Celebrate Spring’s Arrival With These Park Workouts
After what seemed like an especially long and cold winter, spring has sprung in the UK with a bout of sunny and clear weather that makes being outside a delight. So if you’ve been diligently logging home workouts through the colder months, we heartily recommend taking those same workouts to your local park.
Many parks will have outdoor gyms that will help you get fit, and below you’ll find three workouts – each appropriate for a different strength level – using some of the common bits of equipment you’ll find in them. In case your park is equipment-free, or the outdoor gym is still closed, we start with a set of workouts for all levels that only requires the use of a bench and a tree. And if your park doesn’t have a tree, we recommend finding a better park.
Level 1 Park Workout:
Warm-up
Jog for five minutes on flat ground followed by a few bodyweight lunges and squats.
Workout
Start with a five minutes of hard running to get your blood pumping, then move through three circuits of the below, resting for a minute between each circuit.
1 Squat
Reps 15-20
Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Lower, bending at the knees and pushing your hips back, until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Then push through your heels to drive back up to standing.
2 Negative tree pull-up
Reps 15-20
A negative pull-up involves just the lowering part of the move. Use a low branch and jump up to reach the top position with your chin over the bar, then slowly lower under control.
3 Incline press-up
Reps 15-20
Perform a press-up with your hands on a raised surface like a bench.
4 Bench overhead press
Reps 15-20
Put your feet on the bench and your hands on the ground beneath your shoulders. Lower your body until your head almost touches the ground, then push back up.
5 Bent-knee bench triceps dip
Reps 15-20
Rest your hands on the bench behind you, keeping your legs out in front with a slight bend in your knees. Lower your torso until your elbows are bent at 90°, then push back up.
6 Bench step-up
Reps 15-20
Place one foot on the bench, then drive up through your leading leg so you momentarily stand on the bench. Step back down under control. Alternate which leg you lead with.
7 High knee skip on the spot
Reps 15-20
Skip on the spot, bringing your knees up as high as possible.
8 Plank
Support your body on your forearms and feet, forming a straight line with your body from your shoulders to your ankles. Hold this position.
