The 10-Minute Workout That Will Get Your Body Ready for Summer

Let’s be real: The wonderful thing about being in great shape has nothing to do with how you look in a bathing suit—even during summer. Nah. It’s that at any given moment, there’s nothing holding you back from doing whatever you want.

Whether it’s renting a bike to cruise down the boardwalk, taking a surfing lesson, or spontaneously signing up for a 5K with a friend, you want to be ready for any adventure—not worry about whether you can keep up.

This quick, full-body workout is designed to help build overall strength and cardio endurance so you can swim, run, and explore with confidence. Take your sweat sesh outdoors to double up the health benefits and get your daily dose of vitamin D—just be sure to apply your SPF, and to stay hydrated as temps heat up!

Warm-up: Yoga flow

Unroll your mat and get those juices flowing with an easy yoga flow. Try a few simple sun salutations to warm up your shoulders, hips, and back. Or follow this 8-minute yoga sequence by Jennifer Partridge to totally relax your neck and upper back, which is great for prepping your bod for a workout.

Workout: HIIT

This super-efficient workout won’t take long, but it will leave you feeling wiped (in a good way!). Ten minutes of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) has been proven to be as effective as a 45-minute-long, moderately challenging workout. Do 20 seconds of high-intensity work—as many reps as possible, as quickly as possible—followed by a two-minute recovery move. Today, you’ll alternate between two recovery moves: the stair wall-sit and plank variations.

High-intensity: Side-to-side bench jumps

Duration: 20 seconds
Muscles worked: Quads, hamstrings, deltoids

Start with your hands in the center of a bar or bench, standing on one side with feet together. Jump from one side over to the other, landing softly with bent knees and feet as close together as possible. Keep your pace steady as you repeat for 20 seconds.

Recovery: Stair wall-sit

Duration: 2 minutes
Muscles worked: Quads, inner thighs, abs

An uneven base makes your core work even harder as you do a basic wall-sit. Keep one foot firmly planted on the ground, and step the other foot up to the next stair. Press your back into the wall, and slowly lower down until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Hold here, pulling your belly button in, for two minutes.

High-intensity: Box jumps

Duration: 20 seconds
Muscles worked: Calves, quads, hamstrings, glutes

Use a box, bench, or any surface about 18 inches off the ground for this one. Just like in a plyometric box jump (which builds strength and power in the legs), you’ll start with your feet about hip-distance apart. Drop into a squat, and then press down through your legs to jump up onto the bench (or box, or tree stump). Gently jump back down, landing softly, and repeat as many times as you can for 20 seconds.

Recovery: Plank with a knee driver

Duration: 2 minutes
Muscles worked: Quads, abs, deltoids, pecs

Note, if your park or beach doesn’t have elevated parallel bars, do slow mountain-climbers instead.

With your hands and feet anchored on the parallel bars, lift one leg and draw your knee up and into your chest. Slowly return to your plank. Repeat on the other side, then alternate for two minutes.

This one takes some core strength, so if you prefer to hold a regular plank, go for it!

High-intensity: Hanging knee raise

Duration: 20 seconds
Muscles worked: Lower abs, arms

Those abs, though! Hanging from the bar, pull your knees all the way up to your chest, hold for a moment, and release down. Repeat as many times as possible for 20 seconds.

Recovery: Stair wall-sit

Duration: 2 minutes
Muscles worked: Quads, inner thighs, abs

You know the drill. This time, switch the direction you face so the foot that was on the ground before is now on the stair.

High-intensity: Body-weight low row

Duration: 20 seconds
Muscles worked: Biceps, shoulders, lats

Grab onto a set of gymnastic rings and walk your legs out in front of you. Lift your hips so your entire body forms a straight line. Pull your elbows back behind you to bring your chest up in line with the rings, and then slowly release back to the starting position. No rings? If you’re in a park, you can MacGuyver this move on a swingset using the two chains on the outside of a single swing. Just be sure to grab right about where the swing and the chain meets, and you’re good to go!

Recovery: Plank tap-downs

Duration: 2 minutes
Muscles worked: Quads, abs, deltoids, pecs

Pro tip: Keep your upper back flat as you do this—try not to round it or let your chest sag as you hold your plank.

High-intensity: Tricep dips

Duration: 20 seconds
Muscles worked: Triceps, shoulders, lats

With your hands on a bench or set of parallel bars, extend your legs straight out. Bend at the elbows to dip down to a 90 degree angle, and then press up back to your starting position. Repeat as many times as possible (more on how to do dips here).

Workout Complete!

In less than 10 minutes (if you don’t count the warm-up), you’ve gotten in a full-body workout. This HIIT session will tone every inch of your body, but more importantly, leave you feeling strong and healthy—try it three times a week and you’ll be ready to take on whatever adventures summer throws your way.

Photo credit: Alicia Cho