Calling All Backyard Warriors: Sizzling Summer Exercises

Here are our favourite summer exercises you can do without any equipment – perfect for when you’re away from the gym enjoying the season.

Jeff Wood

Diving Board Pull Ups – Upper body

Find a pool and jump on in. Swim over to the diving board and use a neutral grip to hold the diving board. Pull up until the top of your chest reaches the tip of the diving board. To make the exercise more difficult, reduce the water level of your pool, or superset with high knees in the shallow end.

Neal Prokop

Bear Crawl – Core

A must-have for any campground. Starting on your hands and knees, rise up onto your toes, tighten your core, and slowly reach forward with your right arm and right knee, followed by the left side. Continue the crawl for 8-10 reps or until you scare your parents.

Dean Lowrie

Hill Sprints – Cardio

Hill sprints give you some outstanding benefits, such as building muscle and shedding fat. They make you faster and more explosive, and they take less time than distance running down a long country road. In your training, keep it progressive and run the same length. Have a start and finish line, and time yourself for each sprint. Race yourself and try to beat your best time every two to three weeks!

Jordan Koroll

Single Leg Summer Squats – Lower body

Begin with a pad placed directly behind you. Your feet should be hip-width apart. Transition your weight to your dominant leg and lift the opposite leg slightly off the floor. Drop down in control until your knee contacts the pad. Upon contact, push through the heel of your stationary leg and return to the starting position. It’s a touch exercise – you need to maintain balance and utilize your strength to do the movement in control.

Jacqueline Mazur

Mini Band Bent Over Row – Upper body

We’d rather be rowing a boat on Lake of the Woods, but in a pinch, you can do it in your backyard! In a split stance, loop a resistance band around your front foot, and hold the other end with your opposite hand. Hinge forward from the hips so that your back leg and torso are in one straight line from shoulders to ankle. Keeping your core tight and shoulders back and down, bend your elbow and bring your arm up toward your body. Think about using the back of your shoulders and your lats to initiate and complete the movement, rather than your arm doing all the work.

Sara Maclennan

Bird Dog – Core

It’s summer, which means modifying two of my favorite activities: dog-walking and bird-watching. Begin in a kneeling position with your knees on the ground and your hands under your shoulders. Start by extending your right arm forward and kicking your left leg backwards in a slow and controlled manner, making sure to engage your core at all times. Once both your right hand and left leg are fully extended, return to the starting position on both knees and hands. Alternate by extending your left arm forward and right leg backward. This exercise is great for working on core stability.

Kahlil Dia-Hammond

Summer Reading Plank Pass – Core

Each time you finish a chapter of your favourite book this summer, flip over to begin in a plank position on your forearms. Put your toes together, toes apart, or plank from your knees, depending on your fitness level. Use a weighted flat object (such as your book) to place on to your back with one hand and return it to the ground in front of you using the opposite hand. Repeat this pattern, alternating which hand you use first.

Honourable Mention

Fence Sit (Wall Sit) – Lower body

Slowly slide your back down the fence until the thighs are parallel to the ground. Stand with your hands on your hips and hold for 90 seconds. Watch out for slivers!

Happy training this summer!