I’ve been writing about health and fitness for years, and I spent most of the Covid lockdown looking for ways to keep fit without the gym. For me, that meant lots of online Barre classes and modified CrossFit workouts using a barbell my gym loaned to me for the duration. One thing I never tried was a Joe Wicks workout.
Wicks, also known as The Body Coach, is one of the most recognisable names in the UK fitness industry, in part because of the daily live workouts for kids and adults he streamed during lockdown.
His workouts are accessible and designed to be done at home with minimal, if any, equipment. As someone who prefers strength-training over other form of exercise, I’ve been skeptical about how much bodyweight workouts would benefit me.
However, with the days getting darker and colder, I’m struggling to make it to the gym first thing in the morning as usual. When I noticed Wicks had posted a new 15-minute workout, I decided to give it a go as a way to get moving at home.
Wicks describes the workout as an intermediate HIIT workout. It starts with 35 seconds of movement, followed by 25 seconds of rest.
I was familiar with all of the exercises, including mountain climbers, push-ups and lunges. The workout switches between high-impact exercises like running on the spot and burpees, and low-impact exercises, such as glute bridges and bicycle crunches. This meant, combined with the fairly long rest periods, I had time to get my breath back between the high-impact movements.
However, the workout finished with mainly cardio exercises, which I enjoyed, as it left me sweaty and breathless by the end of the session, so I felt like I’d got a good workout in.
One benefit of Wicks’s workouts compared with other online personal trainers is that he properly demonstrates and explains the correct form for each move. Do the move wrong, especially at pace, and you may injure yourself or, at the very least, not work the intended muscles.
I enjoyed the workout and it got my heart rate up. It’s a good option if you just want to get moving, especially if, like me, one of the main reasons you exercise is for those post-workout endorphins that leave you feeling good throughout the day, which this routine, although short, delivered on.
