Builders Back Yard Workout

If you want to workout at home, but cannot afford the latest in home-gym technology, then there are cheaper options. You may actually already have at home everything you need to create and intensive cardio and resistance workout.

The builders workout simple uses various items from the building trade as equipment for working out, such as bricks, sacks of sand or gravel, sledge hammers and ladders.

Builders Push-up

You may have seen the ‘perfect pushup’ grips advertised. The allow you to not only perform a deeper push up, working the triceps more, but also allow you to turn your hand while transitioning from lowest to highest point. This allows you to utilise more muscles in your arms while lifting. However, in the builders pushup we make do with two bricks. Just place them on the ground in your usual hand position and grip them with thumbs facing each other. As you lower you turn your wrist to that knucles face forward. Lower your chest to the floor, the raise. Reversing the movement.

You will need to perform these on a concrete or stone floor otherwise the bricks will grip.

Sandbag Squats

No workout is complete without squats. To increase workload, hug a sandbag to you chest while squatting. Drop low so that you thighs are parallel to the floor, and pause before lifting. Vary weight of sandbag (or gravel / compost bag) according to your fitness and strength level.

Sandbag Lunges

This time hold the sack on one should while performing a forward lunge. Always hold the sack on the opposite shoulder to your leading leg. Perform 10 lunges before swapping shoulder/leg.

Gravel Sack Should Press

Simply take hold of a small sack of gravel, gripping each end, and lift and hold on your uppere chest. Now thrust it up to lift above your head. Perform sets of 10. Gravel sacks are sometimes easier to get a grip on.

Sledge Hammers

This is a big movement, like the woodchop, which kettlebell lifters use. Find an old tyre and place it on the ground. Then in a large smooth swinging motion, starting from behind you, strike the tyre with all your might. Take a few warm up strike to gauge the effect of striking the tyre, ensuring the hammer does not rebound too much. Ensure you keep a solid grip on the shaft at all times.

These simple exercises can be done in most back yards, and are a great way to either supplement your usual gym routine, or replace gym membership completely. Combined with bodyweight circuit training and some intensive interval training (running or cycling) they can be a cost effective way to superior fitness.

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