Strength and Flex exercise plan: week by week

[roseabi]

★ A week-by-week breakdown with links to video clips of the 5-week Strength and Flex exercise plan for beginners.

Do each podcast at least 3 times within a week before moving on to the next podcast.

Once you have finished the programme, you can keep using podcast 5 to keep your activity levels up.

★ The Strength and Flexibility podcasts can be accessed from healthunlocked.com/strength...

PODCAST 1

A gentle workout with music, starting with a warm-up followed by a series of strength and flexibility exercises, finishing off with a cool-down.

Duration: 35:28

Watch how-to videos for checking your posture, the warm up and the strength and flexibility exercises. nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/s...

Warm up

• check your posture

• 5 shoulder rolls as you walk (both shoulders)

• 10 chest presses as you walk (pushing both hands away from you, then bringing them back in with your elbows pointing out)

• 10 arm rows as you walk (keeping your elbows tucked in while you pull imaginary oars back and forth)

• 10 knee bends as you walk

Strength workout

• 10 standing press-ups

• 10 pull-ups

• 10 shallow squats

Flexibility workout

• thigh stretches

• calf stretches

• seated hamstring stretches

• chest stretches

• upper back stretches

Cool down

PODCAST 2

We have made some of the podcast 1 exercises a bit more challenging and increased the length of your workout.

Duration: 36:31

Watch how-to videos for checking your posture, the warm up and the strength and flexibility exercises. nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/s...

Warm up

• check your posture

• 5 shoulder rolls as you walk

• 10 chest presses as you walk

• 10 arm rows as you walk

• 10 knee bends as you walk

Strength workout

• 10 standing press-ups – option to increase difficulty

• 10 pull-ups – option to increase difficulty

• 10 deep squats

Flexibility workout

• thigh stretches

• calf stretches

• seated hamstring stretches

• chest stretches

• upper back stretches

• tricep stretches

Cool down

PODCAST 3

We have added some new moves and increased the difficulty level of some of the podcast 2 exercises.

Duration: 35:32

Watch how-to videos for checking your posture, the warm up and the strength and flexibility exercises. nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/s...

Warm up

• check your posture

• 5 shoulder rolls as you walk

• 10 chest presses as you walk

• 10 arm rows as you walk

• 10 knee bends as you walk

Strength workout

• 10 sit-to-stands

• 10 standing press-ups – option to increase difficulty

• 10 pull-ups – option to increase difficulty

• 10 wide squats

Flexibility workout

• thigh stretches

• calf stretches

• seated hamstring stretches

• chest stretches

• upper back stretches

• tricep stretches

Cool down

PODCAST 4

We have introduced some new exercises and stepped up the intensity and length of your workout.

Duration: 45:12

Watch how-to videos for checking your posture, the warm up and the strength and flexibility exercises. nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/s...

Warm up

• check your posture

• 5 shoulder rolls as you walk

• 10 chest presses as you walk

• 10 arm rows as you walk

• 10 knee bends as you walk

Strength workout

• 10 sit-to-stands

• 10 standing press-ups – option to increase difficulty

• 10 pull-ups – option to increase difficulty

• 10 wide squats

• 10 bench dips

• 10 wide pull-ups

Flexibility workout

• thigh stretches

• calf stretches

• seated hamstring stretches – deeper stretch

• chest stretches

• upper back stretches

• tricep stretches

Cool down

PODCAST 5

For the last podcast in this series, we have made some of the podcast 4 exercises more challenging.

Duration: 43:32

Watch how-to videos for checking your posture, the warm up and the strength and flexibility exercises. nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/s...

Warm up

• check your posture

• 5 shoulder rolls as you walk

• 10 chest presses as you walk

• 10 arm rows as you walk

• 10 knee bends as you walk

Strength workout

• 10 sit-to-stands with calf raises

• 10 standing press-ups – option to increase difficulty

• 10 pull-ups – option to increase difficulty

• 10 wide squats

• 10 bench dips

• 10 wide pull-ups

Flexibility workout

• thigh stretches

• calf stretches – deeper stretch

• seated hamstring stretches – deeper stretch

• chest stretches

• upper back stretches

• tricep stretches

Cool down

[CBDB Administrator Graduate Gold]

Oh thank you! You are a star! 🌟✨💫

[Over60sRunner]

There are no parks literally within miles of where I live (very rural Wales!) and I have tried to adapt this to be a inside workout, but to no avail 😐 as even the walking part is challenge when you're just walking round the house!

I've found some no jump HITT workouts on YouTube (previous spinal surgeries = no jumping for Annya!) which seem to be doing the trick instead. Add in a bit of basic yoga for flexibility and job's a good 'un 😀

Thank you so much for sharing these link roseabi - the NHS site is just getting worse and worse now🙄

[Gthants Graduate]

This is wonderful. Thank you SO much!