Fitness

Ollie Thompson: 5 ways to manage your exercise routine in sunny August

Published

2 years ago

August 13, 2024

Ollie Thompson: 5 ways to manage your exercise routine in sunny August

Our fitness expert Ollie Thompson suggests ways to maintain your exercise routine as the temperatures rise.

As the temperatures rise in August, maintaining your exercise routine can be challenging, especially for those of us not typically exercising in a cool, air-conditioned gym. High temperatures and intense sunshine can make outdoor activities daunting; however, with a few smart adjustments, you can stay active and healthy throughout the hottest month of the year. Here are five tips to help you manage your exercise routine in sunny August.

Personal trainer, Ollie Thompson, wellbeing consultant and creator of Welltolead. Picture: Keith Heppell

1. Exercise in the morning or evening

One of the simplest ways to beat the heat is to schedule your workouts for the cooler parts of the day. Early mornings and late evenings are generally the best times to exercise outdoors in August, especially if you’re a runner. The temperatures are lower, and the sun’s rays are less intense, reducing your risk of heat-related issues such as dehydration and heat stroke. Plus, these times often offer a peaceful, quiet environment, which can make your workout more enjoyable and less stressful.

2. Stay hydrated

Hydration is crucial, especially when exercising in the summer heat. Water helps regulate your body temperature and keeps your muscles and joints working efficiently. Make it a habit to drink water before, during, and after your workouts. For longer sessions, consider drinks with electrolytes to replace the minerals lost through sweat. Soluble hydration tablets or powder can be useful in this instance. For some people, reducing coffee intake could also be a sensible strategy, as a high caffeine intake of 400mg+ can contribute to dehydration, particularly if you’re not drinking enough water throughout the day.

3. Wear light and breathable clothing

Choosing the right workout gear can make a significant difference in your comfort and performance. Opt for light-coloured, loose-fitting clothing made from breathable fabrics like cotton. This will help keep you cool by allowing sweat to evaporate more easily. Don’t forget to wear a hat, sunglasses, and suncream to protect your face and eyes from the sun.

4. Exercise in a well air-conditioned gym

When the outdoor heat becomes unbearable, taking your workouts indoors can be a great alternative. Exercising in a well air-conditioned gym allows you to stay active and perform at a high level without worrying about the temperature. Gyms also offer a variety of equipment and classes, providing opportunities to mix up your routine and explore a different style of training. If you prefer group activities, many gyms offer classes like yoga, Pilates, or spin that can keep you cool while you work up a sweat.

Additionally, the summer months are often the quietest months for commercial gyms as there are fewer students around and more people are away on their summer holidays. For people inexperienced within a gym setting, it’s the perfect time to dip your toe in without the worry of it being overcrowded.

5. Listen to your body

Finally, it’s essential to pay attention to how your body feels during your workouts, especially in extreme heat. Symptoms like dizziness, nausea, excessive sweating, and fatigue can be signs of heat exhaustion. If you experience any of these, stop exercising immediately, move to a cooler place, and hydrate. It’s okay to modify or shorten your workouts during very hot days. The goal is to stay active and healthy, not to push yourself to the point of harm.

By following these five tips, you can continue to enjoy your exercise routine throughout the warmer weather that August has to offer. Remember, staying active is crucial for maintaining your health and well-being, but it’s equally important to do so safely and smartly.

See you again in September, where I’ll be breaking down how to exercise to develop a robust, pain-free body.

Ollie specialises in helping career-focused professionals get into great shape, build long-term health and perform better in their work. Ollie works across Cambridge and London and offers both in-person and virtual personal training. Visit welltolead.com and follow Ollie on Instagram @olliethompsonhealth for more.

Fitness

Put the fun back in your fitness routine with this 10-minute follow-along workout from The Curvy Girl Trainer Lacee Green

Published

2 hours ago

April 22, 2026

Press Room

Put the fun back in your fitness routine with this 10-minute follow-along workout from The Curvy Girl Trainer Lacee Green

Ever feel like beginner-friendly workouts are anything but?

That’s how BODi Super Trainer Lacee Green felt, so she devised a three-week, entry-level program designed for genuine newcomers to exercise—or those just getting back into it.

“My beginner-only plan is for every body and everybody,” Green tells Fit&Well.

Green’s program combines low-impact cardio, strength, core and mobility workouts for a total of five sessions a week and 30 minutes a day.

One of the routines she loves—that she says will provide a flavor of the plan—is a total-body cardio workout inspired by seven different sports.

“There is no repetition, it’s all bodyweight and super fun,” she says. “We do basketball, we do pickleball, we do soccer, and it’s really going to get your heart rate up.”

It will all count toward the CDC’s recommended 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity per week, while incorporating resistance training elements to strengthen your bones and muscles, she explains.

And Green has provided the full 10-minute routine below for you to try.

10-minute cardio workout for beginners

Press play on the video above and Green will guide you through the workout, or keep reading to see what’s in store.

Green’s 10-minute beginner-only cardio workout is inspired by seven different sports that she says will help channel your inner athlete.

Each sport links to an exercise during the routine. Follow the short warm-up, then perform each move for 40 seconds and rest for 20 seconds, for one round per sport.

In the video, another trainer demonstrates variations of each exercise so you can make it slightly more challenging as desired. The workout concludes with a short cool-down.

Here’s a brief breakdown of each exercise.

1. Basketball catch and shoot

Step to your side, then reach up into full extension as if shooting a three-pointer. Repeat by shuffling from side to side.

2. Quick football feet

Lower into a quarter squat with your feet wide apart and alternate quick stepping onto either foot. On Green’s cues, switch the direction you face from center to left and right.

3. Skater side-step

Step side to side as if skating, hitting an imaginary hockey stick across your body.

4. Soccer kick-up

Keeping light on your feet, hop from side to side as if juggling a football with your feet.

5. Pickleball shuffle

Lower into a half squat with your hands together in front of you. Keeping low, step or jump forward, then shuffle back to the start position.

6. Boxing jab cross

Stand side on with slightly bent knees and your guard up. Alternate throwing jabs with your left and right, switching your stance after 20 seconds.

7. Baseball squat to high plank

With your feet wide apart, lower into a deep squat with your hands up like a catcher. Place your hands on the floor and step back into a high plank, then back to the low squat.

About our expert

Lacee Green

Lacee Green is a BODi Super Trainer, certified personal trainer (CPT) and coach with more than 10 years of experience. She hosts a number of BODi on-demand fitness programs that are designed to challenge and motivate you while also providing a supportive and inclusive environment.

Fitness

Higher fitness levels linked to lower risk of depression, dementia – Harvard Health

Published

14 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Press Room

Higher fitness levels linked to lower risk of depression, dementia – Harvard Health

research review

People with high cardiorespiratory fitness were 36% less likely to experience depression and 39% less likely to develop dementia than those with low cardiorespiratory fitness. Even small improvements in fitness were linked to a lower risk. Experts believe that exercise’s ability to boost blood flow to the brain, reduce bodywide inflammation, and improve stress regulation may explain the connection.

Fitness

These 20-Minute Burpee Workouts Replaced His Entire Gym Routine – and Transformed His Physique

Published

1 day ago

April 21, 2026

Press Room

These 20-Minute Burpee Workouts Replaced His Entire Gym Routine – and Transformed His Physique

While many swear by them, most people see burpees as a form of punishment – usually dished out drill sergeant-style by overzealous bootcamp PTs. Often the final blow in an already brutal workout, burpees are designed to test cardiovascular fitness, muscular endurance and mental grit. Love them or loathe them, they deliver every time.

For Max Edwards – aka Busy Dad Training on YouTube – they became a simple but highly effective way to stay fit and lean during lockdown. Once a committed powerlifter, spending upwards of 80 minutes a day in the gym, he was forced to overhaul his approach due to fatherhood, lockdown and a schedule that no longer allowed for long, structured lifting sessions.

‘Even though I was putting in hours and hours into the gym and even though my physique was pretty good, I wasn’t becoming truly excellent at any physical discipline,’ he explained in a YouTube video.

‘I loved the intentionality of training,’ says Edwards. ‘The fact that every session has a point, every rep in every set is helping you get towards a training goal, and I loved that there was a clear way of gauging progression – feeling like I was developing competence and moving towards mastery.’

Why He Walked Away From Powerlifting

Despite that structure, Edwards began to question whether powerlifting was sustainable long-term.

‘My sessions were very taxing on my central nervous system. I was exhausted between sessions. It felt as if I needed at least nine hours of sleep each night just to function.’

He also noted that his appetite was consistently high.

But the biggest drawback was time.

‘I could not justify taking 80 minutes a day away from my family for what felt like a self-centred pursuit,’ he says.

A Simpler Approach That Stuck

‘Over the course of that year I fixed my relationship with alcohol and I developed, for the first time in my adult life, a relationship with physical training,’ says Edwards.

With limited time and no access to equipment, he turned to burpees. Just two variations, four times a week, with each session lasting 20 minutes.

‘My approach in each workout was very simple. On a six-count training day I would do as many six-counts as I possibly could within 20 minutes. On a Navy Seal training day I would do as many Navy Seal burpees as I could within 20 minutes – then in the next workout I would simply try to beat the number I had managed previously.’

This style of training is known as AMRAP – as many reps (or rounds) as possible.

The Results

Edwards initially saw the routine as nothing more than a six-month stopgap to stay in shape. But that quickly changed.

‘I remember catching sight of myself in the mirror one morning and I was utterly baffled by the man I saw looking back at me.’

He found himself in the best shape of his life. His energy levels improved, his resting heart rate dropped and his physique changed in ways that powerlifting hadn’t quite delivered.

‘It has been five years since I have set foot in a gym,’ he says. ‘That six-month training practice has become the defining training practice of my life – and for five years I have trained for no more than 80 minutes per week.’

The Burpee Workouts

1/ 6-Count Burpees

20-minute AMRAP, twice a week

How to do them:

Start standing, feet shoulder-width apart
Crouch down and place your hands on the floor (count 1)
Jump your feet back into a high plank (count 2)
Lower into the bottom of a push-up (count 3)
Push back up to plank (count 4)
Jump your feet forward to your hands (count 5)
Stand up straight (count 6)

20-minute AMRAP, twice a week

How to do them:

Start standing, feet shoulder-width apart
Crouch down and place your hands on the floor
Jump your feet back into a high plank
Perform a push-up (chest to floor)
At the top, bring your right knee to your right elbow, then return
Perform another push-up
Bring your left knee to your left elbow, then return
Perform a third push-up
Jump your feet forward
Stand or jump to finish

Kate is a fitness writer for Men’s Health UK where she contributes regular workouts, training tips and nutrition guides. She has a post graduate diploma in Sports Performance Nutrition and before joining Men’s Health she was a nutritionist, fitness writer and personal trainer with over 5k hours coaching on the gym floor. Kate has a keen interest in volunteering for animal shelters and when she isn’t lifting weights in her garden, she can be found walking her rescue dog.