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Summer Circuits

With the British summertime beginning and the weather warming up, why not take advantage of this by doing some circuits outside? Let’s be honest it doesn’t last long!

All you need is an open space (i.e. the park, your garden, the TSC yard), a few bits of equipment and your imagination! Make up as many “stations” within your circuit and do as many “rounds” as you like, but around 30-45 minutes of circuit work is plenty of time. 

Here’s an example of a simple circuit:                                   Equipment needed:

Shuttle runs – 30-60 seconds                                                              Cones

Squats/Jump Squats- 20 reps                                                                 N/A

Press-ups- 20 reps                                                                        Exercise mat (optional)

Front Plank- 30-60 seconds                                                        Exercise mat (optional)

Lateral Raises – 20 reps                                                                 Pair of dumbbells

Burpees- 20 reps                                                                                        N/A

Star Jumps/Jumping Jacks- 30-60 seconds                                            N/A

20m Sprints- 30-60 seconds                                                                  Cones

 

Make sure you perform each station back to back without any rest in between, once you have completed all stations, have a 2-3 minute rest, have a drink and go again! 3-5 rounds should be enough, but it all depends on how far you want to push yourself. Play around with the amount of reps and or time on each station and feel free to come up with your own exercises.

Circuits are very flexible giving you a full body workout, which not only works your cardiovascular system but also gives you elements of strength training. So you will be improving your general fitness whilst increasing your strength at the same time. This is great for fat loss and better overall body definition.  Circuits are a form of HIIT training (high intense interval training). This will get your metabolism firing, burning more calories than a more casual 60 minute gym workout.

Also if you are stretched for time in the day then a quick circuit workout for 30 minutes would be extremely beneficial for you. Finally, get some friends involved to help you with that extra motivation, pushing each other to the very end! So give some circuits a go this summer (or whenever the weather is good) maybe once or twice a week and I’ll promise you, you won’t be disappointed.

Simon