Bootcamp Strength Workout

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Have you ever wandered into the gym and found yourself unable or uninspired to put together a workout?  Here’s a great little Bootcamp circuit for you to add into your routine! You can also do this at home!

Our Bootcamp classes in the studio feature eight stations, and we alternate weekly between strength and cardio based workouts- this workout features six exercises that focus predominately on building strength.

Don’t have access to a TRX or BOSU? Not to worry! See below for modifications and alternatives that require no equipment. Make sure you warm up and cool down after your workout- enjoy!

BOOTCAMP: Strength Focus

1 minute each exercise (with little to no rest in between each exercise) x3 rounds

Here’s a list of exercises with modifications, including how to do this workout without equipment.

SINGLE LEG TRX SQUAT (AKA THE PISTOL SQUAT)

  1. Face toward the anchor point with one foot on the ground, and the other foot straight out in front of your body with your knee straight.
  2. Hold the handles with a slight bend in your elbows, and place tension in the straps by slightly leaning your body back.
  3. To begin the movement, sit your hips back and down into a squat position. Keep your heel on the ground and your knee over your ankle. Maintain good posture and avoiding rounding forward. Extend your arms as you lower down, keeping your shoulder blades drawn together and down.
  4. Drive through your heel and stand to return to the starting position. Repeat.

If this is too difficult to complete with correct form, switch to a basic TRX Squat with both feet on the ground.

If you don’t have access to a TRX, try a Single Leg Skater Squat- instead of extending one leg out in front of you, bend your knee, pull your heel into your seat, and keep that leg behind you lower into your front leg. To make it easier hold onto something for support; to make it more challenging hold at dumbbell or weight at your chest. You can also attempt an assisted Pistol Squat, follow the same steps, but use a coffee table or bench as an assist, lowering your seat to tap or rest, and then driving through your standing heel to come upright.

BOSU PUSHUPS

The BOSU adds instability and greater challenge to your push ups. You can always modify by coming to your knees.

If you don’t have access to a BOSU, try mixing it up, with different push up variations.

STABILITY BALL SKULL CRUSHERS

  1. Have a seat on your stability ball, and then roll to lie on your back with your shoulders squared in the center of the stability ball. Extend your feet to a 90 degree angle, knees over ankles. Extend your arms fully with the dumbbells in line with your shoulders.
  2. Without moving your elbows, lower the dumbbells keeping your arms parallel until the dumbbells are down at the side of your head. Fully extend your arms back up, pause, and then repeat the action.

If lying on the ball is too challenging, try sitting on the ball and doing the exercise in an upright position.

If you don’t have access to a stability ball, you can lie on a bench or simply to the exercise sitting or standing.

ALTERNATING BENCH STEP UPS WITH BICEP CURLS

If you don’t have access to a bench, you can simply do bicep curls, or add a balance component by lifting a knee as you curl, and then tapping your toes down as you lower your arms. You could also add a reverse lunge with or without a knee drive.

FOOT TO HAND PASS

If you don’t have a yoga block, you can use a ball, or even a little pillow- get creative! As you lower down, try not to let your low back arch up and away from the floor, and keep your shoulder blades drawn together and down. You can modify by limiting your range of motion, keeping your knees bent and/or keeping your head down.

REVERSE LUNGE WITH KNEE DRIVE AND A TWIST

  1. Stand with your feet hip distance apart and hold a dumbbell at your chest (parallel to the floor). Keeping an upright position, step one leg back to a reverse lunge, lowering your knee almost to the ground.
  2. Drive through your front foot, as you coming to standing and lift your opposite knee, keeping your hips level.
  3. Keeping your knee lifted, rotate over knee, maintaining an upright position.

Think about creating two 90 degree angles with this exercise- as you step back your front knee tracks forward over your second and third toes, and doesn’t pitch forward, and your back knee bends and travels down under your hip or slightly behind. To make this exercise easier, you can take away the weight, or take out the knee drive and/or twist and focus simply on the reverse lunge.

Throughout your workout, keep your focus on quality not quantity. It is much more effective, especially in the long run, if you perform fewer repetitions correctly, rather than moving at a faster pace and losing your form. Transitioning quickly from one exercise to the next, will help keep your heart rate up, but if this interval style of training isn’t a part of your regular routine, you may need to work up to fast transitions. Rest and modify as needed, and never sacrifice form for speed!