12 Days of Fitness

1st Day of Fitness

1 x Walkout

Begin standing, put your hands on the ground in front of your toes. Gradually walk your hands forward into a plank/press up position. Slowly, walk them back in to the starting position.

Easier version

Rest on your knees and move your hands forward and back from that position.

Challenge yourself

Once in the plank position, incorporate one, two, three or more press ups before walking your hands back to the beginning.

2nd Day of Fitness 

2 x Mountain Climbers

Drop to a top press-up position, with your arms straight and legs extended and supporting your weight on your hands and toes. Keeping your core engaged, bring one knee towards your chest, then return it to the starting position. Repeat the movement with your other leg, then continue

Easier version

Put your hands on a bench or other raised surface. This forces your legs to take more of your bodyweight.

Challenge yourself

Rest your hands on an uneven surface such as a gym ball, or by bringing your right leg out and right knee towards your right elbow for Spider-Man Mountain Climbers.

3rd Day of Fitness

3 x Press Ups

Set your hands on the ground slightly wider than shoulder-width apart and feet set comfortably apart. Support your weight on your toes and hands with body in a straight line and your arms straight. With core braced, steadily lower yourself until your elbows are at a 90 degree angle or smaller, then pause and push through your arms until you are up and back in the starting position.  (Option 2)

Easier version

Perform the press up on your knees (Option 1)

Challenge yourself

Begin with your chest and hands on a stability ball and performing the push up on the ball, or a decline push-up by raising your feet on a box or bench.

4th Day of Fitness

4 x Lateral Lunges

From a standing position take a big step to the side, lower until the knee of your leading leg is bent at around 90 degree angle, touching the floor with your opposite hand and keeping your trailing leg straight. Push back and return to starting position before repeating on other side.

Easier version

Removing the hand to floor touch.

Challenge yourself

Hold a dumbbell in each hand. Or for a funky variation (not to be performed with dumbbells), instead of stepping your foot back to the middle you can leap, moving your right leg back and then straightening it as your lunge out over your left side.

5th Day of Fitness

5 x Wide Leg Walkouts

Begin standing with legs wider than shoulder width, put your hands on the ground in front of your toes. Gradually walk your hands forward into a plank/press up position. Slowly, walk them back in to the starting position. 

Easier version

Rest on your knees and move your hands forward and back from that position.

Challenge Yourself

Once in the plank position, incorporate one, two, three or more press ups before walking your hands back to the beginning.

6th Day of Fitness

6 x Rear Lunges

From standing, step one leg back and lower until both knees are bent at 90 degrees. From there, push back up to standing position then swap legs (option 1).

Challenge yourself

Instead of stepping out of the lunge back to standing, summon the energy to push explosively off the ground, switching the positions of your legs while airborne so that you land immediately into another lunge with the opposite leg (option 2).

7th Day of Fitness

7 x Glute Kickbacks

Begin in a kneeling push-up position but with your arms at shoulder width. Lift up your right leg at a 90 degree bend until your hamstring is in line with your back. Lift your heel upwards then pull your right knee to your elbow, then whilst contracting your glutes, kick your heel back upwards to complete the rep then swap legs.

Challenge yourself

Add ankle weights or use a resistance band

8th Day of Fitness

8 x Core Roll Down

Sit with your knees bend and your feet flat on the floor, hip distance apart. Tucking your chin under and gently holding onto your knees or side of your leg. Begin to roll your lower back towards the mat until your arms are straight then using your core muscles and gentle support from your arms, pull yourself back to sitting up straight (option 1).

Challenge yourself

Gently rolling your lower back to meet the mat, controlling the movement as you gradually lower your back until your shoulders are grounded. Release your arms from your knees, pulling them over your head as you roll down. Pause at the bottom before bringing your straight arms back up over your head, and reaching towards the ceiling. Engage your core and pull yourself back up into a seated position, arms stretched above your head (option 2).

9th Day of Fitness

9 x Turkish Get Ups

Lie flat on the floor, face up with your right arm straight up, your right knee bent and your left leg remaining straight. Keeping your arm straight, begin by lifting your right shoulder off the floor and driving your upper body upwards, a bit like a twisting ab crunch whilst supporting your weight on your opposite elbow.  Slowly push off from your left elbow onto your hand, raising your hips and keeping your left leg straight. Pause there then slowly return back to starting position.

Challenge yourself

Hold a kettlebell in the straight leading hand.

10th Day of Fitness

10 x Windmills

Stand with your feet just more than hip width apart toes pointing to the left slightly with a weight in each hand. With your right leg straight and slight bend in your left leg, keep your back straight as you slowly lower your left hand and weight to your left foot. Pause at the bottom before slowly returning to the starting point (option 1).

Challenge yourself

Keep your right arm straight and raised as you perform the exercise on your left side. Repeat with your left arm when you swap to lowering on your right side (option 2).

11th Day of Fitness

11 x Bicep Curl into Squat

Begin with feet shoulder distance apart, knees slightly bent and core engaged. With a dumbbell in each hand curl your arms by bending at the elbows, bringing your wrists to your shoulders. As you begin to curl your arms, squat down until thighs are just parallel to the floor. As you return to standing position, extend your arms and return the dumbbells to the starting point at your side.

Challenge yourself

As you extend out of your squat into standing, rise up onto your toes at the top then back down.

12th Day of Fitness

12 x Bicep Curl into Overhead Press

Stand with your arms to your side and a dumbbell in each hand. Curl your arms by bending at the elbows, bringing your wrists to your shoulders then extending the arms as you press above your head. Pause at the top before bringing the weights back to your shoulders, then extending your arms down to the starting point.