You can use a bench to get your heart rate up, to stretch and to strengthen your full body. Here is one of my favorite full body strength and conditioning routines, using a bench.
Try these exercises and share your experience in the comment section below!
1. Incline Mountain Climbers
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Shoulders, core
- Duration: 1 minute
Incline Mountain climbers strengthen your core while getting your heart rate up.
Tip 1. Maintain a flat back throughout.
Tip 2. Keep your core and glutes engaged.
2. Hop Overs
- Difficulty: Intermediate
- Primary muscles targeted: Core, quads, calves
- Reps: 20 total
Hop overs will get your heart rate up and blood flowing.
Tip 1. Keep your shoulders as stable as possible as you jump.
Tip 2. Land softy.
3. Quadruped Straight Leg Circle
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Shoulders, core, outer glutes, inner thighs
- Reps: 3 each direction
Quadruped straight leg circle is an effective exercise for improving hip mobility.
Tip 1. Keep your shoulders stable and square with the bench.
Tip 2. Flex your foot and quad throughout.
Tip 3. Engage your outer outer glutes to steer the leg.
4. Sit To Stand
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Core, quads, hamstrings, glutes
- Reps: 15 total
Sit to standing builds lower body strength using your own bodyweight.
Tip 1. Stand with firm footing.
Tip 2. Engage your glutes as you stand, hinge your hips back as you sit.
Tip 3. Try to keep your knee stacked over your ankle.
Tip 4. Stand twice as fast as you sit.
Tip 5. Sit in a controlled manner.
5. Single Leg Sit To Stand
- Difficulty: Intermediate
- Primary muscles targeted: Core, quads, hamstrings, glutes
- Reps: 8 each
Single leg sit to standing improves posture while strengthening the glutes.
Tip 1. Begin with firm footing.
Tip 2. Stand twice as fast as you sit.
Tip 3. Engage your glutes as you stand, hinge your hips back as you sit.
Tip 4. Sit in a controlled manner.
6. Bulgarian Split Squat
- Difficulty: Intermediate
- Primary muscles targeted: Core, quads, hamstrings, glutes
- Reps: 10 each
Bulgarian split squat trains balance while improving lower body strength.
Tip 1. Stand with firm footing.
Tip 2. Keep your spine long.
Tip 3. Engage your glutes as you stand, hinge your hips back as you lunge.
7. Bench Jack Knife
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Abs, hip flexors
- Reps: 12
Bench jack knives strengthen your hip flexors and abdominal muscles.
Tip 1. Draw your navel in throughout.
Tip 2. Press your thighs together as you kick.
Tip 3. Flatten your lower back as you lean back.
8. Lying Straight Leg Raise
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Core, quads, adductors
- Reps: 10
Lying straight leg raises strengthen your core and inner thighs.
Tip 1. Maintain a flat lower back throughout.
Tip 2. Keep your thighs pressed together.
Tip 3. Breathe calmly.
9. Decline March To Chest Tap
- Difficulty: Intermediate
- Primary muscles targeted: Shoulders, core, hip flexors
- Reps: 10
Decline march to chest tap strengthens your core while improving shoulder stability.
Tip 1. Plank with your back flat.
Tip 2. Keep your hips square with the floor.
Tip 3. Breathe calmly throughout.
10. Incline Bench Push Up
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Shoulders, chest, core
- Reps: 10
Incline bench push-ups strengthen your chest.
Tip 1. Keep your elbows facing back.
Tip 2. Maintain a flat back thoughout.
Tip 3. Exhale as you push yourself up.
11. Tricep Dips
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Shoulders, triceps, core
- Reps: 12
Tricep dips strengthen your triceps using your bodyweight.
Tip 1. Keep your elbows facing back.
Tip 2. Keep your chin level and gaze straight forward.
Tip 3. You can straighten your legs to make it more challenging.
12. Decline Push Ups
- Difficulty: Intermdiate
- Primary muscles targeted: Shoulders, chest, core
- Reps: 12
Decline push-ups require more output from the chest and shoulders than a traditional push-ups.
Tip 1. Keep your elbows facing back.
Tip 2. Maintain a flat back.
Tip 3. Exhale as you push yourself up.
13. Lying Chest Stretch
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Chest
- Reps: 30 secs
Lying chest stretch provides a nice stretch for your pecs.
Tip 1. Keep your lower back flat.
Tip 2. Externally rotate your shoulders.
Tip 3. Breathe calmly throughout.
14. Seated Figure 4
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Glutes
- Reps: 30 secs
Figure 4 stretch provides a nice stretch for your piriformis.
Tip 1. Keep your spine long.
Tip 2. Lean forward to deepen the stretch.
Tip 3. Breathe calmly throughout.
15. Half Kneeling Assisted Hip Flexor Stretch
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Primary muscles targeted: Hip Flexors
- Reps: 30 secs
Half kneeling assisted stretch provides a nice stretch for your hip flexors.
Tip 1. Get into a stable position.
Tip 2. Keep your spine tall.
Tip 3. Breathe calmly throughout.
Watch me perform the exercises in realtime:
For this workout, I am using a fitness gear incline/decline bench. 🙂 You can find it on my tools page.