Total Health Systems | October 17, 2013 (updated December 18, 2018)

The Ladder Circuit Work Out Demonstrated by Total Health Systems in Chesterfield, Michigan

Hi, I’m Laurie, and I am at the Chesterfield, Michigan location of Total Health Systems. And today I’m going to show you some exercises for your upper body as well as your core. I like to use the set of exercises in 2 different ways.

If you’re looking to add movement to your day, this is a great ladder circuit to work your way through. This can also be used if you don’t have time to work out one day and you’re like oh I just got to do something. This is a real quick circuit to go through or you can get through your workout and if you feel like you have a little bit left, this is a great way to finish out your workout. I call it a finisher.

So like I said, this is a ladder circuit. We are going to start with 10 pushups, 20 tricep dips, 30 bicep curls, 40 crunches and 50 second plank hold. And if you’re feeling really strong, then you’re going to work your way back down the ladder. Starting with that 50 second hold again, 40 crunches, 30 bicep curls, 20 tricep dips. And finish off with those 10 pushups.

So let me go ahead and show you what each one of these looks like. I’ll go through each of the exercises a couple times and tell you a couple things that are key. So we’re starting with our 10 pushups. So if you need to do the pushups on your knees, you can. Or you can do them from your toes. Make sure that you’re keeping your body level and you don’t leave your butt up in the air. So we start with 10 pushups. Make sure you exhale as you’re coming up.

After those pushups, you’re going to do 20 tricep dips. Now you don’t have to have a bench to do the dips. You can use a coffee table at your home, or you can use a chair. I like to sit right on my thumbs and then just drop my butt right off the edge of the bench. Dip those hips down. And I want to keep my back real close to the bench, like I’m scraping my back right along the edge. You don’t want to get into a position where you’re way out here like this. And that’s not really a tricep dip. So keep your body real close. So 10 pushups, 20 tricep dips.

After those dips, if you want to, you can grab some weights and you’re going to do 30 bicep curls. With your bicep curls, you want to make sure you keep your elbow real close to your body. I don’t want to see your elbow coming up and away from you. Just keep it real close. 30 bicep curls.

After the curls, you go right back down to the floor. And you’re doing 40 crunches, just a tiny little crunch. Exhale as you lift. 40 of those. And you follow this with your plank. Elbows right under your shoulders, legs out straight, hips are level. Don’t let those hips go up in the air. And just hold it right here for 50 seconds.

And if you’re feeling good, then you work your way back down and you go back to the crunches, back to the bicep curl, back to the tricep dips, and finish with your 10 pushups. It’s a great finisher to any workout, or a great little workout if you’re trying to sneak something in throughout the day.