability to sustain exercise at high intensity, using both your aerobic and anaerobic systems.

1 Kettlebell swing

Work 30sec Rest 1min 30sec Rounds 6

Using a moderate-weight kettlebell, swing it back between your legs and then pop your hips forwards to swing it to eye level, letting it drop straight into the next rep.

2 Assault AirBike

Work 15sec Rest 45sec Rounds 10

The Assault AirBike forces you to use your full body for a short-but-nasty experience. Haven’t got one? A regular exercise bike also works.

7. HIIT Workout To Get Lean In Your Lunch Break

Shortening the rests and keeping the work rate high burns more calories during and after your workout, for maximum fat loss. This session from Ndongmo will get you lean in your lunch break. Do all three exercises to complete one round, and repeat eight times.

1 Jump lunge

Work 20sec Rest 10sec

Explode off the ground and change legs in the air on each rep. Rest for 10 seconds, then go straight into exercise 2.

2 High knees

Work 20sec Rest 10sec

Run on the spot, bringing your knees as high as possible. Keep the intensity high throughout, then rest for ten seconds.

3 Jump squat

Work 20sec Rest 30sec

Drop into a squat and then explode off the floor, landing as softly as possible. Rest for 30 seconds before you start the next round.

More HIIT Workout Ideas

Joe Wicks’ Four-Week Fat Loss Workout

Everyone’s favourite HIIT evangelist provided us with an exclusive four-week workout plan which contains four bodyweight HIIT sessions per week. Each workout is made up of five moves and takes around 15 minutes, so they can fit into even the busiest of schedules. See the Joe Wicks workout

HIIT Workout With Weights

You’ll need a kettlebell, dumbbells and a weight plate for this testing 15-minute session, which consists of three supersets of compound exercises that work muscles all over the body. See the HIIT workout with weights

10-Minute HIIT Workouts

One of the best things about HIIT is that you get an effective workout done in less time, as evidenced by these 10-minute sessions. Check out our collection of 10-minute workouts which target different body areas using a variety of equipment. See the 10-minute workouts

20-Minute HIIT Workout

The Tabata method is a HIIT classic and this quick bodyweight workout will show you exactly why it’s so effective. Not only is it great for your fitness, it also helps to relieve stress as you power through the short work periods. See the 20-minute HIIT workout

30-Minute HIIT Circuit

This 30-minute circuit was put together by the functional fitness experts at F45. The workout involves three rounds of nine exercises, and you’ll need dumbbells and a kettlebell to do it. See the full-body HIIT workout

Rowing HIIT Workout

The rowing machine is one of the best bits of equipment to use for HIIT, because it fires up a wide range of muscles and will spike your heart rate rapidly. This workout involves all-out efforts on the rower broken up by weighted exercise circuits – you’ll need dumbbells, a kettlebell and a medicine ball. See the rowing HIIT workout

HIIT Boxing Workout

Few exercises will tire out as quickly as whaling on a punching bag, and this quick workout combines that with bodyweight moves used by MMA fighters to raise your heart rate sky high. See the HIIT boxing workout

HIIT Conditioning Workout For Runners

This bodyweight HIIT workout is specifically designed to meet the needs of runners aiming to build strength to cope with the demands of the sport. It can be done anywhere you have room to sprint 150m. See the HIIT workout for runners

Outdoor HIIT Workout

Head to your local green space for this 30-minute workout made up of five bodyweight exercises. You don’t need any equipment, but you’ll be doing 10m shuttle runs so will need to mark out that distance. See the outdoor HIIT workout

Strength And Sprints HIIT Workout 

Created by a trainer from boutique gym Sweat It, this workout consists of two sections: one based around compound strength exercises and the other done on the treadmill. It takes less than 30 minutes to do, including a proper warm-up. See the strength and sprints HIIT workout

Whenever you’ve finished the main part of your gym session, it would be rude not to throw in a workout finisher, just to make sure you’ve really emptied the tank. Plus, by creating a bigger energy debt your body keeps burning calories long after the workout’s done.

Personal trainer Emmie Callus has put together a cardio finisher that requires no equipment, and is based on bodyweight exercises, done in a pyramid format.

She calls it the 100-rep pyramid, and oh boy is it going to make your heart rate soar.

A lot of the moves in this finisher involve jumping, but if jumping isn't an option for you for any reason, Callus says you can substitute low-impact variations of the frog jumps and burpees by stepping rather than jumping, and perform regular unweighted squats instead of jump squats. The low-impact version also makes for a quick home workout you can fit in any time.

Below are the moves you’ll be doing as well as the reps for each. Start with five press-ups and move on up the pyramid to the top – 30 chest-to-floor burpees. Then go back down, completing another 20 jump squats, 10 frog jumps and five press-ups for a total of 100 reps.

Too easy? Make it harder by subbing in plyometric press-ups, 180° (or even 360°) jump squats and chest-to-floor burpees with a tuck jump.

Press-up 

Reps 5

Start in a high plank position with your hands on the floor just wider than shoulder-width apart. Bend your elbows to lower your chest to the floor, keeping your arms close to your body. Press through your palms to rise back to a high plank. 

Frog jump

Reps 10

Start in a high plank position, palms directly under your shoulders. Jump both feet forwards, so they land just outside of your hands. Then lean back and look forwards, lifting your hands off the floor. Reverse the move to the starting position.

Jump squat

Reps 20

Stand with your feet just wider than hip-width. Push your hips back and bend your knees to lower into a squat. Push through your heels and explode up, jumping off the floor. Land softly and go immediately into the next rep.

Chest-to-floor burpee

Reps 30

From standing, squat down and place your hands on the floor, then jump your feet backwards so you land in a high plank position. From here, drop into a press-up, lowering your chest to the floor. Lift your hands off the floor momentarily, then push yourself back up to a high plank. Jump both feet forwards and jump straight up, raising both hands above your head. Land softly and go straight into the next rep.

Most of us associate cardio with endurance sports like running and cycling, but if you prefer to train with weights you can still improve your cardiovascular fitness without having to make time for treadmill workouts in your schedule. The key to doing so is increasing the speed and intensity of your workout, using explosive movements that get your heart pumping.

The benefits of using weights for your cardio are many and varied, so we enlisted Constantinos Yiallouros, an expert personal trainer at Anytime Fitness UK, for a cardio workout with weights anyone can try. 

“Cardio training with weights is a great way to improve cardio, burn calories and build lean muscle,” says Yiallouros. “This workout only uses one set of dumbbells and can be completed with minimal space.” That makes it ideal to do at home, and if you haven’t got any weights at home, rectify that pronto by browsing our round-up of the best dumbbells.

Warm-up

“It’s important to warm up before any workout, and before a cardio workout with weights, you need to activate the muscles effectively,” says Yiallouros. “You will be putting load into your muscles throughout the workout so some mobility and bodyweight exercises are key here.”

Work through the stretches and exercises below without any rest, then take a 30-second break before going into the ramp section.

1 World’s greatest stretch

Time 30sec 

From a press-up position bring your right foot up to your right hand, then drop your right elbow down to the floor, rotate your torso, and stretch your left arm up towards the ceiling. Then reverse the twist to stretch your right arm up to the ceiling. Return to the press-up position, then do the stretch on the other side.

2 Walk-out

Time 30sec

From standing, bend down and place your hands on the floor. Walk them forwards to finish in a high plank position with your hands under your shoulders, arms extended and body in a straight line from shoulders to heels. Walk your hands back to your feet, then come back up to standing.

3 Good morning

Time 30sec

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your hands interlocked behind your head. Hinge forwards from your hips until you feel the stretch in your hamstrings, then come back up.

4 Plank with shoulder tap

Time 30sec

Set up in a high plank position supported on your hands and toes. Holding the position, tap your right shoulder with your left hand, then return your left hand to the floor and tap your left shoulder with your right hand. Continue alternating.

5 Unweighted squat

Time 30sec

Stand with your feet hip-width apart, then push your hips back and bend your knees to sit back into a squat until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Drive back up to standing.

6 Reverse lunge with rotation

Time 30sec

From standing, take a big step back and lower until both knees are bent at a 90° angle. While holding this lunge position rotate your torso towards your front leg, then reverse the movement to come back up to standing. Alternate legs with each rep.

7 Press-up

Time 30sec

Start in a high plank position. Bend your elbows to lower your chest until it’s just above the floor, then push back up.

8 Step-in mountain climber

Time 30sec

From a high plank position step one foot in underneath your chest, then take it back out and step in with the other foot.

Ramp Section

“The ramp section elevates your heart rate so you begin to get the cardiovascular benefits of the workout,” says Yiallouros.

Work through the exercises in order then take a one-minute break before the next step in the workout. Do the first three moves without dumbbells then grab a set for the final three.

1 High knees

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

Run on the spot, lifting your knees up to your chest.

2 Jumping jack

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

Stand with your feet close together and hands by your sides, then jump and spread your feet wide while lifting your hands up to the sides. Land softly, then jump again and bring your feet back in and your hands back down.

3 Jump squat

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Lower into a squat, then drive back up explosively and jump straight up. Land softly and go straight into another squat.

4 Alternating dumbbell snatch 

Time 45sec Rest 15sec 

Stand with a dumbbell on the floor in front of you. Lower into a squat to reach down and grab the weight in one hand, then drive back up explosively, lifting the weight. Flip your elbow under the dumbbell and press it directly overhead as you come up to standing. Reverse the movement to lower the weight, then perform the snatch with your other hand.

5 Push press

Time 45sec Rest 15sec 

Stand holding dumbbells by your shoulders with your palms facing forwards. Lower into a shallow squat, then drive back up and press the weights overhead.

6 Thruster

Time 45sec Rest 1min 15sec

Hold dumbbells by your shoulders with your palms facing. Lower into a squat until your thighs are at least parallel to the ground, then drive back up and press the weights overhead.

Workout

“The main section of the workout aims to challenge you by combining weighted movements with explosive bodyweight exercises,” says Yiallouros.

Do each pair of exercises back to back with no rest between them, then you get a 15-second break before going onto the next pair. Take a longer 30-second break after the last move before tackling the finisher.

1A Front rack dumbbell squat

Time 30sec Rest 0sec

Hold both dumbbells in front of your shoulders with your palms facing and elbows pointing forwards. Lower into a squat, then push back up through your heels to standing.

1B Jump squat

Time 30sec Rest 15sec

As above.

2A Thruster

Time 30sec Rest 0sec

As above.

2B Burpee

Time 30sec Rest 15sec

From standing, bend over and place your hands on the floor, then jump your feet back to get into a high plank position. Jump your feet forwards, stand up, then jump into the air and raise your hands above your head.

3A Dumbbell overhead press

Time 30sec Rest 0sec

Stand holding dumbbells by your shoulders with your palms facing forwards and elbows pointing out to the sides. Extend your arms to press both weights above your head. Lower the dumbbells under control.

3B Alternating overhead press 

Time 30sec Rest 15sec

Press just one dumbbell overhead at a time, alternating sides with each rep.

4A Reverse lunge with dumbbells

Time 30sec Rest 0sec

Standing holding dumbbells by your sides. Take a big step back and lower until both knees are bent at 90°, then push through your front heel to return to standing. Alternate sides with each rep.

4B Pop lunge 

Time 30sec Rest 15sec

From standing, take a big step back and lower into a lunge, then push explosively through your front foot to jump and land with your feet together. Alternate sides with each rep.

5A Floor chest press

Time 30sec Rest 0sec

Lie on your back holding a weight in each hand by your chest. Press the weights up over your chest, then lower them under control.

5B Press-up

Time 30sec Rest 30sec

As above.

Finisher

“Finish off the workout and maximise the cardio benefits with three minutes of non-stop work,” says Yiallouros.

Work through as many rounds of these three exercises as you can during the three minutes. Take a 30-second rest at the end before going into the warm-down.

Thruster

Reps 6

As above.

Burpee over dumbbell

Reps 6

Place a dumbbell on the floor to one side. Perform a burpee, jumping sideways over the dumbbell at the end of the move. Repeat, jumping over the dumbbell after each rep.

Alternating dumbbell snatch

Reps 6 

As above.

Warm-down

“This is your chance to catch your breath and enjoy a well-earned warm-down,” says Yiallouros. “You will have worked your muscles hard, particularly your lower body, so it’s important to stretch these out as they’ll be feeling tight.”

Use this warm-down stretching routine.

Life can seem relentless, but taking time out to move your body can be a great way to ease stress and feel good about yourself. Personal trainer Nicole Chapman has put together a quickfire 20-minute HIIT workout using Tabata timings, which involves 20-second intervals of maximum effort followed by a 10-second rest.

“I am a huge fan of Tabata,” Chapman says. “The 20-second bursts of high intensity are short enough to support all fitness levels and allow you to push yourself that little bit harder knowing it will be over quickly.

“Tabata training can be hugely effective in relieving stress. The vigorous workout style has been shown in studies to significantly increase the flow of endorphins – effective in improving the brain’s cognitive function and mood regulation.”

20-Minute HIIT Workout

This workout is split into four sections with four exercises in each section. Perform each exercise for 20 seconds, rest for 10 seconds, repeat that sequence for the exercise, then move on to the next exercise. Once you’ve completed all the exercises in the section, rest for one minute, then move on to the next section. 

In Tabata training you perform each exercise at high intensity so it’s imperative that you warm up thoroughly beforehand. Since there are 16 exercises to cover, do a few practice reps of each to perfect your form, then perform some cardio exercises like running on the spot or jumping jacks to raise your heart rate. 

Section 1

1 Jump lunge

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

From standing, take a big step forwards with your left leg and lower into a lunge, bending both knees to 90°. Then explosively jump up and swap the position of your legs in mid-air so you land with your right leg in front. Lower into a lunge and repeat. 

2 Press-up

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Start in a high plank position with your body in a straight line, hands under your shoulders and arms extended. Keeping your core tight, bend your elbows and slowly lower your chest to the floor, keeping your arms close to your body. Then push up through your palms to rise.

3 Jump squat

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Bend your knees and push your hips back to lower into a squat position. Push explosively through your heels to jump straight up. Land softly and drop immediately into another squat.

4 Plank jack 

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

In a high plank position, with your hands under your shoulders and arms extended, jump your feet in and out, keeping your core tight and the rest of your body as still as possible.

Section 2

1 Butterfly sit-up

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Lie on your back with your feet together, knees bent and arms extended behind your head. Using your core muscles, raise your torso and bring your hands forwards to touch the floor in front of your feet. Reverse the move back to the start.  

2 Burpee

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Squat down, place your hands on the floor and jump both feet back to land in a high plank position. Drop into a press-up, then jump both feet back to your hands and jump straight up. 

3 Mountain climber

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Start in a high plank position. Drive your left knee towards your right elbow and then, as you bring it back to the start, drive your right knee to your left elbow. Your toes should touch the floor only briefly as your speed increases.

4 Pop squat

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Bend your knees and push your hips back to lower into a squat position and touch the floor with your left hand. Push through your heels to rise and jump, landing on the balls of your feet with your feet together. Immediately jump your feet back out to shoulder-width apart and drop into the next squat, this time tapping the floor with your right hand. Alternate hands with each rep.

Section 3

1 Bear crawl

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Start in a tabletop position, with your arms extended and hands under shoulders, knees and toes on the floor, and your knees under your hips. Lift your knees just off the floor then move forwards, keeping the 90° bend in your knees. Once you run out of room, crawl backwards. 

2 Broad jump to reverse fast feet

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

With your feet hip-width apart, lower into a quarter squat and swing your arms behind you. Leap forwards as far as you can, swinging your arms forwards to generate more power. Then use small, quick steps to run backwards to the start.

3 High knees

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Standing tall, lift your knees up one at a time to belly height. Continue at pace. 

4 Commando plank

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Start in a forearm plank position with your body held in a straight line, your elbows directly under your shoulders and your legs together. Push up on your left side to place your left hand on the floor under your shoulder. Do the same on your right side to get into the high plank position. Then drop onto your elbows one arm at a time. Keep going up and down, keeping your hips as still as possible.

Section 4

1 Triceps dip

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

You’ll need a stable raised surface, like a chair or bench, for this exercise. Sit on the edge of the bench with your legs extended and heels on the floor, then place your palms next to your glutes and slide your bum off the bench. Bend your elbows to lower yourself slowly, keeping your back close to the chair. Then push through your hands to rise. 

2 Skater jump

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Stand with your legs shoulder-width apart. Swing your left leg behind your right and bend your right knee to 90°. Swing your left leg back and leap to the left, landing on your left foot, bending your left knee to 90° and swinging your right leg behind your left. Keep leaping from side to side in an exaggerated skating movement.

3 V-sit

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Lie on your back with your arms by your sides. Keeping your legs straight and together, raise them as high as you can, and lift your torso up towards your thighs so you form a V-shape. Keep your back straight. Slowly lower back to the floor. If that is too difficult, try the leg raise instead, keeping your back on the floor and raising just your legs. 

4 Frogger

Sets 2 Time 20sec Rest 10sec 

Start in the high plank position. Jump your feet to the outside of your hands, then lift your hands off the floor and lift your chest to finish in a deep squat with your palms pressed together in the prayer position. Return your hands to the floor and jump your feet back to the high plank position.

To find out more about Nicole Chapman’s online strength and high-intensity cardio programmes, designed for all abilities, visit nicolechapman.com and follow @iamnicolechapman on Instagram.

We hope you got a good night’s rest and are bursting with energy, because this 20/20/20 workout is 15 minutes of high-intensity work. It’s been devised by former commando and performance specialist Thibo David and involves cycling between a 20-second sprint and 20 jump squats 20 times. This type of workout is ideal for building or maintaining VO2 Max because your heart rate remains high during the resting period, which contributes to building aerobic capacity.

“I use this type of programme with top athletes in their tapering phases,” says David, “particularly boxers who, close to a fight date, will need to peak. This workout, used on its own, is very good at doing that because of its demand on the nervous system. The added benefit is the afterburn effect, which will push the metabolism to burn fat up to 48 hours after finishing it due to its high caloric demand.”

How To Do This Workout

This workout asks you to sprint at 20km/h, which runners may better recognise as a pace of 3min/km. That’s a very challenging speed and you should consider whether you can hit that pace and hold it 20 times in a row before committing to it – especially when your “rest” is a bunch of jump squats. There’s no harm in adjusting the speed to your level – or even better, use a self-powered treadmill or run on a running track so if you can’t maintain the speed you just slow down, rather than having to keep up with a set speed on a treadmill.  

It’s imperative to warm up thoroughly before attempting this session. Start with this treadmill warm-up routine and add on another six minutes of slow jogging. Set the treadmill to an incline of 0.5%, which better mimics the conditions of regular road running. 

As you progress in the workout, the rounds will take longer, but try to keep rest to an absolute minimum. This can also be used as a workout finisher after a longer workout.

1A Treadmill sprint

Sets 20 Speed 20km/h

Increase the speed on the treadmill to 20km/h and run at that pace for 20 seconds. When the time is up, stop the treadmill and let the belt slow to a stop before jumping off.

1B Jump squat

Sets 20 Reps 20

Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Bend your knees and push your hips back until your thighs are parallel with the floor, then push through your heels explosively to jump straight up. Land softly and go into the next rep.

More Treadmill Workouts

• Treadmill Workouts
• Treadmill Workout Plan
• 15-Minute SkillMill Treadmill Workout
• 30-Minute Barry’s Bootcamp Workout

Forget connected spin bikes and interactive fitness mirrors for a moment. Sometimes all you need for a cardio fix is a good old-fashioned punching bag (and a guide to getting started with punching bag workouts). And this drill from Declan Taylor, head trainer for boxing at BLOK, certainly cuts to the chase. 

“We’re not looking to reinvent the wheel with punch selection in this non-stop finisher – instead we’re focusing on going through the gears and leaving it all on the bag,” Taylor tells Coach. The drill is five rounds of this sequence.

1. Jabs – 20 seconds
2. Freestyle combinations – 20 seconds
3. Non-stop straight punches – 20 seconds

“Think of the first 20-second block in each round as your active recovery,” says Taylor. “Keep moving around the bag while keeping your hands high, chin down and elbows tight while offering a stiff jab whenever appropriate.”

In the second block you can throw any punches you choose. “If you’re a beginner, keep it simple with straight one-twos and the odd hook or uppercut,” says Taylor. “If you’re more experienced feel free to really mix it up.” Whatever you throw, the idea is to keep your intensity at around 70-80% of your max.

Then, in the final 20 – the championship seconds – plant your feet and unload with non-stop straight punches to and from the chin. “Make sure you keep your distance correct and don’t be tempted to ‘run’ your feet or drop your shots to the body,” says Taylor. 

The challenge is to transition seamlessly from this all-out sprint back into your first block of active recovery jabs. “Don’t drop your hands once your sprint is finished. Instead get your guard straight back up and keep popping off those jabs while you recover for that 20 seconds.” 

The idea for boxers, Taylor explains, is to condition yourself so that you still offer a dangerous jab even when tired, which will help you dictate both the distance and tempo when you have an opponent in front of you. However, this ability to keep functioning under acute fatigue has transferable benefits to almost any sport or athletic discipline. 

What if your garage or gym doesn’t happen to house a punching bag? Taylor says you can perform this  drill kit-free, shadowboxing-style. “Throwing non-stop lefts and rights will test your ticker whether there’s a bag on the receiving end or not.” 

Seconds out. Round one.

Connected home treadmills, stationary bikes and rowing machines rose to prominence over the pandemic, but the air bike (or assault bike) – which combines the pedals of an exercise bike with the hand levers of an arm bike or elliptical machine – didn’t make it out of the CrossFit box where it’s been a mainstay for a decade. 

Now, interactive workout app Fiit is banking on these devices becoming a core component of home gyms up and down the land, releasing a set of workouts that connect to an AssaultBike (£899 from FIIT) from Assault Fitness. 

“Unlike spin classes, cycling, running and skipping, which are all lower-body dominant activities, the air bike’s unique push-and-pull action allows you to work your upper body and legs simultaneously,” Fiit master trainer Luke Baden tells Coach. 

“Using an air bike is a whole-body cardio workout. It’s low-impact, so you’re less likely to suffer repetitive strain injuries like shin splints or runner’s knee. It’s also far quicker to pick up and master than a rowing machine, for example.” 

Fiit has devised three kinds of air bike class – Endure, Sprint and Metcon – and its roster of elite coaches believe will take their users’ fitness levels to new heights. “The human body creates energy in one of three ways,” says Baden. “Most fitness content only targets the anaerobic energy system associated with HIIT training and/or the aerobic energy system. If you only work one, no matter how much you improve you’ll only be tapping into a third of the benefits.” 

Here, Baden has exclusively shared tasters of his three favourite workouts from the app for you to try at home (or wherever your nearest air bike resides).

Join FIIT | £20 a month, £120 a year, 14-day free trial available

Air Bike Workout 1 – Endure

“Our Endure classes deliver a large calorie burn, as you will be working for long periods of time,” says Baden. “You’ll become more aerobically fit, so you’ll improve the functioning of your heart and lungs. Working like this will also trigger the release of the hormone oxytocin – aka the ‘love drug’ – meaning you’re likely to feel more connected to others and at ease during the day.” 

The Workout This 23-minute session is a slimmed-down version of Fiit’s Endure #1 class with coach Adrienne Herbert. You set off at an even pace, then step on the accelerator at regular intervals. The work period in each cycle reduces with each round. Keep an eye on your pace or revolutions per minute (RPM) to gauge your effort and try to be consistent across rounds.

Warm up for 30sec on the air bike at your active recovery pace.

1. Time 3min Pace 50%
2. Time 3min Pace 60%
3. Time 3min Pace 70%
4. Time 30sec Pace 80%
5. Time 2min Pace 50%
6. Time 2min Pace 60%
7. Time 2min Pace 70%
8. Time 30sec Pace 80%
9. Time 60sec Pace 50%
10. Time 60sec Pace 60%
11. Time 60sec Pace 70%
12. Time 30sec Pace 80%

Warm down for 3min on the air bike at your active recovery pace.

Air Bike Workout 2 – Sprint

“The main benefits with our Sprint classes are increased strength and power,” says Baden. “You’ll become more explosive on the air bike and be able to generate higher RPM. Your muscles will get stronger, your nervous system will become more efficient and you enjoy a nice hit of dopamine, the reward chemical, once you’re done.”

The Workout This abridged workout is borrowed from Fiit’s Sprint #6 class with coach Michael Myers (not that Michael Myers). It is designed for all levels and should take around 12 minutes, including the warm-up and warm-down. The four rounds alternate between short sprints on the air bike, a floor exercise, and a period at recovery pace back in the saddle. 

For the air bike sprints, aim to drive with both your arms and legs, keeping your head up to help your breathing. Keep an eye on the max power you generate in each 30-second burst and try to keep it at the same level every round.

Warm up for 3min on the air bike at your active recovery pace.

1A Air bike sprint Time 30sec

1B Sit-up to touch ankles Time 30sec

1C Air bike active recovery Time 40sec

2A Air bike sprint Time 30sec

2B Squat jump Time 30sec

2C Air bike active recovery Time 40sec

3A Air bike sprint Time 30sec

3B Narrow-grip press-up Time 30sec

3C Air bike active recovery Time 40sec

4A Air bike sprint Time 30sec

4B Plank Time 30sec

4C Air bike active recovery Time 60sec

Warm down for 2min on the air bike at your active recovery pace.

Air Bike Workout 3 – Metcon

“These classes deliver a high calorie burn and, if done properly, increase your metabolism after class,” says Baden. “You’ll also become more efficient at working without oxygen and build some inner resilience as you learn to survive inside what I like to call the pain cave.”

The Workout This 17-minute session is adapted from Fiit’s intermediate level Metcon #7 class with coach Gus Vaz Tostes. Perform three rounds of a max-calorie effort on the air bike for 90 seconds, split up by 90 seconds alternating between sumo deadlift high pulls and thrusters. 

Warm up for 5min on the air bike. Alternate using your arms only for 30 seconds with your legs resting on the foot bars, then using only your legs for 30 seconds at your active recovery pace.

1 Air bike max calories

Time 90sec 

Reset the timer on the air bike dashboard and rip into 90 seconds of a max-calorie effort at a pace you can maintain for the full set. Don’t go too fast too early. After 90 seconds, note the calories burned.

2 Dumbbell complex

Sumo deadlift high pull Stand with your feet wider than hip-width apart over a pair of medium dumbbells. Hinge at your hips and bend your knees, keeping your chest upright, and lower until you can grab the weights. As you rise back up, pull the dumbbells up to chest height, keeping your elbows high. Lower the weights by reversing the movement, tap the floor with the dumbbells and go straight into the next rep. Perform three reps.  

Thrusters With the same weights, hold the dumbbells at shoulder height and stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Lower into a squat, keeping your knees wide apart and chest upright. As you drive up to stand, punch the weights overhead, keeping your elbows close to your ears. Return the weights to shoulder height and continue into the next rep. Perform three reps, then return to the sumo deadlift high pulls. Keep switching exercises every three reps for 90 seconds, resting for a few breaths when you need to.

Warm down for 3min on the air bike at an active recovery pace.

Join FIIT | £20 a month, £120 a year, 14-day free trial available

How do you like to finish your workouts? With a whimper, or with a bang? We’re not going to judge you if it’s the former – if you’ve put the work in and just want to get into the shower, fair enough. If you can summon the motivation for a bang, however, then adding one of these high-intensity finishers to the end of your session will bring with it many benefits.

You’ll get your heart pumping, for one, as well as taxing your already-tired muscles one more time. Finishers are great for fat loss too, and completing them brings with it a sense of achievement that means you go about the rest of your day with the knowledge that you put everything into your training session.

Below you’ll find three finishers created by Rachael Penrose, personal trainer with interactive home fitness mirror VAHA. Make a note of how you perform after each finisher and see if you can beat your time or scores next time. Be strict with your technique. There’s no point cheating on the movement to try to achieve a better score, and you risk injury too.

Ladder Finisher

Start a timer and see how quickly you can complete this full-body strength finisher. To track your development, note what numbers you are hitting on the rower and what weight you use for your single-arm snatch. To progress, add a heavier dumbbell, go faster on the row, and of course finish in a quicker time.

1 Row

Distance 200m

2 Single-arm snatch

Reps 20 each arm

Stand holding a dumbbell in your right hand between your legs. Lower into a shallow squat, then drive up to generate momentum and lift the dumbbell. When it reaches shoulder height, flip your wrist under the weight and press it overhead until your arm is fully extended. Reverse the movement to bring the weight back down. Do all your reps on your right arm, then swap to your left.

3 Burpee over dumbbell

Reps 20

Stand with a dumbbell on the floor in front of you. Drop into a press-up position, then jump your feet forwards again and stand up. Jump over the dumbbell and turn around to face it again, then perform another burpee.

4 Single-arm snatch

Reps 20 each arm

This time start with your left arm, then swap to your right after 20 reps.

5 Row

Distance 200m

Bodyweight Finisher

A kit-free finisher that will get your heart racing. Time yourself to see how long it takes to complete the below exercises.

1 Jump squat

Reps 100

From standing, squat down until your thighs are parallel to the ground, then drive back up explosively and jump into the air. Land softly, and repeat.

2 Down-up

Reps 100

From standing, drop your hands to either side of your feet and kick your feet back into a high plank position. Jump your feet forwards to your hands again and stand up.

3 Press-up

Reps 100

From a high plank position, lower your chest until it’s hovering just above the ground, then push back up. Keep your elbows close to your body.

4 Sprint

Distance 100m

It’ll be smart to work out where you’re going to do this beforehand.

See related 

• 10-Minute Bodyweight Abs Finisher
• End Your Next Workout With This AMRAP Core Finisher
• Power Through This EMOM Full-Body Finisher

AMRAP Finisher

AMRAP stands for as many rounds as possible. Set a timer for five minutes (or however much time you have before you need to finish) and complete as many rounds of the following as possible. Rather than switching to a heavier or lighter weight for each exercise, use the same kettlebell throughout to make transitions quick.

1 Kettlebell swing

Reps 10

Hold a kettlebell in front of you in both hands, standing with your feet shoulder-width apart. Hinge at your hips and take the weight back between your legs, then drive your hips forwards to swing the weight up to shoulder height.

2 Squat upright row

Reps 10

Hold a kettlebell in front of you in both hands, standing with your feet hip-width apart. Push your hips back and bend your knees to squat, lowering the weight towards the floor. Push through your heels to come back up to standing and lift the weight to your chin, bending your elbows and moving them out to the sides.

3 Goblet squat

Reps 10

Turn your kettlebell upside down and hold the bell in both hands in front of your chest. Squat down, then drive back up.

Find out more about interactive fitness mirror VAHA and its range of on-demand and live classes, as well as PT sessions at uk.vaha.com

It’s good to have a routine. It means you can never skip the gym just because you don’t have time to decide on or find an appropriate workout. Something like this straightforward, but progressive gym routine for beginners will suffice for months, but after a while you may feel things getting a bit stale. Maybe you stop working out as much because the thrill is gone.

Well, if it’s a muscle-shaking, heart-pounding, sweat-pouring thrill you want, then you want an AMRAP workout. The “as many rounds as possible” format scores high on the rate of perceived exertion scale because the whole idea is to you push yourself until the timer goes. This makes these workouts great for burning calories and improving muscular endurance.

Not only that, they’re quick by necessity—as a non-stop workout it wouldn’t safe to sustain it for too long—so if you’re after a “get in and get out” session, AMRAPs should be your go-to. Make sure you give yourself time to properly warm-up though, going from zero to 100mph is a surefire way to do yourself a mischief.

Finally, AMRAPs are a great way to put a marker down. Try the same session again in a month or two and see if you can beat your score from last time.

We have a number of workouts for you to try, but first, for more information on AMRAP workouts we spoke to someone who’s no stranger to them: CrossFit Games athlete Alexis Raptis, who is an ambassador for sportswear brand TYR.

AMRAP Explained

How often do you use AMRAP workouts in your training?

“I do AMRAPs probably three times a week, at least,” says Raptis. “In all different forms. I think they’re a really good way to train.”

How do you maintain good technique when working flat out?

It’s easy to get carried away when pushing against the clock, but you have to keep your form in mind, especially if you’ve only recently started training.

“Your form is going to suffer a little bit when you’re trying to go as fast as you can and you’re racing,” says Raptis. “If you’re a new person or in a class, form is more important. But I think if you’re training regularly, it’s not going to be anything that’s going to hurt you, because you’re used to doing it.”

Do you have a favorite AMRAP workout? 

“Something that’s really tough is a workout where it starts with movements of something, like kettlebell swings, and then in the remaining time, you have to hit a calorie target on the rower, or calories on an air bike where you’re having to really work for it,” Raptis says. “Let’s say it’s three minutes, and you get a minute’s worth of kettlebell swings, and the rest of the time you’re on that rower or the bike, trying to burn calories. That’s a really tough way to end a workout.”

7 Challenging AMRAP Workouts

1 Barbell fives

Time 15min Equipment Barbell (we recommend loading it up with one third of your weight)

2 Catch your breath

Time 20min Equipment Treadmill (ideally a self-powered one if your gym has one) or 400m track

3 Up and down

Time 15min Equipment Pull-up bar, workout bench or raised platform

4 Bodyweight bomb

Time 15min Equipment None

5 Life (AKA pulling your weight and cleaning)

Time 10min Equipment Barbell, pull-up bar

6 Bar to floor

Time 10min Equipment Pull-up bar

7 Kettlebell flow

Time 10min Equipment Kettlebell

If you’re looking to do a cardio workout at home and don’t have access to equipment like a treadmill or exercise bike, the usual recommendation is to start jumping around. Bodyweight exercises like squat jumps, burpees and jumping jacks will do a great job of raising your heart rate.

However, they are also high-impact exercises. If you’re looking to avoid that, either because you’re nursing an injury or simply don’t want to annoy the neighbours, then try this low-impact cardio workout from personal trainer Cecilia Harris, co-founder of fitness platform Results Wellness Lifestyle. You will need a kettlebell (although a dumbbell will also suffice) and Harris recommends performing it three times a week.

How To Do This Workout

The 20-minute workout is split into four five-minute blocks that each involve doing the same three exercises. However, in each block the amount of time you spend working will increase and your rest period will decrease.

Block 1: Work 20sec, rest 40sec
Block 2: Work 30sec, rest 30sec
Block 3: Work 40sec, rest 20sec
Block 4: Work 45sec, rest 15sec

“Keep in mind that during your rest periods you should be transitioning to the next exercise,” says Harris.

You’ll spend each five-minute block cycling through the exercises below in order, so you’ll perform the kettlebell swing, goblet squat and plank, then go back to the start and do the kettlebell swing and goblet squat again. Then you start the next block and repeat that sequence again.

See related 

• The Best Kettlebells: Plus, Black Friday Deals On The Best Kettlebells
• Give Your Joints A Break With This Low-Impact Workout From Studio FLY LDN
• Go Easy On Your Joints With This Low-Impact Home Workout

The Exercises

Kettlebell swing

“This is the most popular kettlebell exercise,” says Harris. “It’s pretty basic and seems like it wouldn’t be very effective but if you use the right weight it will wear you out quickly! Your shoulders, forearms, legs and core will feel the burn.”

Hold the weight by the handle between your legs, with your arms straight. Brace your core and keep your back straight throughout the move. Bend your knees slightly and hinge forwards at your hips to swing the kettlebell between your legs, then snap your hips back to standing to swing the kettlebell up until it passes shoulder height. Control the descent of the kettlebell and go straight into the next rep.

Goblet squat

“Hold your kettlebell by the sides of the handle, also known as the horns. If you’re using a dumbbell hold it by one end on the sides,” says Harris.

Bend at the knees and hips to lower, keeping your torso upright and pushing your hips back. Push through your heels to stand back up.

“To make this exercise as effective as possible, you must squat down until your thighs are at least parallel with the floor,” Harris adds. “When you stand back up, flex your quads and squeeze your glutes at the top."

Plank

“Get in a press-up position, holding yourself up with your hands or forearms,” says Harris. “Pull in your stomach and tighten your entire body. Hold this position for the time required.”

Low-Impact Cardio Workout

• Minute 1: Kettlebell swing – work 20sec, rest 40sec
• Minute 2: Goblet squat – work 20sec, rest 40sec
• Minute 3: Plank – work 20sec, rest 40sec
• Minute 4: Kettlebell swing – work 20sec, rest 40sec
• Minute 5: Goblet squat – work 20sec, rest 40sec
• Minute 6: Kettlebell swing – work 30sec, rest 30sec
• Minute 7: Goblet squat – work 30sec, rest 30sec
• Minute 8: Plank – work 30sec, rest 30sec
• Minute 9: Kettlebell swing – work 30sec, rest 30sec
• Minute 10: Goblet squat – work 30sec, rest 30sec
• Minute 11: Kettlebell swing – work 40sec, rest 20sec
• Minute 12: Goblet squat – work 40sec, rest 20sec
• Minute 13: Plank – work 40sec, rest 20sec
• Minute 14: Kettlebell swing – work 40sec, rest 20sec
• Minute 15: Goblet squat – work 40sec, rest 20sec
• Minute 16: Kettlebell swing – work 45sec, rest 15sec
• Minute 17: Goblet squat – work 45sec, rest 15sec
• Minute 18: Plank – work 45sec, rest 15sec
• Minute 19: Kettlebell swing – work 45sec, rest 15sec
• Minute 20: Goblet squat – work 45sec, rest 15sec

There are many ways to skin a cat and there are just as many ways to exercise for fat loss. And we’d recommend the latter much more than the former. Underpinning all those exercise methods is the concept of creating a calorie deficit, where you burn more calories than you consume.

For advice on how to use cardio exercise to help you burn fat effectively, and how it compares with other forms of exercise, we spoke to Rachael Penrose, personal trainer with interactive home fitness mirror VAHA.

What kind of cardio is best for burning fat?

In general, burning fat is about calories in, calories out. A lot of people tend towards HIIT [high-intensity interval training] because it spikes your heart rate more drastically than, say, a long, low-intensity workout. You can get more out of a shorter amount of time, which I think is what everyone’s looking for these days.

Is it better to work at a high heart rate?

You’re going to see more effect if your heart rate spikes at a higher level, which is what a HIIT workout is designed to do. You work at 70% and above of your max heart rate. If you’re at 50% to 65% of your heart rate max, it’s going to take longer to burn the same amount of calories.

Is there an advantage of steady cardio at a lower heart rate?

You can last for longer because you’re not going to be able to keep up a higher heart rate for a longer period of time.

I think HIIT is the go-to for fat burning because it’s getting the job done quicker – most people don’t want to spend over an hour in the gym or doing a workout. But if you have the time and you don’t want to train at such a high intensity, then drop the heart rate and extend the time. It balances itself out and you still burn the same amount of calories.

Can you do any kind of HIIT?

Yes, you can use free weights or your bodyweight. It’s more about starting and stopping. That means 45 seconds on, 15 seconds off; or 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off. It’s about going hard in that moment of work, briefly resting, and going hard again.

Can anyone do HIIT?

Everyone can do a HIIT workout. If you’re a beginner you might be better off with a low-impact HIIT workout, so you’re not putting too much stress on your joints, and maybe start with lighter weights and a longer resting period. I would definitely say get a trainer or go to a class, so you’ve got someone there that can tell you what to do and correct your technique as you do it. They can also help with the right level of intensity. You don’t want to go hard, then struggle and not be able to finish the workout.

How often should you train?

It depends on the person. If you’re a complete beginner, I’d say three times a week to start, but if you’re quite active and trying a different form of workout, maybe four to five workouts a week.

You can also change your HIIT workouts to be more strength-based or more cardio-based, and it’s good to alternate between different styles. Some can be bodyweight – so jump lunges, squats, burpees, that kind of thing – but the same high-impact, jumping moves five days a week is a lot on your muscles and your joints. With weights, try weighted squats, chest presses, biceps curls – just go a little slower.

How long should the workouts be?

Anywhere between 30 minutes and an hour. A lot of people find 30 to 45 minutes is a great duration because then you can push yourself. As soon as you get over an hour you start to slow down and you probably need more rest periods.

Is a heart rate monitor useful if you’re looking to burn fat with HIIT?

Yes – not to judge yourself against other people, but to understand your own body and to understand how hard to push yourself. [See our recommendations for the best heart rate monitors and best budget heart rate monitors, or use a fitness tracker with a heart rate sensor.]

See related

• Fat-Loss Workouts: Five Circuits To Build Muscle
• The Best Exercises For Weight Loss

How important is your diet when trying to burn fat?

You can never out-train a bad diet. When you try to lose fat, it’s calories in vs calories out. Exercising helps you burn calories, but if you’re going to put crap, high-calorie food into your body, you’re going to find that you’re still eating too many calories overall, while a healthier diet means that you can eat more. A packet of crisps is a lot of calories compared with some cucumber and hummus.

Find out more about interactive fitness mirror VAHA and its range of on-demand and live classes, as well as PT sessions, at uk.vaha.com

Boxing is a brilliant way to get in shape, and if you’ve invested in a punching bag for your home in the last year then congratulations – you’ve made a shrewd investment. It’s one of the most effective bits of kit you can buy for your home workouts.

If you don’t already have a bag, check out our round-up for a few options. In there you’ll see some advice from former pro boxer and Pure Brand Nutrition ambassador Tony Bellew about how to pick a bag. We also asked Bellew for a home bag workout that beginners could try, and he obliged with the session below.

Before you dive into the workout, however, here’s some key advice from Bellew on how to start boxing in a safe and enjoyable manner.

“I would say the most important thing is the way you punch so you don’t hurt your hands,” says Bellew. “A lot of people make contact with the bag with the outside of their hand, the last two fingers, and they end up breaking those bones – it’s known as a “boxer’s break”. You should land with the first two knuckles on your hand – the bigger two knuckles. That way you’re not going to get any fractures or breaks. Unless you’re punching ridiculously hard!

See related 

• Four Boxing Drills To Punch Up Your Fitness
• Use This 15-Minute Boxing Workout From Barry McGuigan To Start Getting “Punching Fit”
• Train Like A Pro With This Boxing Workout From BXR Gym

“Take your time and enjoy it. With boxing workouts you’re going to burn so many calories just with the energy of punching that you’ll be surprised at how hard it is. I’ve seen professional footballers on a punch bag and they’re absolutely exhausted after 60 seconds.”

Boxing Workout For Beginners

The workout is a ladder routine, where you start by going down the ladder and then come back up.

“Do 10 punches, then nine, eight, seven,” says Bellew, “taking little two- to three-second breaks in between. Go all the way down to one, and as you decrease the amount of punches the punches should get harder. At 10 it’s light and fast, then you get slower and a little bit harder. When you get to three punches they should be heavy, hard punches.

“Then have a 10- to 30-second break and come back up the ladder. Start at one hard punch, two hard punches, three hard, four slightly quicker, five quicker again and so on. If you can get through that routine three times, believe you me, you’ll know you’ve done a bit of work.”

If your experience of skiing has largely been restricted to sitting on a ski lift up a mountain then whizzing back down straight into a bar, it might surprise you to learn just how good Nordic skiing is for your fitness. There is a good case for calling Nordic skiing – also known as cross-country skiing – the toughest endurance sport, and VO2 max measurements of elite athletes have often seen XC skiers appear near the top of the rankings.

In short, Nordic skiing provides a fantastic workout – and the SkiErg allows you to do it without a snowflake in sight. We’ve got six SkiErg workouts for you to try below, but first here’s Paddy Coleman, one of the head trainers at London studio Core Collective, with more info on the machine.

How would you use it differently for anaerobic cardio endurance compared with aerobic?

You improve your anaerobic threshold with explosive, short, sharp bursts, as in the Tabata timeframe of 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off – or 30/15, or 40/20.

Longer work periods – two- or three-minute blocks – at a slower pace taps into more aerobic cardio.

Do people jump on and do 30 to 40 minutes like with other cardio machines?

You could do that, but it’d be a lot more challenging thanks to being in a standing position throughout and having to use your entire body. Slowly work your way up to those longer endurance-based workouts. Some of the trainers here, if they’re trying to build their base cardio, they’ll work in 20-minute slots and might break that down into intervals of six minutes with 30-second breathers.

How can people improve their SkiErg technique?

Start with a full extension of your arms, and make sure you retract your shoulder blades and engage your lats. The initial movement comes from the hinge of your hips. Then use your lats and arms to drive the handles down past your hips and lower into a quarter squat position, just to get an extra little use of the legs at the end of the movement.

Is there any particular risk of injury with the machine?

The SkiErg is very low-impact. The only thing I would say is if you are prone to issues with your shoulders, you need to be strict with the pull movement. There are two methods of doing it, and at Core we prefer the method that works in the vertical plane – straight up, straight down. You will see some people arc their arms out to the side as they go down, which they say may generate a little bit more power, but you have to be quite careful because the internal shoulder muscles are prone to getting injured through that type of arcing movement.

SkiErg Workouts

1. Sprint, then “rest”

To add volume without form failing, keep bursts short. Do a 30-second ski sprint, then “rest” for 90 seconds. Why is “rest” in quotes? Because you’ll do one burpee in the first rest, two in the second… and so on up to 15.

Why? “A good all-round efficient ass-kicking with an added mental test because the deeper you get, the more work you have to complete,” says trainer Steve Kowalenko (virtus-strength.com). “The ‘rest’ period starts to get eaten up quickly towards the end.”

2. Use drop sets

The 500m is a classic distance on the rower and SkiErg – it builds power and endurance. Aim to ski it in two minutes, rest for 90 seconds, then do your next set in 1min 58sec. Keep shaving two seconds off your time until you can’t any more.

Why? You’ll build work capacity and movement efficiency without sacrificing speed. In this format, every effort ends in failure – but how long you can hold on is a test of sheer mettle.

3. Find a friend

“One of you will do 250m on the Erg while the other holds a barbell overhead,” says Kowalenko. “Swap, then repeat – so you both do both parts three times.” This drill’s sometimes known as “crack pipe”. Don’t ask why.

Why? “The harder you work, the quicker the hold is over for your partner – and it’s a tough position when you’re recovering. The more you can control your breathing in a compromised position, the better off you’ll be.”

4. Add some incentives

First, pick a movement – squats, burpees, press-ups or jump lunges. Now set the distance to 5,000m and get going. Every minute, jump off and do five reps. Then get back to the grind.

Why? “This can get bad very quickly,” says Kowalenko. “The longer it takes you to get off and complete the movement, the less time you’ll have to ski. The longer this takes, the more reps of the movement you’ll do. There is no hiding from this one!” Have fun.

5. Go all out for 100m

It’s the gold standard in sprinting. You’ll go faster if you’re heavier – World’s Strongest Man Eddie Hall did it in 13.1 seconds – but good technique will take you a long way. Think big pulls, bent knees, full body.

Why? All-out bursts of anaerobic effort will improve recruitment of your fast-twitch fibres as well as burning fat – ideal if you’re aiming to carve yourself into shape. Do six 100s, with 90-second rests, trying to keep your speed consistent.

6. Head straight to hell

It doesn’t even need to freeze over. “Do 500m, then rest for the same time you skied for,” says Kowalenko. “Repeat with 400m, 300, 200 and finally 100, keeping the 1:1 work/rest ratio going.” Spoilers: it doesn’t get easier.

Why? “Partial recovery after an all-out effort gives you a crushing cardio power endurance workout if you truly go as fast as you can each interval,” says Kowalenko. Plus, because you have less distance, you can keep up the intensity. Maybe.

Most gyms, even hotel gyms home to less than half a dozen bits of kit, are likely to have a cardio machines which are a different league to the best home exercise bikes or best rowing machine. But if you’ve been dismissive of this traditional cardio equipment then you’re missing out on some important health, fitness and performance benefits.

Instead of using the bike as a five-minute warm-up ahead of a weights workout, or for a simple standalone session of easy pedalling because you’re paying too much attention to watching Netflix on your phone, try these four bike and four rowing drills to strip away fat, build muscle size, strength and endurance, and improve the health of your heart and lungs.

After all, the benefits of cardiovascular training are huge: improving your cardio fitness levels through regular bike and rower work can lower your blood pressure and reduce your risk of serious heart problems in later life. 

In the shorter term, the drills in this workout will boost your work capacity – a foundation of general fitness on which your more specific training goals can be built. 

Whether you’re an aspiring bodybuilder, a casual football or rugby player, or just someone who trains for fun, being able to increasingly handle a greater workload will stand you in great stead.

If you’re a more serious athlete, greater cardiovascular fitness will improve your VO2 max (the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use in one minute of exercise, per kilo of bodyweight). When your fitness levels improve, so does your VO2 max, meaning you can exercise with a much greater intensity. In real terms, the greater your max the more able you will be to lift heavier weights for more reps, prolong a run, keep up your pace and stamina during sports, and much more besides.

If these drills give you the taste for challenging cardio, read up on heart rate training and find more sessions with our collections of the best exercise bike workouts and rowing machine workouts. To go all in, follow this rowing workout plan.

Bike Drills

“Stand next to the bike, then adjust the seat so it’s the same height as your hip,” says PT Tom Eastham. “Then sit on the saddle and make sure your leg is straight with your heel on the pedal at the bottom of your pedal stroke. This ensures the correct position when you’re cycling properly.”

EMOM sprints

How Set the bike at the correct height, then sit on it and warm up for five minutes, pedalling at a comfortable pace. Then start the EMOM sprints: every minute on the minute, do 20 seconds of sprinting followed by 40 seconds at recovery pace. Repeat for a total of 20 minutes. Then try not to fall off the bike.

Why Alternating between bouts of all-out effort and longer recovery pedalling is one of the smartest ways to burn fat and improve cardiovascular health and fitness.

20-10 splits

How Start with a five-minute warm-up at a high cadence with low resistance. Then cycle for 20 seconds with medium resistance, then ten seconds of low resistance - that’s one rep. Do eight reps then do 60 seconds of recovery cycling at a low resistance, then repeat the drill a further three or four times, ending with a five-minute warm-down.

Why This Tabata training-style drill is great for both burning body fat, because of its intensive, heart-rate raising bursts of activity, and building endurance, thanks to the repeated bouts with short rests.

Need for speed

How Do an easy ten-minute warm-up with low resistance, then for the next ten minutes, sprint the first ten seconds of each new minute, using the other 50 seconds to recover. Then for the next ten minutes, alternate between 60 seconds of hard effort (around 80-90% of maximum heart rate) with 60 seconds of recovery cycling.

Why A high cadence – the speed you turn over the pedals – will improve your power and speed output, and alternating between bouts of hard and easy effort improves your muscles’ ability to recover faster.

The power hour

How An hour on the bike is a tough challenge – anything close to 35km is a good and achievable goal – and it’s a mental test as much as a physical one. Work your way up to it, starting with a 20-minute ride at around 80% of your maximum heart rate, then add five minutes each time you train.

Why You’ll develop mental strength to keep digging deep when things get tough, which has huge benefits in the gym (and other parts of your life), and you improve your muscles’ ability to work harder for longer to build leg strength and endurance.

Rowing Drills

“Before rowing, spend five minutes working on your mobility and glute activation,” says Eastham. “Most of us spend all day sitting down, so firing up the working muscles first will prevent injury and improve performance.”

Row and repeat

How Put the damper setting at 10, then sit on the rower with feet securely fastened and an overhand grip on the handle. Set the screen to display time and distance. Row for five minutes at a comfortable pace, then row for 250m as fast as possible while maintaining proper form. Do 60 seconds of easier recovery rowing, then do 250m at maximum effort. Do ten all-out 250m rows.

Why This interval-training drill doesn’t allow much recovery time between bouts, so with each subsequent effort it gets tougher on your heart, lungs and muscles.

2km personal best

How This one is pretty self-explanatory: set up the screen to display a 2km distance and start rowing. It’s better to start at 2km and watch the distance come down than to start at zero and watch it creep up slowly.

Why This challenge requires smart pacing so you don’t burn out before the finish, so start slowly and then increase your speed as you progress. After your first attempt you will then have a benchmark time you can attempt to better next time. Doing training drills of all-out 500m and 1km rows will help you bring down your 2km PB.

• To achieve an impressive seven minute time, follow this 11-day 2K rowing plan

Pyramid power

How After a five-minute warm-up row in which you gradually increase your effort level, row 500m as quickly as you can, then rest for the same amount of time. Then do 400m, with the same amount of rest, then 300m and so on until you finish with a 100m all-out effort.

Why Accumulated fatigue – where you don’t get enough recovery time for the effort just expended – makes the shorter distances feel far harder than they would if you did them when fresh, so you’re forced to work harder to keep the times down.

500m fastest finish

How Warm up for five minutes with some gentle rowing, gradually increasing the intensity. Then row 500m in two minutes. Rest for 90 seconds, then aim to row your second 500m in 1min 55sec. Repeat this pattern of 500m, doing it five seconds faster each time, resting 90 seconds between bouts, for as many 500m rounds as you can.

Why The 500m time challenge is fantastic for building both power and endurance, and will teach you how to be better at pacing yourself while still improving work capacity. You’re also guaranteed to work to failure.

In a pyramid workout, something – the reps, the speed, the intensity, the whatever – increases step by step until it peaks, then decreases step by step. That makes it a very different kettle of fish from most workouts, where you hit your maximum effort but then stop or hit a long recovery stretch. In a pyramid session you’re faced with an only slightly easier block of work.

That’s just something to think about when you sit down on the rowing machine to tackle this workout from GB rower and Olympic gold medal winner Will Satch. When you get to the top of the pyramid, be prepared to keep working.

“The workout is based on effort and it’s as hard for beginners as it is for the pros,” says Satch, “It should be done at max effort for as long as you can hold it.”

The workout is broken down into 250m intervals. You work hard for 250m, then coast the next 250m. Each time you hit a 250m work interval, increase your stroke rate by two strokes per minute until you hit the top of the pyramid. At that point you come down the other side of the pyramid, decreasing your stroke rate by two strokes each work block.

How tough the pyramid is will depend on how fast your stroke rate is for the first interval and how many intervals you opt to do in total. There is a suggested start point and total distance below, which you can alter depending on your fitness.

“You will be using different anaerobic systems the further into the workout you go,” says Satch. “The more advanced you get, the higher the number of strokes per minute you can start out at.”

Rowing Pyramid Workout

Warm-up

Row for 500-1,000m. Start by moving your arms only, then swinging your back, then moving out to full slide.

Workout

Set the screen to count down from 5,000m (or less, depending on your fitness level).

Row at 22 strokes per minute and pull as hard as you can for 250m, then paddle with minimal effort for 250m.

Do the same for the next 250m at an increased stroke rate, two higher than the last section of effort, so 24 per minutes, then paddle with minimal effort for 250m.

Continue to do this until you reach 30 strokes per minute, then after your 250m of rest paddling, do another effort at 30 strokes per minute.

Following this you should then drop the rate by two strokes per minute on every effort section until you are back down at 22 and you have reached your 5,000m goal.

Warm-down

Light paddle for 500-1,000m

More About Indoor Rowing

• Rowing Machine Workouts For Fat Loss, Plus Building Muscle, Speed And Endurance
• Power Up Your Entire Body With This Rowing HIIT Workout
• A New Rowing Gym Challenge For A New Rowing Competition
• The Best Rowing Machines For Home

Losing weight is one of the most common goals people have when they embark on a fitness regime. The good news is that if you’ve been inactive for a while you’ll find that at first almost any kind of exercise will help towards that goal.

In time, you may find that weight loss slows even if you keep working out regularly. That’s completely natural – it may well be that you’ve hit a healthy weight and you can just carry on exercising to keep trim. Or, you may have added muscle so even if your weight isn’t dropping you’re still getting fitter and healthier.

However, if you’re in the situation where your weight loss has plateaued but you still want the scales to shift to the left, then give this HIIT workout from Kira Mahal, trainer at personal training company MotivatePT, a whirl.

“Exercises that involve cardio and high-intensity reps are key to losing the stubborn weight that never seems to go away,” says Mahal. “All these exercises can be performed at home without any weights or machines, and it takes less than an hour to complete.”

Warm-up

High knees

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

“High knees combine the running motion and jumping knee lifts, and are a great way to increase your heart rate,” says Mahal.

Burpees with high jump

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

From standing, drop down, place your hands on the floor and kick your legs out behind you to get into the top press-up position. Then jump your feet back up to your hands and jump straight up as high as possible.

“Adding a high jump dramatically increases the heart rate and will get you sweating,” says Mahal.

Sprints (or running on the spot)

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

“This is so simple but it works wonders for weight loss,” says Mahal. “It will have you feeling breathless by the end.”

After the warm-up take a one-minute break before going on to the workout.

Workout

Jump lunge

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

“These are a lot more intense than regular lunges,” says Mahal. “Perform a normal lunge but instead of stepping forwards, jump straight up and adopt the lunge position,landing softly.”

Jump squat

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

From standing, bend at the knees and push your hips back to lower your torso, keeping your chest up throughout. Once your knees are bent at a 90° angle, explode up off the ground, jumping as high as possible. Land softly and immediately go into another squat.

“Incorporating jumps into the exercise will make the heart rate rocket,” says Mahal.

Mountain climber

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

“This exercise can be performed with resistance bands or just your bodyweight. Either will burn a high amount of calories,” says Mahal. “The quick leg motion targets the obliques, glutes and hamstrings.”

For the standard mountain climber get into a top press-up position and alternate bringing each knee towards your chest as quickly as possible. To use a resistance band with the exercise get a small band and loop it round the middle of each foot to create some tension to work against.

Clap press-up

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

Press-ups are a great exercise to have in your workout full stop, but if you can push into the air and clap your hands before landing with each rep, you’ll reap even greater benefits. Of course, there’s no benefit if you do them with poor form so start with what you can manage, resting on your knees if necessary, and build up from there.

Take another one-minute break at this point, then head on to the core section of the workout.

Core Exercises

Leg raise

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

“Lie on the floor with your legs stretched out,” says Mahal. “Then raise both legs, trying to keep them together and as straight as possible. You can place your hands under your butt for more support.”

Walking plank

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

“Start in a top press-up position with your wrists directly under your shoulders and your feet hip-width apart,” says Mahal. “Bend your left forearm down to the mat and then your right forearm. Raise yourself back up starting with your left arm, then your right arm. Alternate the side you start with.”

Bicycle crunch

Sets 4 Time 30sec Rest 20sec

“Lie on your back and place your hands behind your head with your legs stretched out,” says Mahal. “Raise your left knee to your right elbow and then your right knee to your left elbow.” Repeat at pace.

After another one-minute break it’s time to move on to the warm-down.

See related 

• Fat-Loss Workouts: Five Circuits To Build Muscle
• The Best Exercises For Weight Loss
• Cardio Workouts To Get Your Blood Pumping

Warm-down

You can do a ten-minute jog if you have the time and the inclination, then move on to the following stretches.

Standing hamstring stretch

“Stand with your feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent and arms by your sides,” says Mahal. "Exhale and bend forwards at the hips, lowering your head. Make sure to keep your head, shoulders and neck relaxed. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds.”

Lunge with spinal twist

“From a standing position with your feet together, take a big step forwards with your left foot and bend the knee to drop into a lunge while keeping your right leg straight and placing your right hand on the floor,” says Mahal. “Twist your upper body to the left and extend your left arm towards the ceiling. Hold for 30 seconds and repeat on the other side.”

Figure four stretch

“Lie on your back with your feet flat on the floor, “says Mahal. “Raise your left foot and rest it on your right quad. Hold your right leg just below the back of your knee, lift your leg and gently pull towards your chest. Hold for 30 seconds, then perform on the other leg.”

If you are a functional fitness fiend on the look-out for mass-participation events that let you show off your abilities in the gym, then let us introduce you to HYROX. These unique events involve completing eight rounds of 1km runs each followed by a different functional exercise, and it’s coming to the UK for the first time this autumn.

There are events in London, Manchester and Birmingham to look forward to, but to ensure you really shine at them, you’ll need to put in the training. This savage workout from HYROX master trainer Mintra Tilly will give you a taste of the intensity of a full HYROX event while boosting your strength and fitness.

HYROX ROBYN Workout

The ROBYN workout involves doing six rounds of three exercises as fast as you can, with a notional time cap of 30 minutes. While you can take longer than that, Tilly recommends matching the work to your fitness level.

“You can scale down the intensity by reducing the reps or the total number of rounds,” says Tilly. “Ideally, to get the right stimulus you want to be finishing within the 25-to 30-minute time range. You can also dial up the strength focus by adding weights to the lunges with a barbell, dumbbell or any convenient object.”

1 Lunge

Reps 20

“The lunge is a staple lower-body move that helps develop balanced single-leg strength and development in the quads, glutes and core,” says Tilly.

“Start standing upright, holding dumbbells. Step forward and lower until your back knee touches the floor. Return to the start position and switch legs. Your knees and hips must be extended before switching legs, with your feet directly under your hips and shoulders. Each lunge equals one rep.”

2 Burpee

Reps 20

“Start in an upright standing position,” says Tilly. “Bend your knees and place your hands close to your feet, then jump your feet back. Lower until your chest touches the ground. Push off the ground, jump your feet forwards again, then jump straight up and raise your hands above your head. Make sure your knees and hips are fully extended on the vertical jump, and that your feet come off the ground. Focus on staying controlled throughout the movement and try to find a rhythm.”

See related 

• New Fitness Event HYROX Combines Running With Functional Fitness
• What Is Functional Fitness?
• Suspension Training: Build Muscle And Functional Fitness With These Workouts

3 Row/SkiErg/treadmill run

Distance 400m

“Depending on what you have available, perform one of the three cardio options,” says Tilly. “If you have all three available, do the exercise that needs most improvement – we test all three in a full race!”

HYROX’s first event in the UK will take place at the London Excel on 25th September 2021, with further events in Birmingham on 30th October 2021 and Manchester on 29th January 2022. Tickets start from £65 and can be purchased at hyrox.com

When you’re in the gym and want a complete workout but are short on time, make a beeline for the rowing machines. You’ll strengthen muscles all over your body and improve your cardiovascular fitness to boot, and if you push the pace it takes no time at all to completely exhaust yourself on a rower, burning a proverbial boatload of calories in the process. (And so it follows that when you’re looking for a home cardio machine, look no further than the best rowing machines.)

If you’re looking for a top-notch rowing workout to fit in your lunch break, try this session from former GB rower Morgan Hellen. Hellen is also the founder of the app Rowith, which is chock-full of audio-guided rowing workouts led by the sport’s greatest names, including the mighty Olympian Steve Redgrave.

If you enjoyed this taster, try these rowing machine workouts next, or build all-round fitness with this rowing workout plan. Or if the duration suited your schedule, try one of these 20-minute workouts. Or to get the blood pumping, try these cardio workouts.

Pro Tips To Nail Your Rowing Technique

Before we detail the workout it’s worth checking out these form tips from Hellen. After all, how often do you get to hear a Team GB rower explaining how to row properly?

“The start – also known as the catch – and the finish are key positions and something you should practise before taking a stroke,” says Hellen.

“At the catch, you should have your legs compressed [knees bent, bum to heels] with vertical shins, have a straight back, be leaning slightly forwards (about 15°) and have your arms out straight in front at chest level with your shoulders down and relaxed. You should be holding the handle with your thumbs under, fingers on top and little fingers almost hanging off each end.

“At the finish you should have your legs extended with knees flat, a straight back leaning slightly backwards – again, about 15° – and arms bent at the elbow with flat wrists. The handle should be just below your pecs and hand positioning should remain the same throughout the stroke.

“Starting from the catch you should drive your knees down flat, keeping your arms straight and your body slightly forwards. Swing your body back and then pull with your arms, bringing your thumbs to your chest. Each of these stages will slightly overlap but should stay mostly separate in a continuous loop. To get back to the catch, do the same in reverse.”

For more advice to master your stroke, read these five tips for improving your rowing technique from Olympic gold medallist Andrew Triggs Hodge.

Rowing Machine Workout

The intervals get shorter as you proceed through this workout, but the intensity gets higher. You’ll be judging the intensity by stroke rate (strokes per minute or SPM), but it’s important to make sure your strokes are still of a high quality, so keep Hellen’s guide to good rowing form in mind.

“Generally, the more strokes you take the faster you will go, but not if you compromise the stroke length or let off the pressure,” says Hellen. “Stroke rate should increase with the intensity of the workout. Try about 20SPM for longer, low-intensity workouts and about 30SPM for shorter, higher-intensity workouts.”

In terms of the damper setting on the rowing machine, Hellen recommends 4-6 as the most realistic representation of what it’s like on the water.

After warming up on the rowing machine try this 20-minute workout, and make sure to warm down afterwards.

Interval 1

Time 5min SPM 22 Rest 1min

Interval 2

Time 4min SPM 24 Rest 1min

Interval 3

Time 3min SPM 26 Rest 1min

Interval 4

Time 2min SPM 28 Rest 1min

Interval 5

Time 1min SPM 30 Rest 1min

This quick-fix workout takes just 10 minutes to complete and will torch a huge number of calories both during and after your session as your body tries to recover from the high-intensity work. “This is a great session that will test your grip and lower-body strength endurance,” says trainer Olli Foxley. “The descending rep scheme will give you some light at the end of the tunnel and allows you to maintain good technique.” If you don’t have a sled in your gym you can do a farmer’s walk, where you carry dumbbells over a set distance, although you will find that particular substitution poses an even greater challenge to your grip strength.

If you’re after more short, sharp workouts, take a look at this collection of 10-minute workouts. And for more ladder workouts, try this dumbbell ladder workout and this kettlebell ladder workout. 

How To Do This Workout

Do 50 kettlebell swings, then push the sled for 20m. Then do 40 swings and push the sled for 20m, and continue, reducing the swing count by ten each round until you do 10 swings followed by a 20m sled push. Aim to take minimal rest between rounds. Beginners should use a 16kg kettlebell, intermediates should use a 20kg one and advanced exercisers should use 24kg.

1 Kettlebell swing

Hinge at the hips to send the kettlebell back between your legs, then straighten up with a powerful hip drive to raise the weight to shoulder height. The movement should be a hinge, not a squat or front raise.

“Kettlebell swings are great for the hamstrings and glutes and will help combat the effects of being seated for long periods of time,” says Foxley. “The reduction in reps allows you to maintain good form as you get tired.”

2 Sled push

Load up the sled and push it with either straight or bent arms. Getting lower generally makes it easier, as does positioning your body in a straight line from head to heels.

“The sled is always a good option for conditioning because it’s not a technical movement,” says Foxley. “It also lacks an eccentric – lowering under tension – component, meaning you’re not likely to be too sore after the session.”

Rowing is hard, that’s why Steve Redgrave used to renounce the coxless four after seemingly every Olympics (only to inevitably knuckle down and scoop another gold medal at the next one). More specifically the 2,000m—the distance of every Olympic event emphasises endurance, power delivery and mental toughness. Rowing machine workouts are also one of the few forms of cardio that builds muscle. A 7min 30 sec 2K row is respectable and 7 min is impressive. Here’s how to achieve it.

Rowing Form

Yanking at the handle like a lawnmower? You need to work on your rowing technique. Here’s how the pros pull.

1. The Catch

Keep your arms straight, head up and upper body leaning forward from the hips. “Your shins shouldn’t go past vertical,” says David Hart of Concept2, makers of one of the best rowing machines. “And don’t overreach.”

2. The Drive

Start the drive by pressing with your legs. As you move back lean back slightly, then finally add the arm pull. “Your hands move in a straight line to and from the flywheel,” says Hart.

3. The Finish

“At the end of the stroke, your upper body should be leaning back to about 11 o’clock. Keep the handle held lightly below your ribs, and don’t ‘chicken wing’ it- keep your elbows in.”

4. The recovery

“Extend your arms until they’re straight, then lean forward from your hips. Once your hands have cleared your knees, allow your knees to bend and slide the seat forward.”

The 2K Rowing Plan

Devised by Gym Jones coach Pieter Vodden, this 2K-smashing strategy takes just 11 days to complete. Repeat the whole thing until your best reaches the “respectable” time of 7min 30sec.

Day 1: Row for 30sec with 90sec recovery. Start by aiming to go 150m per 30sec period and increase that by 1m per round. Take it up as far as you can—170 is the goal.

Day 2: Rest

Day 3: Row 10 x 500m with 1min rest. Try and hold your intended 2K split time pace—so if you’re shooting for a 7min 2K, you need to hit 1min 45 sec. On the last round go all out.

Day 4: Rest

Day 5: Rest

Day 6: Warm up for 10 minutes, and then row 1,000m as fast as possible.

Day 7: Rest

Day 8: Warm up for 10 minutes, and then row 1,500m as fast as possible.

Day 9: Rest

Day 10: Rest

Day 11: Warm up for 20 minutes at a slow pace, with occasional power 10s—10 hard strokes at your target 2K pace. Then row 2,000m as fast as possible.

Want to know why we recommend this rower? Read our Concept2 RowErg review. Want more options? Head to our selection of the best rowing machines.

More Sessions On The Rower

• The Rowing Workout Plan To Build All-Round Fitness
• This Rowing HIIT Workout Will Power Up Your Entire Body
• Up The Intensity With This 20-Minute Rowing Workout

Photograph: Element5 Digital via Unsplash

If you want an example of the crazy, topsy-turvy world we live in, consider the jump rope, the preserve of boxers and small girls. How can one length of rope be so popular with the toughest, most merciless people in the world and… wait for it… boxers?

Of course, there’s method to the madness. Skipping is both ruddy hard and fun. Perhaps that’s why Technogym, the maker of the upscale cardio machines you’ll find in many commercial gyms, includes a skipping rope (£69) in its range of at-home exercise equipment.

Not just any skipping rope, of course, but one with textured handles so they don’t slip out of your soon-to-be-very-sweaty palms and ball bearings in the handles to aid the rotation of the rope.

So what better excuse to ask Technogym master trainer David Howatson for a workout that’s both ruddy hard and a little bit fun? Not too hard, though – it mixes short periods of skipping with bodyweight exercises and rest. “Jumping can be a tough activity so rest and active recovery are important,” says Howatson.

If nearly £70 for a skipping rope seems unreasonable, you can find more affordable options with our selection of the best skipping ropes.

Skipping Workout

Each stage has a pair of moves. The first is a bodyweight exercise, the second uses a skipping rope. Do each move for 30 seconds, rest for 30 seconds then move on to the next pair of exercises.

After the final set of exercises, rest for two minutes. Repeat the circuit three to five times.

1A Star jump

Time 30sec Rest 0sec

Start out at a slow-to-moderate speed, using the star jumps to warm up your body for impact. Stand with your feet together and hands by your sides. Lower, then explode into the air spreading your arms and legs wide. Bring your legs together and arms to your sides before you land.

1B Double-leg jump

Time 30sec Rest 30sec

The double-leg jump is an easy way to get moving with the rope – both feet leave the ground together and land together. Keep the jumps small and aim for a comfortable rhythm.

2A Mountain climber

Time 30sec Rest 0sec

This move helps you engage your core and prepare your body for lifting your knees. Get into a high plank position with your hands on the floor directly under your shoulders and arms extended, toes on the floor and your body forming a straight line from shoulders to ankles. Bring one knee in towards your chest, then the other, and keep alternating at pace.

2B Single-leg hop

Time 30sec Rest 30sec

The single-leg hop should mirror the height and rhythm of the double-leg jumps. Rhythm and staying light on your feet are the key to nailing the timing. Switch legs after 15 seconds.

See related

• The Best Skipping Ropes For Your Workouts
• Master These Skipping Techniques To Boost Your Cardio Fitness
• Use This 15-Minute Boxing Workout From Barry McGuigan To Start Getting “Punching Fit”
• Get A Taste Of 12x3 Gym’s Boxing Workouts With This Home Session

3A Lateral lunge

Time 30sec Rest 0sec

The side lunge adds a different plane of movement and prepares the body for the next jump rope movement. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Take a large step to the side and bend your leading leg to lower, keeping your standing leg straight. Push through the heel of your leading leg to return to the starting position. Alternate sides with each rep.

3B Alternating high knees

Time 30sec Rest 30sec

Alternating high knees looks more like the traditional skipping action. Bring one knee up towards your chest while you pass the rope under your hopping leg twice, then change legs.

4A Push plank with rotation

Time 30sec Rest 0sec

Get into a high plank position, then bring one arm up and rotate your body towards the ceiling. Hold for three to four seconds, then lower into the starting position. Repeat on the other side.

4B Twisting jump

Time 30sec Rest 2min

This has the same action and tempo as the first skipping exercise but just before the landing, you rotate the hips so your toes point to one side. Alternate the twists so your toes land pointing first to the left and then to the right. This gets the lower back and waist working, just as with the rotation from the push plank.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is everywhere right now, and every time you step into a gym you’ll find plenty of people going hell for leather to jack up their heart rate and burn calories as quickly as possible.

However, HIIT is not the only way to train. And it’s not necessarily the best way to train, either, especially if you’re someone just starting out on a fitness kick. Low-intensity steady-state training, or LISS, differs greatly from HIIT in its approach but the benefits it delivers can be just as impressive.

For all the info on LISS, we spoke to Marvin Burton, head of fitness at gym chain Anytime Fitness UK.

What is LISS?

It’s a method of training or exercise and as the name suggests, your objective would be to keep your heart rate at a comfortable, yet maintainable level and to work for a longer period.

What are the benefits of it?

Lower-intensity exercise allows you to build your base fitness. This would be a foundational attribute that is highly recommended before high-intensity exercise. It is much safer and develops your ability to control your breathing, strengthens your heart and improves your overall fitness. For people who are highly stressed, this method of training may be more valuable because it could reduce stress.

We must always remember that stress presents itself in three key forms: emotional, mental and physical. So it isn’t always sensible to train hard after a mentally stressful day! You could be adding to the problem, instead of reducing or dealing with the real issue.

See related

• How To Calculate Your Heart Rate Zones And What They Mean
• The Best Cross-Trainer Workout Plan For Beginners
• Is Exercise Actually Stressing You Out?

How do the benefits differ from HIIT?

For a beginner or somebody returning from a long period without exercise, there wouldn’t be much difference apart from a reduced amount of delayed onset muscle soreness, which, you sometimes get with HIIT, depending on the type of exercise. As mentioned before, foundational fitness levels should always be established before even considering a HIIT workout. LISS is less demanding upon your muscles and joints. Therefore, recovery time may also be reduced – allowing you to exercise again after a shorter space of time.

What would a typical LISS workout look like?

Walk, cycle or pedal a cross-trainer at a maintainable speed and intensity for more than 20 minutes. Stretching and mobility-based exercises could also be considered for LISS.

Anytime Fitness has over 165 gyms across the UK. Visit anytimefitness.co.uk/find-gym to claim a free day pass.

As winter approaches, many keen cyclists are planning on moving their workouts indoors – and some of those who would normally go to the gym are looking for alternatives in the form of exercise bikes and turbo trainers. With a drawn-out winter ahead it’s worth gathering as many effective workouts as possible to fill the months of indoor training to come, and you can add this hour-long workout from the team at Wattbike to your hoard.

The session involves five long intervals performed at a high intensity and, though you do get long rest periods to recover, it’s going to be a tough hour so it’s best saved for when you feel well rested and ready to challenge yourself. The benefits are worth it, though – you’ll see your overall fitness and in particular your endurance increase.

The workout uses the Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale as a guide to the intensity of each part of the workout. This is more straightforward than a measure you need a tech for such as power output or heart rate, and also means that if you do attempt this workout when feeling a bit run-down, the effort you have to put in adjusts to how you’re feeling on the day.

The RPE scale runs from one to 10: broadly speaking one requires almost no effort, at five you’ll be breaking a sweat but able to hold a conversation, and 10 is all-out maximum effort and only possible to sustain for short stints.

If you have a Wattbike you can find more workouts like this as well as training plans on the Wattbike Hub app.

See related :

• Exercise Bike Workouts
• Wattbike Workouts To Power Up Your Fitness
• Wattbike Atom Exercise Bike Review: The Best-Value Smart Bike

Indoor Cycling Workout

Battle ropes are no passing fad. They’ve been around since the mid-noughties and interest has steadily increased to the point where nearly all gyms have a set. And there’s a good reason for such widespread adoption. Throwing these thick, heavy ropes about does more than look impressive – it’s a ruthlessly effective workout.

Along with increased strength and fat loss, battle ropes provide an intense cardio workout – they’re well-suited to Tabata training – and develop muscular endurance. What’s not to love?

It’s also an easy-to-acquire piece of kit which is simple to set up outside and takes up minimal storage space. We’ve recommended four of the best battle ropes for you to choose from.

Use our guide to the key exercises, as well as workouts and session finishers from the experts, to reap the benefits for yourself.

How To Master Battle Ropes Wave

The wave is the quintessential battle ropes exercise – and it’s one that we think it’s fair to say that Rhian Cowburn, Strong + Bendy gym co-founder, has mastered. Cowburn performed battle ropes waves for an hour to take the female Guinness World Record while beating the men’s time, too. So who better to ask for advice on how to perform the move?

Get your grip right

“The ideal grip is the hand and fingers on the handle,” says Cowburn, “but with the thumb off the handle on the rope itself, with your hands facing each other. I find this allows you to flick the wrist in a way that isn’t possible when just holding the handle.

“I often see people holding the handle right at the end. This is a no-no, because it means you can’t flick the wrist. Also, if you’re working up to endurance sets your hands will get sweaty and the rope could end up slipping out of your hands.”

Set a solid stance

“Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart,” says Cowburn. “Don’t stand completely upright, but put a slight bend in your hips and knees while keeping your back straight and chest forwards.”

Flick, don’t tug

“Visualise throwing the ropes up and away by flicking your wrist quickly to raise and lower the ropes, alternating between your right and left hand,” says Cowburn. “A common error is tugging the ropes towards yourself, which doesn’t create a nice wave motion and can also cause shoulder injuries.”

Learn the ropes

“Make sure to choose rope of the right length and thickness,” says Cowburn. “Is the wave reaching all the way to the anchor point? Be honest. If not, perhaps your rope is too thick, too long, or both. When starting out, a nine-metre long, ⅕in-thick rope will definitely be enough to get a great workout in. Then you can progress up to 12m-plus ropes and if you want to really take it up a notch, increase the rope thickness to two inches.”

Breathe

''This sounds obvious,” says Cowburn, “but often the level of concentration needed means people hold their breath! Needless to say you won’t last very long on a workout that’s challenging both your strength and cardio fitness at the same time without making sure you’re taking long deep breaths.”

Don’t creep forwards

“The thing to watch out for during a long set is ending up closer to the anchor point than when you started,” says Cowburn. “You’ll hardly realise you’re doing it, but gradually you can end up creeping forwards, which puts too much slack in the ropes and makes it really hard to create a nice wave as well as keeping great form. Put a marker down in chalk or tape on the floor, and try to stand on or close to that point for the duration of your long set.”

5 Essential Battle Rope Exercises

“You can use ropes at the beginning of your session as part of a warm-up or activation phase,” says Charles Allan-Price from W10 Performance gym. “You can also use them in the middle of your workout to build intensity with waves, slams and whips, or you can use them at the end of a workout as a finisher for time or reps.”

“Ropes are great for time-based workouts,” says Allan-Price. “You work at a higher intensity than you do than with, say, dumbbells so you get your heart rate up as well to burn more calories.” Here are Allan-Price’s favorite battle rope exercises to add to your training repertoire.

1 Biceps wave

Keeping the rest of your body still, wave the ropes as fast as possible, focusing on high reps and high amplitude. It’ll prime your muscles for what’s to come.

“Stay in a quarter squat position, with your back straight, and keep elbow movement to a minimum,” says Allan-Price. “Keeping your elbows in will stop your shoulders from burning out and keep the movement in the biceps.”

2 Lateral whip

With a slight bend in your elbows, bring the ropes up as if you were doing a lateral raise, keeping your thumbs pointing slightly forwards. Then whip them downwards. Continue to do your raises at speed.

“This is a great way to target the rear delts and back muscles, which are muscles associated with creating better posture,” says Allan-Price. “Common errors include too much leg movement in and out of the squat, and letting the torso slouch. Keep your chest up and stay in a quarter squat position.”

3 Outside spiral

With alternate arms, make outward circles so that the rope moves like a corkscrew, working your shoulders and rotator cuffs.

“This exercises has a few variations for all levels of ability, from half kneeling to clockwise and anti-clockwise rotations,” says Allan-Price. “It will work the rotator cuffs, which are the small stabilising muscles of the shoulder joints, and create core tension – that’s why it is important to keep your torso as strong as possible by not allowing yourself to slouch. It’s a fun and dynamic way to train the back muscles and rotator cuffs.”

4 Lying T

Lie face down with your arms forming a T-shape, then move them up and down as if you’re preparing for lift-off. It’ll work your lower back and shoulders.

“Another great exercise to work the posture muscles, and a great activation drill when starting a battle rope workout,” says Allan-Price. “During this exercise you’re going to work the upper, middle and lower traps as well as the rear delts, and your shoulders will be burning after 30 seconds. It’s great to use either in warm-ups or as a main set exercise. Make sure you squeeze your glutes and don’t arch your lower back. You should mainly feel this through the upper back and the shoulders.”

5 Jumping slam

Battle Rope Exercises For Your Core

Full circle wave

Stand tall, sideways on to where the rope ends are fixed, holding the other ends of the ropes in each hand with your hands together. Move your hands in a big circle clockwise in front of your body for 12 reps, then do 12 reps anti-clockwise. Turn around then repeat. Rest for 30 seconds and repeat three times.

Two-point wave

Start in the plank position with your abs fully engaged and your body straight. Hold the rope in your right hand and raise your left leg. Wave your right hand up and down, keeping the rest of your body stable, for 15 seconds, then switch sides and repeat. Rest for 30 seconds and repeat five times.

Side plank wave

Start in a side plank with your legs straight and your upper body supported on your right forearm. Hold the rope in your left hand and wave it up and down for 15 seconds. Switch sides and repeat. Rest 30 seconds and repeat five times.

Upper-Body Battle Ropes Workout

”For any sport that demands upper-body conditioning, like rugby, MMA or CrossFit, ropes are a very useful tool because of the amount of conditioning you can get from them,” says top personal trainer Tom Eastham (@EasthamsFitness). “For maximum effect, focus on maintaining the intensity of the motion from start to finish, no matter how much it burns.”

In fact, if it’s upper-body conditioning you want, battle ropes are the best tool. “It’s hard to get it from anything else without serious fatigue,” says Eastham. “Sure, you can max out on press-ups and suspension rows, but you won’t be working for very long. The ropes will fatigue your cardiovascular system before your muscles give in.”

Do this three-move rope workout to whip your upper body into shape. Do move 1 for 40 seconds on, rest for 20 seconds, then do the same for moves 2 and 3. Do 12 rounds.

1 Alternating rope whips

Stand upright with your feet hip-width apart, holding a battle rope in each hand. Begin to move the ropes up and down one at a time creating a wave movement through both ropes. Move the ropes quickly and smoothly, one at a time.

2 Wrestler throws

Grab the ropes in a reverse grip so the ends are pointing toward the ceiling. Whip the ropes up and over, rotating your whole body to the left. Then whip up and over and rotate your whole body to the right. Do as many reps as you can, always imagining you’re throwing the rope to the floor.

3 Lunge slam

Holding a rope in each hand, raise your arms and slam the ropes down into the ground as hard as you can while lunging to one side. Repeat the move on alternate sides.

Battle Rope Finishers

Quickfire workout finishers for fast fat loss and upper-body conditioning.

Tabata rope whips

What Eight rounds of 20 seconds’ work and ten seconds’ rest of double rope whips.

Why “We are not looking for power here, just total rep count over four minutes,” says Eastham. “Grab a friend and ask them to count, then challenge them to beat your score. It’s all about intensity over volume – something CrossFit does very well. This challenge should bring your intensity towards the max.”

Burpee whips

What Alternate five double rope whips with one burpee. See how many burpees you can manage in 60 seconds.

Why “Any contact sport athlete needs the ability to get up from the floor quickly and often,” says Eastham. “With the rugby players I train, I test their max effort burpee score in 60 seconds. Add in some battle ropes and they are in a mess. A great test of your max power output.”

Muscular endurance test

What The exercise is simple. Alternating singe arm rope whips. Work for 30 seconds. Rest for 30 seconds.

Why The aim is to complete as many intervals as possible, keeping a steady pace and without dropping the rope. “This is as much a mental toughness test as it is a physical one,” says Eastham. “Be honest with yourself, and don’t drop the tempo of those whips.”

If you’re a regular runner looking to improve your speed and endurance you’ll know that it’s essential to mix up the type of training runs you do each week. Sometimes that means short sprint sessions. Sometimes it means getting miles in your legs with a long, easy run. And sometimes, it means hill runs.

If you’re struggling to find the motivation to tackle some hills—either on the treadmill or outside—Myprotein health and fitness expert Faye Reid has shared four benefits of incline training. Then we have three training sessions from Olympian and Runna coach Steph Davis. Finally there are top tips for tackling hill training from Ieuan Thomas, Saucony UK Athlete and British world championship competitor.

Four Benefits Of Hill Running

1. It Burns More Calories

If your number one aim is to burn calories, find your nearest incline. The extra effort involved compared with running on the flat means you’ll be calling on your body’s reserves at a much faster rate, while also strengthening your muscles

“Uphill running utilizes more muscle fibers than flat running and therefore improves strength while burning fat,” says Faye Reid.

2. It Prevents Common Running Injuries

Regular runners place a lot of pressure on their shins and knees, often resulting in persistent niggles in those areas. Running uphill can help you avoid exacerbating those issues.

“Flat and downhill runs will mean that your weight is shifted forward and have more impact on your shins than on the supporting calf muscles, quads, hamstrings and glutes that are used to propel you forward when running uphill,” says Reid.

“The same can be said for your joints—your knees feel more strain on a flat or declining surface than your posterior muscles do.

“Uphill running is a perfect option for anyone looking to work those rear muscles and avoid excessive strain on your shins and knees.”

3. It Improves Endurance

No flat run feels easier than the first flat run after a hill session, and the overall endurance improvements you make will be clear next time you tackle a long race.

“By regularly running uphill, you’ll find returning to your previous flat runs comparatively easy,” says Reid.

“As the incline requires more effort and puts your muscles fibers to work, in time your overall running stamina and form will improve.”

4. It Increases Speed

Running both up and down hills helps strengthen the muscles in your legs so if you feel the need for speed, incline work can get you there.

“The extra workout to your leg muscles helps increase your running speed,” says Reid. “The same can be said for downhill running, which will build your quads. If it’s a personal best you are training for, add hill running intervals into your routine.”

Hill Training Workouts

“Hill sessions can be tough, but they have benefits and add variety to training,” says Runna coach Steph Davis. “Hill sessions are best done at the start of a training block as they are great for building strength and power, and therefore lay a strong foundation for the more intense workouts to come.”

Here are three hill workouts from Davis to try.

Hill Workout 1: Alternating Hill Reps

In this session you alternate between longer, more sustainable reps and shorter, less sustainable reps. 

“This trains the body to adapt to the changes in pace you may experience in a race,” says Davis. “Shorter reps are also great for building strength and power.”

Warm-up: 10-15min, easy pace

Workout: Do 2-8 sets, depending on your running experience, of the following:

• Run uphill for 60sec at 70%-80% effort
• Recover for 60sec while jogging downhill
• Run uphill for 30sec at 80%-90% effort
• Recover for 90-120sec while jogging downhill

Warm-down: 10-15min, easy pace

Hill Workout 2: Drop Set Hill Reps

“This is a great workout for practicing your pacing,” says Davis. “To get the best out of ourselves in the shorter reps at the end, we have to control the effort in the longer reps. We are slightly fatigued going into the shorter reps so we are practicing running on tired legs. This improves our resistance to fatigue and will come in handy for longer races.”

Warm-up: 10-15min, easy pace

Workout Block 1: Do 5-10 reps, depending on your experience, of the following:

• Run uphill for 60sec at 70%-80% effort
• Recover for 60-90sec while jogging back downhill

Workout Block 2: Do 5-10 reps, depending on your experience, of the following:

• Run uphill for 30sec at 80%-90% effort
• Recover for 45-60sec while jogging back downhill

Warm-down: 10-15min, easy pace

Hill Workout 3: Endurance Hill Reps

“This session will improve your strength and power, and also give you a confidence boost for hilly races,” says Davis. “Running uphill forces us into a better running position, and the longer the hill rep the longer we spend in this position. This results in improved running form, which increases efficiency and improves running economy.”

Warm-up: 10-15min, easy pace

Workout: Do 5-15 reps, depending on your experience, of the following:

• Run uphill for 90sec at 60%-70% effort
• Recover by jogging down to where you started

“The goal is to finish at the same point, or a little bit further up the hill with each rep,” says Davis. “Don’t start off too fast.”

Warm-down: 10-15min, easy pace

Hill Running Tips

1. Keep It Quick

Resist the urge to slow down too much. “Maintain a fast leg cadence,” says Ieuan Thomas. “Think about your ground contact and ‘springing’ back off the ground as soon as possible after contact.”

2. Resist The Lean

You’re going to want to hunch up like Rocky. Don’t. “Fight the urge to lean too far forwards,” says Thomas. “This will reduce your range of motion, leading to a shorter stride and less power output.” Instead, let yourself angle naturally towards the incline.

3. Keep Moving Your Arms

Hill runs are a full-body endeavour. “The faster your arms move, the faster your legs will move too,” says Thomas. “Use them to generate more leg power.”

4. Watch The Terrain

Even if you’re not going to race off-road, it’s worth doing it in training. “If you’re going off-road, be wary of loose and uneven terrain,” says Thomas. Look up and ahead to spot your next foot placement rather than looking directly at the floor.

5. Enjoy The Downhills

“Avoid the temptation to lean back on the downhills,” says Thomas. “It’s a waste of energy. Instead of striding further and braking, up your cadence and focus on turnover.”

If you’re looking for the most efficient way to get fit at home, workouts that improve both your strength and cardiovascular health in one go are a solid bet. These generally involve doing exercises at speed to get your heart pumping while you work the muscles as well.

This indoor cardio workout from the Garmin Connect app is one great option for doing just that. Anyone can see the workout if they download the app and create an account, but to follow it live you’ll need a compatible Garmin watch to sync the workout to; the watch then tells you when to work and when to rest, as well as providing animations to show you how to do the exercises and counting reps.

Pictured: Garmin Vivoactive 4

Indoor Cardio Workout

Complete three rounds of the following series of exercises, resting for one minute between rounds. The workout will take under 30 minutes in total and mostly focuses on your abs, glutes and hamstrings, as well as improving your cardiovascular fitness.

1 Run (or high knees)

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

If you have a treadmill, jump on that. Assuming you don’t, run on the spot, bringing your knees up to your chest.

2 Plank with arm raise

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

Get into a plank position supported on your toes and forearms, with your body forming a straight line from your head to your feet. Keeping your torso still, raise and extend your left arm out to the front, then bring it down and repeat with your right arm.

3 Low lunge with isometric adduction

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

From standing, step forwards into a lunge and lower until your back knee touches the ground. Lean forwards and plant your hands on the ground inside your front foot, press your front knee in your body and hold for a second, then come back up to standing. Alternate sides with each rep.

See related 

• 10-Minute Cardio At Home Workout
• A Low-Impact Cardio Workout That Goes Easy On Your Joints

4 In ’n’ out squat jump

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

From standing, jump and move your feet out so you land in a wide stance. Drop straight into a squat, then drive back up and jump again, moving your feet back so you land with them shoulder-width apart.

5 Jumping jack

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

From standing, jump and take your hands above your head while moving your feet out to land in a wide stance. Jump again, bringing your feet back under you and your arms back to your sides.

6 Chest-to-floor burpee

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

Drop into a press-up position and lower your chest to touch the floor. Push back up and jump your feet towards your hands. Stand up, then jump straight up and take your hands above your head.

7 Side-to-side shuffle jump

Time 45sec Rest 15sec

Jump to one side, landing on both feet at the same time. Reach down and touch the floor with both hands, then stand up and jump back the other way. Continue jumping from side to side, touching the floor with your hands every time you land.

8 Squat and side kick

Time 45sec Rest 1min 15sec

From standing, drop into a squat. Push back up and kick one leg out to the side, raising your foot to hip level or as high as you can. Squat again and then kick on the other side.