Let’s face it, we can’t all get to the gym as often as we’d like. Life just gets in the way sometimes. But you don’t have to let your fitness pursuits suffer. You can still get a perfectly good workout done in your backyard or living room. While its not ideal, it allows you to keep making progress during those times when you just can’t seem to make it to the gym to train.
These workouts are designed to take between 5-15 minutes, deliver a good dose of intensity and requires nothing but your able body and a little room to move.
Download the workouts here.
***Update 28/08/2010 – If you’re just getting started with CrossFit, it would pay to check out these posts below as they’re good things to commence in parallel.***
- Take Charge of Your Mobility
- Learning to Run Barefoot
- Footwear for CrossFitters – What you need and why it matters
The combination of body weight and gymnastic exercises is virtually limitless. If you think your body weight isn’t enough to challenge you, I suggest you check out this website: Beast Skills
If you can do even half the stuff on that website you’re a better athlete than me…
Stop with the excuses why you can’t get to the gym. In just 5 minutes you can be all done. So hurry up and get on with it already!
Hey g’day again Mike, how’s it going!
Just some more pos feedback mate – your 16 day PDF is a real treat. I’ve sent this across to a good few friends now (can’t find my local copy so back on your site to download it again) – even one of my pals now has contacted the club for membership.
So cheers mate – apart from myself (I’m a talker not a doer hehe), everyone has used it and got some results.
Thanks again mate, I hope all’s well -
Hamish – still training hard!
Hamish,
Thanks for the feedback mate – I really appreciate it.
I’m very pleased to hear the material is helping people.
Keep at it buddy.
Cheers
Just started this workout, and it is surprisingly kicking my a$$. Thanks!
Thank you so much for the workout routine! My daughter and I are starting today!! ( Hopefully we can inspire others to start)We live in an area where Crossfit isn’t offered, so we have to be creative. Thanks again for all your time and work, on putting this together!
is it supposed to be less than 10 minutes one day 1?
Hi,
I ran across your page while reading about Crossfit. A coworker of mine is really into it, so her passion for it naturally spiked my interest. I’ve not been in a gym for many many years now, at least 15yrs and now I’m 42. The 2 week beginner program I just downloaded….has terminology on it that I don’t understand. Such as, Burpees, tuck jumps, and so on…..is there somewhere on your site that I can find a glossary or explanations of the exercises on the sheet? That would be very helpful!
Thanks in Advance!
These workouts are very similar to Ross enamaits and he’s been around for a lot longer than CF.
Hi marsha,
I agree with you. In fact, many people have been doing workouts like this long before CrossFit. While people like to put a name to routines like this, it’s really just a bunch of bodyweight exercises that are accessible for beginners.
Thanks for your comment. Ross Enamait is great – his ‘homemade’ equipment guides are particularly useful.
Be careful: true beginners who will try this might hurt themselves (100 pushups, 5KM run, etc.). Get familiar with your limits and work accordingly. Don’t push yourself too hard in the beginning.
Hi Mike,
I’d like to thank you for the 16 day workout. I wanted to try crossfit and was looking for a sample beginners work out and stumbled upon yours. I am now on day 10 and LOVING it! I never thought I could even begin to do things like this and here I am burpee-ing my way through it!
I am not in the best shape, so getting each day done is a great achievement. Tomorrow I have to do 100 burpees and I’m kind of looking forward to see how I fare! And then the 5kn run!!! OMG! I feel weirdly excited and apprehensive!
Looking forward to more workouts
Thank you again!
thank you for the 16 day work out, does anyone have and idea for the next level. it would really help me out. And plus, im getting in shape for a wedding in june! any ideas will be appreciated! thanks so much!
Hi there angie,
Thanks for your comment.
Best thing to do to take it to the next level is to seek out a CrossFit affiliate in your local area.
Failing that, start by following some scaled versions of the daily crossfit.com workouts. To get a good understanding of the scaling, check out the comments section for each workout posted.
Hope that helps!!
Sorry for the late reply Hani.
Glad you’re enjoying the workouts so much!!
Good luck on your journey. CrossFit changed my life – I have no doubt it will change yours too in some way!
Love your blog too.
All the best.
I am on day 3 and need to know how to do tuck jumps and back extensions. I’m not familiar with some of the workouts. I would appreicate it if you can help me out.
thank you
Hey Stephanie,
Glad to see you’re getting involved in the workouts. Trying googling ‘Tuck Jump’ and ‘Back Extension’ and some YouTube results will come up that are pretty good representations of what is required.
All the best with your workouts!
Mike! Thanks so much for this 16 day workout. Its exactly what I was looking for and exactly waht I needed to get my self in gear. I’ve been putting off getting healthy for a long time. I’m done with the excuses. Thanks for taking the time to do this. I started on August 1st. I created a blog to chronicle my journey to become fit and eventually run the Spartan Death Race. Thats a long way down the road but is in my sights. Thank you , thank you.
Hi Mike, My 8 year old son started tackle football this year and his conditioning coach has the team doing crossfit. I’d never heard of it, and wanted to try it. I’ve always worked out (42 yoa now) but I don’t like to run distance to lose some wait. I just found your site and started day 1 of the 2 week beginner program today. Wow! It let me know what kind of shape I am really in, not very good. My question is what kind of times should I be looking for as far as the excercises and the rest between them? Thanks.
Hi guys this might sound like a really stupid question but could someone explain to me what it means when you say..for time? is that a specific time you yourself allocate to the particular exersize? and i am also looking foward to doing this as well,! I do go to the gym too i do zumba and body balance nearly every day and its rewarding but i want to do something more challenging so here i am!! I may take my sheet to the gym with me and do it there also!
So i just started yesterday and am already sore… its great. I just had a question about day 2…. for the tabata intervals is it 8 rounds of each exercise or 8 rounds of alternating between them?
I was referred to crossfit by a friend and I googled the 16 day crossfit program. I don’t understand some of the terminology like burpees, and # rounds for time. Can you please help me understand the terminolgy so I can start the program? Thank you
Hi there Angie, thanks for your comment. Guess what, there’s even a CrossFit workout named after you! Isn’t that some cool shit
Anyway, here is the best resource I can offer your regarding terminology: http://www.crossfit.com/cf-info/faq.html
I’m having some trouble find examples of the workouts eg squat snatch any advice?
Thank you for the time you invested into putting the program together. One thing than threw me off a little was the claim in the beginning that the program can be completed in one’s living room with no equipment, however as soon as I scanned through the exercises, I noticed 50 m spring, 400 m run and 5 k run.
I can see accomplishing these exercises with a use of treadmill; however that I would consider an equipment, right?
I’d be curious to hear how did you envision for people to do these particular exercises from home.
Thank you.
Hi Jen,
While you can’t really run in your house, I imagine most people are able accomplish these runs near their home. The purpose of the article is really to prove that you can accomplish a lot towards your fitness without equipment and without attending a gym. If for some reason weather doesn’t permit running outside, you could do Mountain Climbers instead: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flT4TIMYvzI
Good luck!
Hello Mike and thank you for the workouts. Can I buy your workout schedules? I don’t want to go to the gym an don’t want to buy any equipment, no matter how low the cost. Your workouts are perfectly designed for what I need, but 16 days will come and go quickly. I want to pay for a “beyond 16 day” workout. Can I buy this from you, and if not, do you have a reference? Again, your workout is EXACTLY what I was looking for…I just can’t seem to do the “50 pull-ups, 10 handstand pushups, etc, etc, etc” that the WOD from the Crosfit site commands. For the love of Pete, I didn’t star in 300.
THIS IS IN REFERENCE TO THE CROSSFIT 16 DAY BEGINNER PROGRAM.
I am 38 yrs old and in the last three years i have gone from 307 to 217 pounds with
a change in lifestyle. This is all through eating healthy and exercising on the regular no gimic or fast weight loss program. I found the website/ blog through a friend.
I started the 16 day workout on monday it is now 4 days later on my rest day. I can tell you this no trainer or workout program has made me so sore as this program has.
A+++++++++++++++++ Thanks alot i really enjoy it and hope to progress further.
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Crossfit is no better than any other system of fitness. It is too extreme for my taste, and I have been exercising for a long time.
For those who are considering joining a Crossfit gym, please read this article from the NY Times — Getting Fit, Even If It Kills You
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/22/fashion/thursdaystyles/22Fitness.html?pagewanted=all
Mike,
I am really wanting to get into this “crossfit” and am beginning the 16 day program, my questions are?
1. What type of rest interval should one take? is this meant to be an EVERY day program?
2. How does one determine their level of fitness since I can guarantee you that it will take the rest of the 16 days fro me to finish 100 pushups starting day 6?
Can you recommend an inexpensive outdoor timer that can be used for the timed events, tabatta intervals etc?
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