Video
The Bench Body Blitzer
No gym? No excuse. Steve Mellor, Head of Personal Training & Nutrition at Freedom2Train shows GTG the Bench Body Blitzer – a series of exercises using a park bench and your own body weight to get you trim and toned, no equipment required...
Note: Repeat this entire set of exercises 2-3 times depending on your fitness levels
The Bench Body Blitzer
Run for five minutes at a steady pace to raise your heart rate and get your metabolism moving.
The warm up
The hamstring stretch: sweep the floor while keeping one leg straight. Repeat 10 times with each leg.
Side lunges: bend your knee and touch your ankle, keeping the other leg straight. Repeat 10 times on each side.
Lunges: step forward and drop the other knee to the floor. Repeat 10 times with each leg.
Exercise 1: Squats
With feet shoulder-width apart, squat until your bum touches the bench. Immediately stand up, keeping the chest high and pushing through the heels.
Top tip: sit your bum right back to really work the thighs. Knees shouldn’t come in front of your shoes. Repeat 10 times.
Exercise 2: Bench step-ups
Step one leg up onto a bench, and pushing through that heel lift the other knee up high. Repeat 10 times with each leg.
Top tip: Don’t bounce off the ground, use the leg on the bench to do the work.
Exercise 3: Bench push-ups
Place hands on the bench just wider than your shoulders. Keep your body straight with feet apart. Bend your arms and lower your chest towards the bench and back up again.
Top tip: Breathe out as you push to ease excess strain on the body.
Exercise 4: Reverse lunges
Take a big stride back with one leg, lowering your knee near to the floor before standing again. Repeat 10 times with each leg.
Top tip: Keep your chest up as you lunge backwards.
Exercise 5: Mountain climbers
Place hands on the bench, and with your body straight, bring knees into your chest one at a time. Repeat 20 times, 10 with each leg.
Top tip: draw your abs in at the same time to work the core.
Exercise 6: Tricep dips
Place hand on the edge of the bench, feet out in front. Bend your elbows to lower your body to the ground and push back up. Repeat 10 times.
Exercise 7: Sprint and jog
Sprint for 30 seconds and walk or jog for one minute. Repeat until you’ve completed 10 minutes.
The warm down
Stretch calves…
Stretch your back and glutes…
Stretch quads…
Stretch hamstrings.
Hold each position for 30 seconds. And relax!
Film by Ben Vine
Directed by Susannah Taylor
Model - Charlotte Connoley at Models 1
Hair and make-up - Jennifer Fechter, www.jenfechter.com
Music - Move In The Right Direction by Gossip. Click here to download it from iTunes
