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Last updated on April 7th, 2019 at 04:47 am
If you’ve just decided to start working out, finishing even ONE TINY beginner workout can seem impossible. If you find yourself giving up 5 minutes into the workout every time, try this at home workout plan for beginners to lose weight and build strength.
Too many beginner workouts I’ve found online are not for REAL beginners: the ones who haven’t exercised in a while (or never) and start from scratch.
The reason why it’s so hard to find a good complete beginner workout is that there are more levels to fitness than just beginner, intermediate or advanced.
After all, there are:
the beginners who aren’t overweight, but are just starting to exercise;
the beginners who have been doing different kinds of exercises and are new to a type of sport;
and then there are beginners who struggle with overweight and need to start from scratch.
My criteria for this plan
When I was making this exercise plan, I was considering how my mom would do with these workouts. She’s been struggling with overweight for decades now and while she loves to dance, a high-intensity dance workout that’s gonna help me lose weight and get fit, would be WAY too challenging for her.
In fact, in the past I’ve done several workouts with her (or at least I tried) and she would get out of breath during the warm up. Then she would just give up. My mom also has no idea what pilates or yoga is and thinks those are boring (can’t blame her – it was my opinion for a while too).
That’s why I went on Youtube and found some exercise routines for beginners like my mom. With these workouts, you will be challenged, but also able to do them.
Even if you can’t finish all exercises – don’t give up! With practice and patience, you’ll get there.
Workout Split
In this workout plan, you’ll have a day of cardio, followed by a day of toning. Every day, back to back. The seventh day is stretching.
It’s important to have different types of movements, so you get the benefits of them all – building strength, improving your cardiovascular health & mood and reducing pain.
Benefits Of Regular Exercise
prevents major diseases like cardiovascular diseases, cancer and neurodegenerative diseases
builds muscle strength
good for bone health
improves your mood and makes you more alert
improves your memory
helps you look good
How To Make Exercise A Habit
The idea with doing a 30-minute workout every day is to get into the habit of exercising. If you just work out for 1-2h on three days of the week – it’s harder to develop a habit. But when you say I’ll do it every morning for 30 min – by the end of the first week you’re already used to exercising for 30 minutes daily.
And then you need to keep going. Do this workout plan until it’s still challenging and then change it up – add other workouts that you want to try, go out for walks, try HIIT, maybe even lifting weights.
Now in the beginning, if you can’t do the 30 minutes, do the best you can. Even if you do just 20, 15 or 10 minutes, do something every day. You can do it at home, you can do it outside, wherever you feel comfortable.
If a workout or a move is too challenging, stick to the low-impact / modified version until you are able to do the more advanced version.
After The First Week
If you try the workout plan and still find it challenging after a week, keep doing it until it’s not challenging anymore. That is if you’re enjoying it, of course, don’t make yourself do something you hate. If you struggle, but also kinda feel good and proud of yourself, that’s a good sign. You just need to keep going.
If you decide this workout plan is not for you or you want to switch things up, you can try this walking program. It is free if you’re a member of Grokker. If you aren’t you can get a free 14-Day trial here and enjoy the other programs they have as well. There are yoga, meditation and fitness videos made for beginners which is perfect because you can experiment with different types of fitness classes at home. You can check out all the classes here.
One more thing: make sure to include more movement into your daily routine outside of a daily workout – for example by walking, taking the stairs, cleaning at home or gardening. Natural daily movement is just as important, if not even more important than a scheduled workout.
Losing Weight With Exercise
If you want to do this exercise plan not only to improve your strength, your mental and heart health but also to lose weight, you would need to change your diet as well.
Exercise as beneficial as it is, is not the only component of weight loss, it makes about 20% of it. The key is what and how much you eat every day. You need to eat healthy whole foods, limit processed foods, drink a lot of water and stop overeating.
This means you would need to start cooking more often and eating at home, you would also have to go grocery shopping and trying out new recipes. Take this as learning experience, try to have fun with it and don’t make yourself crazy.
If you don’t have the time or don’t trust yourself grocery shopping and choosing healthy recipes for dinner or lunch yet, there’s also the opportunity to try a healthy meal kit delivery service like Sun Basket. You would order online and get the groceries and recipe cards delivered to your home. Everything is organic, the recipes are healthy and take around 30 minutes to make. If you do want to give Sun Basket a try, you can get $80 off your first three orders here.
For This Workout Plan You’ll Need
yoga or workout mat
workout clothes that you feel comfortable in
around 30 min a day
connection to high-speed internet to play Youtube videos for around 30 min a day
proper foot wear for the cardio workouts
Remember: doing even a little bit for your body every day is way better than doing a lot for your body ONLY once a month. So tomorrow, wake up early, and start exercising before you can make excuses!
Please consult with your doctor, before starting this or any other exercise regimen!
7-Day At Home Workout Plan For COMPLETE Beginners
Monday
This 1.0 Mile Happy Walk by Walk At Home is fun and just 15min long. If you can, repeat the video for full 30 min.
Tuesday
If you’ve never tried pilates, this awesome video by Jessica Valant Pilates explains how to perform every move correctly – a great way to start if you’re a beginner! Give the video a try to tone your abs and butt!
Wednesday
On the third day you’ll burn calories and train your whole body with this fun Denise Austin cardio dance workout, I found on the Youtube Channel of BeFit. There are some parts where jumping is involved if you can’t do that – just step it!
Thursday & Saturday
On Thursday and Saturday try this 15-Minute Beginner Workout by Popsugar Fitness to strengthen the muscles in your entire body. You don’t need any equipment, but if you can get a chair – that’d be great! Some of the moves might be challenging, but again – just do what you can.
Friday
This is a fun 30-Minute Latin Spice Walk by jessicasmithtv. The trainer – Jessica did the video with her mom and there’s no jumping involved, so if you’re not there yet – try this fun walk!
Sunday
Finally, time to stretch and relax with this yoga gentle full body stretching routine for flexibility & relaxation by Yoga TX.
I hope you enjoy this workout plan and that it helps you make exercise a daily habit you look forward to.
The Thursday and Saturday workouts seem impossible for me as a plus size person, especially being on my knees. Do you have any other recommendations for a beginner workout that would target the same areas?
Hi Jennifer, try a beginner Pilates workout – they’re great for building strength. I have joint & knee pain as well and Pilates exercises are easy on your knees and joints, as you do almost everything lying on the mat. For Thu and Sat you can repeat the Pilates workout (Tuesday) from this plan. It explains the basics of Pilates very well.
You can also go to this list and check out the 1st (PILATES CLASS 1, RENEE’S 30 MINUTE CLASS, EFIT30), 2nd (TOTAL BODY PILATES BEGINNERS | LOTTIE MURPHY) and 6th (PILATESOLOGY PILATES BEGINNER MAT CLASS IN 15 MIN WORKOUT) workout.
They are for beginners as well, but I find the pace quicker – so maybe something to do the second week (or once you’re comfortable with the Pilates video in this plan).
And do whatever you can. You don’t need to do all exercises to get the benefits. For example in the 1st video from the 18th minute on, there are some exercises from your knees – don’t do them. Same with the bridge exercises – I feel those in my knees too and hate them. Instead, I would do some more exercises where you’re just lying on the side and lifting your legs. Remember to do the moves with mindfulness and as much control as you can, quality over quantity. I really hope this helps, if you have any other questions, let me know
I love this! I’m a long-term exerciser but had to scale down immensely due to an illness. I also struggle with putting together the right combo of cardio/strength/flexibility. Thanks for posting this!
The Thursday and Saturday workouts seem impossible for me as a plus size person, especially being on my knees. Do you have any other recommendations for a beginner workout that would target the same areas?
Hi Jennifer, try a beginner Pilates workout – they’re great for building strength. I have joint & knee pain as well and Pilates exercises are easy on your knees and joints, as you do almost everything lying on the mat. For Thu and Sat you can repeat the Pilates workout (Tuesday) from this plan. It explains the basics of Pilates very well.
You can also go to this list and check out the 1st (PILATES CLASS 1, RENEE’S 30 MINUTE CLASS, EFIT30), 2nd (TOTAL BODY PILATES BEGINNERS | LOTTIE MURPHY) and 6th (PILATESOLOGY PILATES BEGINNER MAT CLASS IN 15 MIN WORKOUT) workout.
They are for beginners as well, but I find the pace quicker – so maybe something to do the second week (or once you’re comfortable with the Pilates video in this plan).
And do whatever you can. You don’t need to do all exercises to get the benefits. For example in the 1st video from the 18th minute on, there are some exercises from your knees – don’t do them. Same with the bridge exercises – I feel those in my knees too and hate them. Instead, I would do some more exercises where you’re just lying on the side and lifting your legs. Remember to do the moves with mindfulness and as much control as you can, quality over quantity. I really hope this helps, if you have any other questions, let me know
I love this! I’m a long-term exerciser but had to scale down immensely due to an illness. I also struggle with putting together the right combo of cardio/strength/flexibility. Thanks for posting this!
Thank you Ellen, I hope you enjoy the workouts!