The Summer Workout

As summer is quickly approaching, it is important to have a plan to last the 3 months of summer.  In this post, I will be introducing a workout that will make you look better, feel better, and finally it will make you stronger.  I will break this workout down into 3 phases.  The first phase will be more about conditioning.  This is important because as summer is nearing, it is important to condition yourself after you have been inside all winter.  This will allow you to effortlessly do the activities that summer entails.  Also, it will shed away some of your fat early on, so you aren't afraid to wear your swim suit.  The next phase will be the bodybuilding phase.  This phase goes off of the conditioning phase because now that some body fat has been lost, it is time to shape your muscles a little bit.  The bodybuilding phase will feature a few exercises that will help tone your body.  The final phase of this workout will be a mix between powerlifting and plyometrics.  This phase will take over your previous cardio sessions, since the plyometrics will be added.  This phase will help further enhance your athletic abilities so you can keep up with all of your friends.  This program is to be repeated weekly for a month, then the next phase will be completed, then the last phase will follow.  I will begin with the conditioning phase.

So the first phase of this summer workout is the conditioning phase.  This will ensure that your able to keep up with the summer activities that summer brings.  You will be outside a lot more, participating is tiresome activities, and this phase will prepare you for everything that summer brings. This workout can be adjusted to your liking, depending on your schedule.  Please note, thee secondary exercises should be performed in the 15-20 rep range and you should focus on very little recovery time. For the primary exercise, you should perform about 8-10 reps and your rest time should be about 3 minutes.  

Phase 1: Conditioning phase

Monday: Bench Press 3x10, dumbbell incline press, 3x15, chest flies 2x15-20, dips 3x failure

Tuesday: cardio day- choose your favorite exercise (running, basketball, tennis, swimming) and perform for 30 minutes

Wednesday: Off day

Thursday: Barbell reverse grip rows 3x10, pullups 3x failure, dumbell rows 3x15, reverse pushups 3x10

Friday; Squats 3x10, romanian deadlift 3x15, lunges 3x 10 (each leg)

Saturday: 30 minutes cardio

Sunday: Off day

This will be your first week of conditioning.  This phase will guarantee that your muscles will be able to perform over the long run.  This workout is 5 days a week, due to the incorporation of the cardio.  Also, the secondary exercises feature a higher rep range and a short rest time.  This will make you very tired, but it will greatly improve your conditioning.  This phase is dedicated towards keeping your strength up, while at the same time shedding some body fat for the summer.  The next phase is the bodybuilding phase.

Phase 2: Bodybuilding

Monday: Military press 3x10,  close grip incline bench 3x5, tricep pull downs 3x10, close grip pushups 3x failure

Tuesday:  Lat pulldown 3x10, seated rows 3x8, dumbell rows 3x8, seated bicep curls 2x8 (each arm), standing bicep curls 2x8 (each arm)

Wednesday: Off Day

Thursday:  Squats 3x10, lunges 3x8 (each leg), leg extensions 2x failure

Friday: Off Day

Saturday: Romanian deadlift 3x8, hamstring curls 2x failure, step up lunges 3x8 (each leg)

Sunday: Off Day

This phase will help to tone your body during the summertime.  This phase only consists of working out 4 days a week rather than 5, like the last phase.  The reason for this is that this is a muscle building phase.  You are trying to build muscle, so you are going to be needing more rest time.  However, depending on how much muscle you have, you have the option of doing cardio on your off days also.  It all depends on what your specific goals are.  This phase will help you pack on muscle and it will help define your body.  The final phase is the power phase and this phase will make you stronger and more explosive

Phase 3: Power

Monday: Speed squats 5x3 (use 50% of one rep max), box jumps 5x3, lunges 3x8

Tuesday: Off

Wednesday: Military Press 5x5, speed bench 10x2 (50-70% one rep max), clapping push ups

Thursday: Barbell rows (regular grip) 5x5, weighted pull ups 3x2 followed by body weight pull ups 2x failure, dumbbell rows (work on explosiveness) 3x6

Friday: Off

Saturday: Sprints 10x1, box jumps 5x5, broad jump 3x3, depth jump 3x3

This phase is intended to make you more explosive.  This phase uses a lot of heavy lifting, which will ensure a greater force production when doing activities like jumping.  This is then mixed with some plyometric exercises because it will greater improve the force you are able to put into the ground.  This phase will help you jump higher, swing harder, run faster, and it will improve just about any physical activity you will perform.  

Upon putting all of these phases together, you will see immediate changes to your physical appearance and your physical abilities.  This point of a summer workout is to have fun, you don't want to be miserable during summer.  That is why I incorporated days that allow you to go outside and workout there.  I also included another blog post where I talk about my favorite summer workouts.  They included plyometrics, swimming, and running, all of which you can do in this routine.  On your cardio days, you can substitute swimming in for 30 minutes, or you can play basketball, or if your going to the beach that day you can play volleyball.  This routine is meant to be adjustable so that you can conform it to your summer life.  If you miss a day, it is not that big of a deal, just be sure to do that workout the next day.  This routine is designed to enhance your summer, not to make your summer miserable.  If you feel like you are already ready for summer, since you have been doing cardio all winter and you have your beach body ready, this routine can still be for you.  It will help further improve your appearance, it will make you better conditioned, more toned, and it will make you stronger/improve your sports performance.

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