Winter is usually a downtime for a workout especially if you stay in the temperate regions. However, don’t get carried away with the holiday season and neglect your weight loss plan. Today we bring you a winter workout plan so you don’t backslide.
We have also carefully chosen exercises you can do indoors with no equipment required.
Get your winter exercise clothes ready because we’re about to burn some calories!
Contents
Benefits of Exercise in Winter
It can be such a drag to get up and workout during the winter. Your warm bed and duvet are too comfortable to get out of.
You need a lot of motivation to pull off such a feat.
However, if you do, you will reap the benefits many times over. Your mind and body will thank you for it.
This holiday season will be filled with lots of food and drinks.
A good indoor exercise for weight loss is a great option if you don’t want to struggle with your weight come Spring.
To get you fired up to keep working out in winter, we present you with some of the benefits you stand to gain.
You, Will, Understand the Benefits of Warm-Up and Cool-Down Exercises
We often tell you to warm before starting your full workouts.
It is even more important when it is cold, especially when you’re exercising outside.
Warming up will keep your body loose and warm for the real winter workout routine.
This will help you avoid painful strains, tears, and other injuries.
Warming up will raise your body temperatures and promote blood flow.
Cooldown routines, on the other hand, will reduce tightness in your joints and muscles caused by the temperature.
You Will Be More Energized and Happier
Exercising generally can boost one’s mood but the chilling temperature can stimulate it even more.
As the body works harder to increase its temperature, it also creates more endorphins which give you a higher sense of delight.
It Will Help You Drink More Water
Winter workouts to lose weight and belly fat will make you sweat a lot.
Even though it will evaporate quickly and you might not notice, you’re losing a lot of body fluid.
So, you have to stay hydrated, aka drink water, a lot of it.
You should drink water before, during, and after a winter workout challenge.
This will keep you well hydrated to perform at optimum.
Take this as a workout tip for winter.
It Will Strengthens Your Heart
In cold weather, your heart works extra to keep the blood flowing for proper distribution.
A person with a heart condition might have a bit of an issue as their heart might not be able to cope with the extra work.
If you exercise regularly, your heart is likely to be healthy enough for the strenuous work in the winter.
In that case, you will be strengthening it even more as you do these winter workouts at home.
Winter periods are known for holidays and binge eating. You will likely add some weight.
Your system will burn more calories than regular as it will put in more work to keep your body temperature up.
That’s a good thing in the weight loss front.
If you are the type that hit the gym in winter, you will certainly burn more calories than usual.
In the end, you will get better results for your hard work.
You will at least get closer to your body goal instead of farther away from it.
Are you psyched up for some snow workouts this winter?
We are too. So, let’s get started with the winter workout plan that will get you all those benefits.
7-Day Winter Workout Plan – Indoor Exercises for Explosive Results
Before we move ahead to the winter workout plan, let’s get some things straight.
These exercises will aim at your entire body.
This winter workout plan will target muscle groups and work them efficiently such that they get sufficient work to actually produce results.
This winter workout plan works well because different parts of your body are targeted on different days.
For instance, this winter workout plan starts with your chest.
That way, the muscle groups will get sufficient rest before they get to work again.
With those out of the way, let’s get on with it.
Day 1 – Chest Day
Your chest is made up of two main muscles – the pectoralis major and the pectoralis minor. Both muscles cover the larger parts of your chest wall.
They’re responsible for the movements that involve your arms and shoulders.
Working these muscles requires a lot of energy which takes burning calories and boosts your metabolism, hence weight loss.
That’s not all, it will tone your muscle too and gain mass.
- Regular pushups (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Incline pushups (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Decline pushups (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Diamond pushups (20 reps, 3 sets)
Day 2 – Shoulder Day
The shoulder exercises you’re going to do for this winter workout plan will work on your anterior, medial, and posterior deltoids.
- Pike pushups (15 reps, 3 sets)
This exercise is a great indoor workout routine to improve the flexibility of your shoulders.
Get in a downward dog position with your hands wide at shoulder width. Press with the middle of your head pointing towards the floor while you look at your legs. The form is important for results here.
- Elevated pike pushup (15 reps, 3 sets)
This is the same as the pike pushup only that your legs are on a surface higher than the one your hands are resting on.
- Wide hand pushups (15 reps, 3 sets)
Day 3 – Legs Day
It’s the turn of your leg muscles to get their batch of workout.
This winter workout plan gives you leg exercises that will not only strengthen and tone the muscles of your legs, you will also burn fat in that area for legs you can show off.
- Reverse lunge with knee lifts (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Squat jumps (15 reps, 3 sets)
- Curtsy lunges (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Plie squats calf raises (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Pistol squats (10 reps, 3 sets)
Day 4 -Abs Day
- V-ups (15 reps, 3 sets)
- Russian twists (20 reps per side, 3 sets)
- Forearm plank (hold for 60 seconds, 3 sets)
- Bicycle (15 reps, 3 sets)
- Heel taps (15 reps each side, 3 sets)
Day 5 – Back Day
- Superman (15 reps, 3 sets)
- Aquaman (15 reps, 3 sets)
This is a variation of the superman. But in this case, you will lift the alternate hand and leg one after the other instead of all limbs together.
- Bridge (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Back hyperextensions (20 reps, 3 sets)
Day 6 – Arms Day
- Diamond pushups (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Side plank to thread needle (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Triceps chops (15 reps, 3 sets)
- Overhead press (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Biceps curl (20 reps, 3 sets)
- Triceps kickbacks (15 reps, 3 sets)
Day 7-Cardio Day ( Last Day Winter Workout Plan)
Today is for interval exercises. It will keep your heart pumping while you keep your body moving.
We chose HIIT for our cardio day because it has a lot of benefits than the regular cardio exercises.
Some of them are as follows:
- It increases your speed and endurance – Interval training helps your body burn more lactic acids efficiently. That way you will be able to exercise for longer.
- Your heart becomes healthier – It is no more news that interval training can boost your heart health and reduce the risks of heart diseases.
- Endorphin Bursts – As we mentioned earlier that exercises help the body release endorphins which improves one’s mood.
- Faster results – Studies have shown that interval training can help you get in shape quicker than other types of exercises (1).
The following are the indoor cardio exercises you will do.
- Burpees (30 sec with 10 sec of rest)
- Squat jump (30 secs with 10 secs of rest)
- Mountain climbers (30 secs with 10 secs of rest)
- High knees (30 secs with 10 secs of rest)
Conclusion
This winter workout plan is the real deal. Stick to this plan and you will be happy with the outcome.
That it is a 7-day winter workout plan does not mean you do it for 7 days and go to sleep.
You should rinse and repeat and replace the exercises with similar ones to improve the fun factor.
We know there are no rest days but that does not mean your muscles aren’t resting.
This is the main reason we chose a muscle set for each day.
Notice that your chest muscles are at rest for most of the remaining days.
There’s no feat of burnout or fatigue with this winter workout plan.
Moreover, it will only challenge you, not strain you. So, get on with these indoor workout routines and have fun