Total Body Giant Sets Workout (with Plyometrics!)

I’m excited to bring you another at-home, little to no equipment workout today…complete with fancy little GIFs that will help you see how to do each exercise!  So, there are a few things that I love to incorporate into many of my workouts:

1. Multi-joint exercises.  No wasting time working one muscle at a time.  Get more bang for your buck with each exercise by performing multi-joint exercises.
2. Plyometrics.  Because I love adding a cardio component to my strength workouts without a single step onto those dreaded “cardio machines.”  Boring and not the most effective of exercise.  Enter plyometrics!   These jumpy sort of exercises provide high intensity interval training within your strength workout, boosting metabolism and balancing hormones.  Winning!
3. Little to no rest between sets.  I hate standing around waiting on my muscles to get their act together and recover already.  That’s why we alternate between upper and lower body focused exercises in this workout and use giant sets.  Giant sets are groups of three exercises completed in a row and then repeated for additional rounds.  If you’re just getting started, 1-2 rounds of each giant set will probably be sufficient to bring your muscles to fatigue.  If you’re more advanced, you may need to complete 2-4 more rounds.  I usually do 4 rounds per giant set.  I only rest minimally (maybe get a sip of water after each round), but rest as needed to bring your heart rate back down just a bit before continuing with each round.  If you’re still a little short of breath, that’s okay.  If you can’t talk or feel dizzy, rest a bit longer.
4. Short workouts.  Because, honestly, I don’t love strength training.  I mean, I’ve come to love it a lot more than I used to, but it’s still not my absolute favorite thing.  And also, I have a life.  I can’t spend all day working out, nor is that the best idea for my thyroid.  But you really don’t need to spend all day in the gym to get the results you want.  I’ll go to my grave saying that.  You can get a fantastic workout in thirty minutes or less, especially if you’re incorporating numbers one and two above.

Well, this workout hits these goals right on the head.  Lots of multi-joint, multi-muscle exercises, a few plyometric exercises that elevate your heart rate, and it doesn’t take more than about twenty to thirty minutes to complete. Nice.  And did I mention you don’t need to go to the gym?

Here’s the equipment that you’ll need:

• A weight.  Whether that’s a gallon of water, a bookbag filled with books, a 10-15 pound dumbbell, or your own body, use what you have in order to add a bit of resistance for a few of these exercises.  If you’re just starting out, just use your own body weight, but if you’ve been at it for a little while, consider adding some weight.  This subject deserves a post all its own, but suffice it to say that most people (particularly women) do not strength train with enough weight.  You can always drop the weight if your form starts to fall apart, and that’s completely okay.
• A suspension trainer.  I’m using a TRX Suspension Trainer, and I love it for at-home workouts!  In the future, expect to see more suspension trainer workouts, because they are awesome and so easy to modify or advance the workouts for individual abilities.  If you do not have a suspension trainer, you can still do this workout!  Try doing some dumbbell rows instead.  (Here’s a video.)
• Your own body weight and a bottle of water.  Seriously, that’s it.

So let’s get started…

Warm-up:  My favorite way to warm up is with five minutes of jump rope.  I include single leg jump rope, traditional jump rope, and some double unders in every routine.  If you haven’t jumped rope since grade school, it’s time to start again.  (You can view additional details about my jump rope routine, as well as some help with those tricky double unders, in this post.)

Giant Set #1: Skater Lunges, TRX Rows, Single Leg Romanian Deadlifts

Skater Lunges

 

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Tips & Tricks:

• I do 30 total skater lunges per set.
• Chest stays high (we’re not bending over, just stepping back and down).
• Core is engaged (belly button is pulled in toward spine).
• Knees stay behind toes.
• Advance the exercise: hold a weight at chest height.
• Modify the move: skip the hop.  See below.

Modified Skater Lunges

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TRX Rows

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Tips & Tricks:

• Complete 12-15 reps per set.
• Body stays in a straight line from head to heels (contract quads, glutes, and abs to achieve this).
• Exhale as you pull up; inhale as you come back down.
• Squeeze shoulder blades together as you come up.
• Elbows stay close to body (no chicken wings!).
• Advance the exercise: the closer your feet are to the door (or wherever the suspension trainer is hanging), the harder the exercise.
• Modify the exercise: the farther your feet are from the door, the easier the exercise, but keep the straps held taut.  See below.

Modified TRX Row

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Single Leg Romanian Deadlifts

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Tips & Tricks:

• Perform 10-12 repetitions per leg per set.
• Hold dumbbell on the same side as the leg that goes back.
• Stare at a spot on the ground to help with balance, and go slowly at first.
• Advance the exercise: use a heavier weight (duh) or increase the number of repetitions if you cannot add weight.
• Modify the exercise: hold onto a wall for added stability; use body weight only; don’t bring your leg back as far behind you (a bent knee is fine).  See below.

Modified Single Leg Romanian Deadlift

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Giant Set #2: Side Lunges, Push Ups, Plyo Lunges

Side Lunges

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Tips & Tricks:

• Perform 10 repetitions per leg, alternating sides.
• Chest stays high (not dipping forward).
• Hips sit back.  Toes point forward (and outward slightly).
• Advance the exercise: use a heavier weight (duh) or add repetitions if you cannot increase weight.
• Modify the exercise: drop the weight (duh) and/or use a smaller step to the side.

Push Ups

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Tips & Tricks:

• Perform 10-15 repetitions.
• Body stays in a line from head to heels (contract quads, glutes, and abs to achieve this).
• Look forward slightly.
• Hands are underneath shoulders.
• Inhale as you go down; exhale as you come up.
• Advance the exercise: perform more repetitions or try diamond or tricep pushups.
• Modify the exercise: lots more info about how to modify pushups coming in my “Am I Doing This Right?” Video E-course, but wall pushups are a great way to modify.  See below.

Modified Push Ups (Wall Push Ups)

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Plyo Lunges

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Tips & Tricks:

• Perform 30 total repetitions.
• Chest stays high; abs are tight.
• Knees stays behind toes.
• Advance the exercise: add repetitions (duh, again).
• Modify the exercise: skip the jump to switch legs and just step back.  See below.

Modified Plyo Lunges (aka Alternating Reverse Lunges)

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Whew!  So there you have it!  Short and sweet, but seriously effective.  Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Big, Important Disclaimer here: always consult a physician before starting any exercise program.  

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