10 Quick and Dirty Workouts to Do During the Holidays

Unless you’re in the very middle of training for your next event, the holidays are an opportunity to use our extra busy schedules and tighter workout time blocks as a sort of a way to go into maintenance mode, or at least something a little less regimented.

Related: The 30 Best Exercises for Functional Strength and Mobility

The following 10 Spartan workouts are a good mix of functional strength and conditioning to keep your race readiness on point. There are also a couple measurable tests of fitness if you’re looking for a fun challenge. Want to prioritize active recovery? Try the two lower-impact workouts to use this time to scale back a bit. 

Do These Workouts During the Holidays to Maintain Your Fitness Goals

1. Foundation of Strength: Upper Body by Gabe Snow in Our STRENGTH Series

If you’re looking for a Spartan standard for building strength, this is one of them. You can pair this with a lower-body strength day and alternate between the two through a week. You can also work a few runs in or an additional core workout of your choice. 

The Workout:

Perform each exercise for 10 repetitions. Complete 3 sets.

1A. Dumbbell Cleans

1B. Single-Arm Push Press

Perform each exercise for 10 repetitions. Complete 3 sets.

2A. Floor Press

2B. Push-Ups

Perform each exercise for 10 repetitions. Complete 3 sets.

3A. Bent-Over Row

3B. Pronated Elbow Plank

Perform each exercise for 10 repetitions. Complete 3 sets.

4A. Seated Single-arm Shoulder Press

4B. Glute Bridge Floor Press

Finisher: Perform the following exercise for 15 repetitions.

5. Renegade Row

2. Foundation of Strength: Lower Body by Gabe Snow in Our STRENGTH Series

Another Spartan standard for strength here, but lower-body focused this time around. Pair this one with the workout above and you’ve got a no-fail weekly schedule. 

The Workout:

Circuit 1: Perform the following exercises for 45 seconds. Rest 45 seconds. Repeat for 3 rounds.

1A. Lunge Complex (Forward, Lateral, Reverse, Transverse) 

1B. Eccentric Squat

Circuit 2: Perform the following exercises for 45 seconds. Rest 45 seconds. Repeat for 3 rounds.

2A. Front Squat

2B. Jump Squat

Straight Set 1: Perform the following exercise for 5 repetitions. Rest 30 seconds. Repeat 3 rounds. 

— Sumo Squat to Pop Up x 5

Circuit 3:  Perform the following exercises for 45 seconds. Rest 45 seconds. Repeat for 3 rounds.

3A. Kickstand Deadlift

3B. Dynamic Split Squats

3. The Core Shredder by Meg Reardon in Our STRONGER 21 Series

Who doesn’t like a good core shredder? It can be a full workout on a really light day or a finisher on a normal one. Here’s an idea: Do three strength workouts with Meg’s shredder at the end, plus two low-intensity runs during the week. 

The Workout:

Perform the following two exercises back to back for 20 seconds, followed by 10 seconds of rest for a total of 8 rounds. Rest 1 minute, then complete the 8 rounds again.

— Hollow Hold 

— Plank Up Downs

4. The Gut Check by Evan Betts in Our 7-DAY UNBREAKABLE CORE Challenge

Like Meg’s Core Shredder? Well, Evan Betts has something similar. You can follow that twice per week then add this one into the mix too.

The Workout:

Perform as many repetitions of each exercise in 30 seconds. Rest 90 seconds. Complete 3 rounds. Your total number of repetitions is your score.

— Elbow Plank Jack

— Superman

— Palm Plank Shoulder Tap

— Leg Lower

5. The 3X10 by Meg Reardon in Our TEST YOURSELF Series

Speaking of testing yourself: The 3X10 is a perfect workout for going hard without doing anything overly complicated. It’s just three moves for 10 rounds as fast as you can. It might get boring, but you can even do the 3X10 up to four times per week on alternating days.

The Workout:

Complete as many rounds as possible in 10 minutes of the following exercises:

— Burpee x 10 reps

— Squat Jump x 10 reps

— Palm Plank Jack x 10 reps

Note: Meg got 8 rounds.

6. Get Better or Get Beat by Poppy Livers in Our HIIT IT HARD Series

Work hard, move fast. That’s the Poppy Livers way all day. This one is full body, functional, and FAST. Want to know more about why we love this workout so much? Check out our full write-up here. You could do this workout up to three days per week on non-consecutive days.  

The Workout:

Perform the following exercises for 30 seconds, followed by 15 seconds of rest. Rest 1 minute, then move on to the next grouping.

1A. Reverse Lunge + Overhead Press 

1B. Seated ISO Hold Overhead Press

2A. 4-Point Dumbbell Row 

2B. Sit-Up + Russian Twists 

3A. Lateral Lunge + Knee Drive 

3B. Lateral Hops 

4A. Dumbbell Single-Arm Floor Press 

4B. Dumbbell Pull Through + Push-Up 

7. Tough Get Going by Jay Markland in Our TOUGH 25s Series

You might not be doing a race over the holidays, but Jay Markland will keep you in that mindset with a race-inspired workout. You can also follow this one up to three days per week on non-consecutive days. 

The Workout:

Perform each exercise for 45 seconds, followed by 15 seconds of rest. Complete 3 rounds with 60 seconds of rest between each. After the final set, move on to the next circuit after 60 seconds of rest. 

— Racked Lateral Lunge

— Push-Up to Toe Touch

— Dumbbell Russian Twist

— Lateral Bounding

— Squat Jumps

Perform the following exercises for 8, 6, 4, and 2 repetitions each:

— Devil's Press

— Alternating Side Plank Reach

8. Low Impact, High Burn by Kristina Centenari in Our BREAK THE MOLD Program

Have you had an aggressive last few months of training and racing? Give those joints a bit of a break with a dose of low-impact work with Kristina. 

The Workout:

Circuit 1: Perform the following exercises as a circuit for 30 seconds each, followed by 15 seconds of rest. Complete a total of 3 rounds. 

— Banded Sidestep to Backstep

— Tall Kneeling to Standing Knee Drive

— Hip Bridge

— Banded Knees to Elbows  

Circuit 2: Perform the following exercises as a circuit for 30 seconds each, followed by 15 seconds of rest. Complete a total of 3 rounds. 

​​— Banded Horizontal Pulls to Vertical Pulls

— Plank Banded Rows

— Half-Kneeling Side Lean

— Supine Opposite Elbow-Knee Crunch

— Oblique Twists 

9. Under Control by Gabe Snow in Our 20% TOUGHER Series

If you train at home and don’t have access to heavy weights — or just prefer not to train with them — no problem. Gabe knows how to make light weights heavy. This workout is designed around maximizing time under tension by emphasizing a slower tempo during movements. You could perform this workout multiple days per week on non-consecutive days. 

Related: 3 Time Under Tension Techniques to Build More Muscle

The Workout:

Perform the following exercises as a circuit for two rounds. For the first round, perform the following exercises for 30 seconds each. For the second round, perform them for 45 seconds each. Rest 1 minute at the end of each round.

— Goblet Split Squat (3-second eccentric) 

— Strict Overhead Press (3-second eccentric) 

— Reverse Lunge to Overhead Press 

— Goblet Squat (3-second. eccentric)  

— Single-Arm Gorilla Row (3-second eccentric)  

10. The Will Breaker by Trevor Franklin in Our 3 DAYS OF BELLS Program

This workout is exactly as it sounds: a will breaker. 

Trevor will challenge you to push and push through a full-body functional challenge, and you’ll need a kettlebell or a dumbbell to do so. 

The Workout:

Perform each of the following exercises for 30 seconds, rest 30 seconds, then begin another round in which you perform each exercise for 60 seconds. Complete a total of 5 rounds while adding 15 seconds of work with each round.

— Kettlebell Swing

— Kettlebell Clean

— Kettlebell Squat

— Kettlebell Single-Leg Deadlift