‘TIS THE SEASON to be… shredded? Sure, that might be the message about the summer months you’re getting from social media and guys in your gym’s locker room—and it’s great to have a lofty fitness goal, to be clear—but we’re just as excited about all the potential for fun and movement in the sun that comes after Memorial Day. This is the time that you get to let loose and get outside, hitting the park, beach, pool, court, or even just your yard to get active in the best weather of the year. Your workouts, which might’ve been constrained to indoor gym spaces, basements, and living rooms, will be even better in the season’s more favorable temps.
If you’re thinking more about your body than any other time of the year outside of resolution season in January, you’re not alone. You might have gone through some changes since last summer, or you might just be overwhelmed by the onslaught of beach body discourse.
Here’s an idea: Think more about how your body feels than how it fits into any predetermined standard or swim trunks. We think it’s great that guys can set and achieve goals related to their physiques, but we’re just as happy when guys are spending time and effort, both in the gym and outside of it, on activities that will help them to move better doing whatever it is they want to do. And if the season is all about fun, your summer workouts should be doubly focused on having a good time while you sweat.
These workouts will get you where you want to be, pushing you toward your fitness goals in the most efficient ways possible. Some of these sessions use a full gym’s worth of equipment, while just as many are designed to be completed with minimal gear you probably have at home or can take outside to get out into the open air. Need a specific plan to begin? Begin with this four-week fundamentals program that builds full-body muscle. Level up with this 8-week core-centric plan that will do more for your midsection than those extra sets of summer situps you’ve been tacking onto your routine since March. If you’re really locked in, check out the entire Abs Redefined package for next-level knowledge.
Want to get outside and get moving? We hand-picked a dozen of our favorite outdoor workout sessions so you can take your training to nature. And if you’re an MH MVP member, you have access to even more options, from beginner-friendly muscle guides to six-pack abs programs to 20-minute pump plans. Need tools for all that park, beach, and backyard action? Our fitness editors hand-selected some of their favorite gear for the season. Get started with these top home gym picks:
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And if you’re already in fun-in-the-sun shape, all of these workouts and exercise will push you to another level, building on the muscle you already have.
Enough talk. Let’s get outside and get after it!
SCULPT YOUR ABS
THIS ONE’S ABOUT more than beach abs. A trim, ripped waistline doesn’t just look good when you’re out in the sun. It protects your spine, bulletproofs your lower back, and makes you stronger all-around (translation: You’ll build the rest of your beach body that much faster). You’ll need more than crunches to build those abs though. Start with these moves.
15-MINUTE ABS
HIIT YOUR ABS
SUMMER SHRED SIX-PACK
WEIGHTED AB EXERCISES
ATTACK YOUR ARMS
BUILDING JACKED BICEPS and triceps doesn’t just mean lifting the heaviest weights in the gym. Your fastest route to beach-ready arms is filled with precision techniques and slow, controlled reps. Learn the secrets of smart arm training, and you’ll unlock size, strength, and definition that’ll show whether you’re in a tank top, T-shirt, or no shirt at all.
MUST-DO TRICEP MOVES
BEST BICEPS BLASTS
GVT BICEPS BUILDER
5-MINUTE ARMS
CHISEL YOUR CHEST
SURE, FLEXING YOUR biceps is fun—but once you take your shirt off, you’ll want to be able to stay confident with your chest. Whether you’re pumping out pushups or pressing through bench reps, these workouts will help you to stimulate the muscle growth you’ll want to go sans top.
20 BEST CHEST
4-WEEK CHEST
NO-BENCH CHEST
BODYWEIGHT CHEST
BUILD YOUR BACK
THE MOST UNDERRATED part of an eye-catching beach body: a well-muscled back. Build size and strength in your lats and middle back, and it instantly makes you stand taller and walk broader, and it’ll protect your shoulders and make your chest exercises more effective too. And maybe the best part? It’ll make your waist look slimmer! Start building that back right now.
BODYWEIGHT BACK
BEST FOR BACK
DB BACK BUILDERS
UPPER BODY PULL
CRUSH YOUR LEGS
DON’T JUST FOCUS all your energy on your abs and arms–you’ll be wearing shorts along with your tank tops, after all, and you’ll want to fill them out right. And this year, fellas, we’re talking SHORT. Get your squat form locked down, use dynamic movements to get those quads and glutes ready for top billing. As the saying goes: Sky’s out, thighs out.
RECOMP LEGS
LEG DAY ESSENTIALS
BODYWEIGHT QUAD CRUSHER
BEST SQUATS
FULL BODY FLEX
IF YOU WANT to spend less time in the weight room as the weather improves but you don’t want to skimp on performance, these are the workouts for you. Put all the parts together with these full body crushing routines that will get you the most bang for your workout buck. You’ll address most of the major muscle groups in one go, making these the most efficient, effective routines you can use to get ready for the beach.
DB SUMMER SUPERSETS
BEACH PREP WORKOUT
1-DUMBBELL WORKOUT
1 KB WORKOUT
Brett Williams, NASM-CPT, PES, a senior editor at Men’s Health, is a certified trainer and former pro football player and tech reporter. You can find his work elsewhere at Mashable, Thrillist, and other outlets.
Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S., is the fitness director of Men’s Health and a certified trainer with more than 10 years of training experience. He’s logged training time with NFL athletes and track athletes and his current training regimen includes weight training, HIIT conditioning, and yoga. Before joining Men’s Health, he served as a sports columnist and tech columnist for the New York Daily News.
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