The Men's Health 30-Day Workout Challenge

Sometimes, the most challenging part of working out is knowing what to do.

You might not have a definite goal in mind other than that you want to get moving, or that you want to look different by the time the summer season rolls around. That’s okay. Not everyone is wired to constantly aspire to build muscle or run fast, following a detailed program designed to elicit peak performance and radical transformation. Just wanting to get active to live a healthier life is a worthy goal, especially if you’re taking your first steps to make fitness part of your daily routine or recommitting to exercise ahead of the summer season. But you have to be ready to commit to your new routine for it to be effective.

That’s what the Men’s Health 30-Day Workout Challenge is all about: doing something every day. Rather than limiting the focus to just one specific body part, muscle group, or type of exercise, as we have with our previous challenges, we’re more interested in establishing healthy habits and introducing you to common exercise protocols that will be useful for the rest of your fitness life. Beginners can take the challenge and hold their own, while fitness pros can still push themselves to work to their full potential using these routines.

The plan is simple. You’ll take on a new workout routine every day—but there will be some consistencies so you won’t be constantly thrown into the deep end if you don’t have a ton of experience. All of the workouts will be comprised out of a pool of just 11 exercises, which you can see demonstrated below by the program’s architect, Men’s Health fitness director Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S.

Each week of the program will be focused on a different workout scheme, so you can get the swing of the structure and get comfortable within each protocol. The calendar will also be structured in a manner that allows you to flex all of your muscles, both figuratively and literally; Day 1 of each week will be focused on Mobility and Core, Day 2 is Upper Push/Pull, Day 3 is Lower body, Day 4 is a Mobility focus, Day 5 is Upper Push/Pull, Day 6 is an Upper/Lower/Core split, and Day 7 is all Core.

All you have to do is buy in. By Day 30 (or the bonus Day 31, if you’re game), at the very least you’ll have completed this challenge. If you put in max effort, you’ll also be moving better, feeling fitter, and looking different than you did on Day 1—just in time for the summer season.

The Men’s Health 30-Day Workout Challenge Exercises

MOBILITY

▼ Spiderman Lunge to T-Spine

▼ Squat to T-Spine

▼ Glute Bridge Reach Alternating

UPPER

▼ Pushup

▼ Close-Grip Pushup

▼ Bent-Over T Raise

LOWER

▼ Paused Squat

▼ Glute Bridge Single-Leg

CORE/CONDITIONING

▼ Hollow Rock

▼ Plank Shoulder-Tap

▼ Mountain Climber

Week 1: Intervals

We’ll give you 4 moves in every workout. The goal: Work for quality reps for each move during your intervals, then rest 20 seconds, learning all the exercises you’ll do for the program over the course of the week. For each interval workout, work for 40 seconds, then take 20 seconds off unless otherwise stated. Repeat for 2 rounds.

Day 1

• Minute 1: Spiderman Lunge to T-Spine
• Minute 2: Hollow Rock
• Minute 3: Plank Shoulder Tap
• Minute 4: Mountain Climber

Day 2

• Minute 1: Glute Bridge Reach
• Minute 2: Bent-Over T
• Minute 3: Pushup
• Minute 4: Bent-Over T

Day 3

• Minute 1: Squat To T-Spine
• Minute 2: Paused Squat
• Minute 3: Glute Bridge Right
• Minute 4: Glute Bridge Left

Day 4

60 seconds on, no rest

• Minute 1: Squat to Reach
• Minute 2: Glute Bridge Reach
• Minute 3: Spiderman to T-Spine

Day 5

50 seconds on, 10 seconds off

• Minute 1: Spiderman to T-Spine
• Minute 2: Bent-Over T
• Minute 3: Close-Grip Pushup
• Minute 4: Bent-Over T

Day 6

30-second intervals, no rest

• 1: Squat to T-Spine
• 2: Glute bridge Reach
• 3: Paused Squat
• 4: Mountain Climber
• 5: Bent-Over T
• 6: Mountain Climber
• 7: Pushup
• 8: Mountain Climber
• 9: Spiderman to T-Spine
• 10: Mountain Climber

Day 7

Work for 40:20 first time through, then 50:10

• Minute 1: Glute Bridge Reach
• Minute 2: Hollow Rock
• Minute 3: Shoulder Tap
• Minute 4: Mountain Climber

Week 2: AMRAP

You know the exercises you’re working with. Now things get fun. This week, we introduce you to AMRAPS, as many rounds as possible. You’ll work for 8 minutes in each workout this week, and your goal is to complete as many rounds of the circuit we lay out for you as possible. Don’t lose your focus on quality reps, but do aim to keep score.

Day 1

• 5 Spiderman to T-Spine
• 10 Glute Bridge per side
• 15 Hollow Rocks
• 20 Mountain Climbers

Day 2

• 5 Glute Bridge Reach
• 10 Bent-Over T’s
• 20 pushups
• 10 Bent-Over T’s
• 30 Mountain Climbers

Day 3

• 5 Squat to Reach
• 25 Paused Squats
• 25 Glute Bridges Left
• 25 Glute Bridges Right

Day 4

• 10 Spiderman to T-Spine
• 10 Crab Reach
• 10 Squat to T-Spine
• 30 Mountain Climber

Day 5

• 10 Crab Reach
• 10 pushups
• 20 Bent-Over T
• 10 Close-Grip Pushups

Day 6

• 5 Spiderman to T-Spine
• 10 Paused Squats
• 10 Bent-Over T
• 10 Paused Squats
• 10 Close-Grip Pushups

Day 7

• 5 Spiderman to T-Spine
• 10 Shoulder Tap
• 20 Mountain Climber

Week 3: EMOM

This week you’ll learn the beauty of the EMOM, every minute on the minute. You’ll once again work for 8 minutes, completing the entire sequence of moves we give you every minute. Your goal: Finish all the work as quickly as possible (while still maintaining good form!) so you can rest until the start of the next minute.

Day 1 – 2 rounds

• Minute 1: 6 Glute Bridge Reaches, 10 Hollow Rocks
• Minute 2: 6 Glute Bridge Reaches, 15 Mountain Climbers
• Minute 3: 6 Glute Bridge Reaches, 10 Plank Shoulder-Taps
• Minute 4: 30 Mountain Climbers

Day 2 – 2 rounds

• Minute 1: 5 Spiderman to T-Spine
• Minute 2: 10 Bent-Over T, 10 Close-Grip Pushup
• Minute 3: 10 Bent-Over T, 10 Pushup
• Minute 4: 40 Mountain Climbers

Day 3 – 2 rounds

• Minute 1: 5 Spiderman to T-Spine
• Minute 2: 5 Squat to Reach, 10 squats
• Minute 3: 5 Crab Reach, 10 Glute Bridges per side
• Minute 4: 10 Squats, 5 Glute Bridges per side

Day 4 – 3 rounds

• Minute 1: 5 Spiderman to T-Spine
• Minute 2: 10 Crab Reach
• Minute 3: 20 Mountain Climber, 5 Hollow Rock

Day 5 – 2 rounds

• Minute 1: 5 Crab Reach
• Minute 2: 25 Pushups
• Minute 3: 20 Bent-Over T
• Minute 4: 40 Mountain Climbers

Day 6 – 2 rounds

• Minute 1: 5 Spiderman to T Spine
• Minute 2: 10 Squats, 10 Bent-Over T
• Minute 3: 10 Squats, 15 Pushups
• Minute 3: 10 Squats, 20 Mountain Climbers

Day 7 – 1 round

• Minute 1: 3 Spiderman to T-Spines per side, 6 Glute Bridge Reaches
• Minute 2: 10 Hollow Rocks, 10 Plank Shoulder-taps
• Minute 3: 10 Hollow Rocks, 20 Mountain Climbers
• Minute 4: 25 Hollow Rocks

Week 4: EMOM +1

This last week, you’ll amp the intensity one final time, mastering the EMOM+1. You’ll once again train for 8 minutes each day, but each round, you’ll do a bit more work, by adding 1 rep to each of the exercises you must complete in every minute. That means the first minute of your workout may be easy, but the last minute will be ultra-challenging as you race against the clock to hit all your reps.

Day 1 – 4 rounds

• Minute 1: 10 Plank Shoulder-Taps, 10 Hollow Rocks
• Minute 2: 30 Mountain Climbers

Day 2 – repeat until failure

• Warmup Minute: 10 Squat to Reach
• Minute: 5 Pushups, 5 Close-Grip Pushups, 5 Mountain Climbers, 5 Bent-Over Ts

Day 3 – repeat until failure

• Warmup Minute: 5 Crab Reach
• Minute: 10 Squats, 10 Glute Bridges per side

Day 4 – 3 rounds

• Minute 1: 5 Spiderman to T-Spine
• Minute 2: 10 Crab Reach
• Minute 3: 5 squat to reach

Day 5 – Alternate both rounds until failure

• Warmup Minute: 5 Squat to Reach
• Minute 1: 10 Pushups, 10 Close-Grip Pushups
• Minute 2: 10 15 Bent-Over T, 10 Mountain Climbers

Day 6 – Alternate both rounds until failure

• Warmup Minute: 5 Spiderman to T-Spine
• Minute 1: 10 Mountain Climbers, 10 Pushups, 10 Squats
• Minute 2: 20 Bent-Over Ts

Day 7 – Repeat until failure

Warmup Minute: 5 Crab Reach
Minute: 5 Plank Shoulder Taps, 10 Mountain Climbers, 5 Hollow Rocks

Week 5: Remix

You’ve learned and utilized four different styles of quick-workout training, now let’s sneak in three more workouts that mix-and-match these principles.

Day 1

• Warmup: 10 Spiderman to T-Spine
• Fab 50 AMRAP: 50 Mountain Climbers, 50 Squats, 50 Hollow Rocks

Day 2 – repeat as many rounds as possible until failure

• Warmup: 10 Crab Reach
• EMOM+1: 10 squats, 10 pushups, 10 hollow rocks

Day 3 – repeat as many rounds as possible until failure

• Warmup: 10 Squat to Reach

EMOM+1

• Minute 1: 40 Mountain Climbers
• Minute 2: 30 Hollow Rocks
• Minute 3: 20 Plank Shoulder Taps

Source: Read Full Article