Now the Christmas season is well and truly over, many people will be looking forward to their summer holidays. This 12-week plan is designed to help you achieve that beach body you desire by shedding body fat, improving muscle definition and tone as well as increasing your cardio fitness. The 12-week plan is split into 4 sections with each one lasting for 3 weeks. Weeks 1-3 starts you off with a whole body resistance-training plan alongside steady rate cardio. The next 3 weeks will include more advanced resistance exercises and introduce you to interval training. Weeks 6-9 will bring in superset training as well as fitness challenges and then the last 3 weeks you will finish off with high intensity circuit training.

The first 3-week plan will be an open post so everybody can give it a try and then the rest of the plan will be posted in our member’s section. If you want to give this 12-week plan a go and are not yet a member then simply sign up today and start your journey towards the beach body you desire.

Weeks 1-3.

Warm up:

Before starting any workout always begin with a 5-10 minute warm up. Start with 5 minutes of gently cardio (cycling, rowing, cross-trainer etc) to raise your heart rate and core temperature and then do the following exercises to help prepare your body for the resistance training. Do 2 sets of 12 on each exercise.

Medicine ball extension and flexion: Hold a light medicine ball with both hands and assume a squat position by bending your knees and sitting your bottom back whilst keeping your chest lifted. From this position stand up and swing the ball over your head keeping the movement controlled. Return to the start position and repeat.

Medicine ball rotations: Hold a light medicine in both hands with arms extended. From an upright position rotate from your trunk moving the ball from one side to the next.

Prisoner squat: Stand upright with your hands resting behind your head. Lower into a squat by bending your knees and keeping your chest lifted whilst keeping your weight through your heels. As you stand up raise onto your toes and hold for a second before repeating.

Lunge with rotation: Step forward and descend into a lunge by bending your front and back knees. Your front knee should be in line with your front ankle and your back knee should be just off the floor. As you lunge rotate your trunk towards the same side as your front leg whilst keeping an upright posture. Step back and repeat on the opposite leg.

Core:

The workout starts with 2 core exercises. These will help get the muscles around your trunk switched on and ready for the main resistance programme.

Plank: Rest on your forearms and toes keeping your abs pulled in (imagine pulling your belly button towards your spine) and glutes tight (muscle in the bottom) so your back remains flat. Begin by holding this position for 10-20 seconds and then aim to work up to 40 seconds-1 minute over the next 3 weeks. If you find it hard then start with your knees on the floor and work up to the full plank. Complete 3 sets with a 30-40 seconds rest in between.

Heel taps: Start on your back with legs in the air and knees slightly bent. Keeping your abdominal muscles pulled in slowly lower one foot to the ground until your heel touches the floor without your back lifting. Return to the start position and then repeat with the opposite leg. Start off with 6 reps per leg and work up to 10 reps per leg. If it becomes easier then perform the exercise with legs straight to increase the range of movement. Complete 3 sets with a 30-40 second rest in between.

Members can see these 2 exercises in action at the adbominal post.

Main workout:

Press ups: Hold your body in a straight line with your hands slightly wider than your shoulders. Lower your chest to the floor under control keeping your elbows out to the side and slighlty below your shoulders. Aim to complete 3 sets of 12 reps with a 30-40 second rest in between. If you can’t do full press-ups then start with your knees on the floor. Build your reps up to 20 over the 3 weeks. If you can then complete 3 sets of 20 on your toes and find it comfortable then look at a harder variation such as raising your feet on a low step box.

Dumbbell squat: Stand with your feet hip width with your toes pointing forward and hold a dumbbell in each hand with your arms hanging by the side of your body. Bend your knees and sit your bottom back whilst keeping your arms straight and chest up. Lower until your thighs are parallel to the floor making sure your knees are in line with your feet and your weight is through your heels. Return to the start position and repeat. Start with 3 sets of 12 and work up to 20 reps. Once you can complete 3 sets of 20 and it feels comfortable then increase the weight of your dumbbells slightly.

Lat pulldown.: Sit facing the machine and grab the handles with a wider than shoulder width grip. Pull the handle towards your chest by bending your elbows. Keep your chest lifted but don’t lean back. Take the bar just below your chin and then slowly return to the start postion. Find a weight that youu can complete 3 sets of 12 reps with and then build up to 20 reps. Once you can complete 20 reps with perfect technique then slightly increase the weight. (If this machine is not available to you then please contact me for an alternative).

Dumbeel lunges: Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your arms by the side of your body. Step forward and lower into a lunge by bending both knees and lowering your hips towards the ground. Your front knee should by over your front ankle and your body should remain upright with a flat back. Step back and repeat on the opposite leg. Aim to complete 3 sets of 6 reps per leg and then work up to 10 reps per leg. Once you can do this then slighlty increase the weight.

Standing dumbbell shoulder press: Hold the dumbbells at shoulder level with palms facing away. Press the weights overhead untill both arms are fully extended but without locking your elbows. Return under control to the start positon and repeat. Complete 3 sets of 12 reps and work up to 20 reps. Once you can complete 3 full sets of 20 then increase your weight slightly.

Cardio;

For the first 3 weeks of the plan the aim is to complete 20 minutes of steady rate cardio training. This can be done on any piece of cardio equipment i.e. rower, cycle, treadmill etc or you could do 10 minutes on 2 pieces of kit. The aim is to work at around 70% of your maximum heart rate. A simple way of working out your max heart rate would be 220 minus your age and then 70% of this. So for example a 20 year old would have a max HR of 200 and so their target HR would be around 140 beats per minute. If you have not got access to heart rate monitors then use the perceived exertion scale. To do this think of a scale of 1-10, 1 indicates you are working at a level that is very comfortable which you could sustain for 30 minutes without any difficulties. Level 10 means you are working at your maximum intensity which you would only be able to sustain for a few seconds. During the 20 minutes you want to be working around a level 6-7 (So that you are breathing heavier but still able to talk).

Cooldown: After your cardio section spend 5 minutes lowing your heart rate with some gently cardio and then finish with some static stretching for your major muscle groups (chest, back, legs). Hold each stretch for 20-30 seconds.

Aim to complete this workout 3 times per week with at least one rest day in between. Make sure you are progressing the intensity over the 3 weeks whenever you can.

DIET: To get your beach body not only do you need to be working hard in the gym but you also need to be following a healthy balanced diet. For all members you can contact me for your personalised eating plan that will accompany this woekout.

I will be posting the next part of this workout plan over the next couple of weeks, if you have any problems with this part of the workout then please get in touch.