Are you looking to strengthen your core and glutes, build stamina, and burn calories faster than running? Enter the 30 Day Ab & Squat Challenge. This 30 day fitness challenge for beginners is a great way to get into strength training. While only using body weight to get stronger and more agile. And even if you’re not a beginner, we’re building core strength and endurance. This combo will improve your running, climbing, biking, and more!
During this 30 Day Ab & Squat Challenge we’ll be building up to:
100 Sit Ups
100 mountain Climbers (each leg)
100 Air Squats
100 Second Plank (low plank, on elbows)
30 Day Ab & Squat Challenge for Beginners
Challenge Instructions:
Since this challenge is designed for beginners (ways to scale and advance the workout below), we’ll be building up to our big final workout on day 30. Below is a chart with a complete daily schedule for reps to follow. This will also include one rest day per week. Recovery is an important part of getting stronger. So the way I do these 30 day challenges is by adding one day of work for every rest day added. So you will end up doing 5 weeks, with 6 days of work each week, for 30 days of work in total.
As just a note, the planks in this program are low planks or elbow planks. This lower plank will place more emphasis on your core compared to a straight arm plank.
Scaling Options:
For this fitness challenge there are a few ways you can scale each movement. We’ll go over some of those scaling options below.
Do Less Reps – Scaled Down:
The easiest way to scale down this challenge is to lower the total number of reps you are doing for each movement. For example, each day you can do half the reps, building up to half the total over 30 days. Then come back and do the full rep scheme!
Breaking Up Sets Throughout The Day – Scaled Down:
Another way to scale this challenge is to do the reps through to the day. Breaking up the 4 movements into 3 separate workouts. Doing the sit ups in the morning, mountain climbers at lunch, and air squats and planks in the evening.
Broken Up Sets – Scaled Down:
The standard way to complete the challenge is by doing each movement set in full, then moving to the next. A way to scale this is to break them into smaller sets (example: 5 sets of 20). This will make the movements easier as you break them up.
Scale Movements – Scaled Down:
Sit-Ups – Sit-ups can be scaled for crunches.
Mountain Climbers – You can scale mountain climbers by increasing the angle of your body to the ground. Do them like you would an incline pushup, with your upper body propped up on a chair (against the wall) or a couch etc.
Air Squats – Scale air squats by adding a chair under your butt and turning them into a air box squats.
Plank – The best way to scale the plank is to do them on your knees and elbows.
All the Reps for 30 Days – Scaled Up:
The ultimate 30 Day Ab & Squat Challenge, complete the entire 100 reps of each movement, for 30 day! This one is tough but will have a huge impact on your performance.
30 Day Ab & Squat Challenge – Check List
Day | Workout |
---|---|
1 | 20 Sit-Ups 20 Mountain Climbers 20 Air Squats 20 Second Plank |
2 | 20 Sit-Ups 20 Mountain Climbers 20 Air Squats 20 Second Plank |
3 | 25 Sit-Ups 25 Mountain Climbers 25 Air Squats 25 Second Plank |
4 | 25 Sit-Ups 25 Mountain Climbers 25 Air Squats 25 Second Plank |
Rest Day | Rest Day |
5 | 30 Sit-Ups 30 Mountain Climbers 30 Air Squats 30 Second Plank |
6 | 30 Sit-Ups 30 Mountain Climbers 30 Air Squats 30 Second Plank |
7 | 30 Sit-Ups 30 Mountain Climbers 30 Air Squats 30 Second Plank |
8 | 35 Sit-Ups 35 Mountain Climbers 35 Air Squats 35 Second Plank |
9 | 35 Sit-Ups 35 Mountain Climbers 35 Air Squats 35 Second Plank |
10 | 40 Sit-Ups 40 Mountain Climbers 40 Air Squats 40 Second Plank |
Rest Day | Rest Day |
11 | 40 Sit-Ups 40 Mountain Climbers 40 Air Squats 40 Second Plank |
12 | 45 Sit-Ups 45 Mountain Climbers 45 Air Squats 45 Second Plank |
13 | 45 Sit-Ups 45 Mountain Climbers 45 Air Squats 45 Second Plank |
14 | 50 Sit-Ups 50 Mountain Climbers 50 Air Squats 50 Second Plank |
15 | 50 Sit-Ups 50 Mountain Climbers 50 Air Squats 50 Second Plank |
16 | 55 Sit-Ups 55 Mountain Climbers 55 Air Squats 55 Second Plank |
Rest Day | Rest Day |
17 | 55 Sit-Ups 55 Mountain Climbers 55 Air Squats 55 Second Plank |
18 | 60 Sit-Ups 60 Mountain Climbers 60 Air Squats 60 Second Plank |
19 | 60 Sit-Ups 60 Mountain Climbers 60 Air Squats 60 Second Plank |
20 | 65 Sit-Ups 65 Mountain Climbers 65 Air Squats 65 Second Plank |
21 | 65 Sit-Ups 65 Mountain Climbers 65 Air Squats 65 Second Plank |
22 | 70 Sit-Ups 70 Mountain Climbers 70 Air Squats 70 Second Plank |
Rest Day | Rest Day |
23 | 70 Sit-Ups 70 Mountain Climbers 70 Air Squats 70 Second Plank |
24 | 75 Sit-Ups 75 Mountain Climbers 75 Air Squats 75 Second Plank |
25 | 75 Sit-Ups 75 Mountain Climbers 75 Air Squats 75 Second Plank |
26 | 80 Sit-Ups 80 Mountain Climbers 80 Air Squats 80 Second Plank |
27 | 80 Sit-Ups 80 Mountain Climbers 80 Air Squats 80 Second Plank |
28 | 95 Sit-Ups 95 Mountain Climbers 95 Air Squats 95 Second Plank |
Rest Day | Rest Day |
29 | 95 Sit-Ups 95 Mountain Climbers 95 Air Squats 95 Second Plank |
30 | 100 Sit-Ups 100 Mountain Climbers 100 Air Squats 100 Second Plank |
How to do the Movements With Proper Form
Conclusion
No matter who you are, this combo of movements will be burner. Providing an excellent core and butt burner that can be used as a solo workout. Or done in combo with a weight training or running session. As with any workout. just make sure to use proper form. And if you have any questions you can reference the videos above for each movement. Or leave me a question in the comment below.
We also have a few other 30 day challenges I recommend checking out. I’ll provide some quick links below.
300 Kettle Bell Swings for 30 Days
100 Push Up Challenge
Beginner Pushup Challenge