Chris Hemsworth's trainer shares five bodyweight exercises to burn calories fast

 Luke Zocchi taking Chris Hemsworth through a workout.
Luke Zocchi taking Chris Hemsworth through a workout.

Don't be hard on yourself if you feel you've gone a little overboard on the mince pies and chocolate this festive season. Food is the perfect fuel for this beginner-friendly workout created by Centr and Chris Hemsworth's very own personal trainer, Luke Zocchi. Not only does it require no home gym equipment, but it'll burn calories, build strength and improve your cardiovascular fitness.

Luke says: “These exercises are going to burn maximum calories, but I don’t want you to look at exercise as just burning calories. I want you to look at exercise as a way to get stronger, build endurance and be a better version of yourself. To burn maximum calories, you want to recruit as many muscles as possible and stay away from isolation exercise.” This means compound exercises are your best friend, as the more muscles your body uses, the more energy it requires, resulting in a higher calorie burn, and that’s exactly what Luke’s workout consists of.

Luke's bodyweight workout

This five-move workout is a HIIT workout, so make sure you’re wearing a good pair of workout shoes for support. For beginners, Luke advises starting with 30 seconds of work, followed by a 30 second rest and repeating the workout twice – this will be 10 minutes. If this is too easy, do three rounds for a 15 minute workout. Once you can complete four rounds comfortably, Luke suggests increasing your work time (for example, to 45 seconds) and decreasing the rest time (20 seconds) to challenge yourself further. Ready? Here's your workout:

  • Squats

  • Burpees

  • Lunges

  • Ice skaters

  • Running on the spot

We hope you enjoyed that workout and don't forget to do five minutes of light stretching/mobility afterwards. Here at T3 we've got plenty of other accessible workouts that you can do right at home, like this four-move bodyweight workout, which is excellent for increasing your strength. If you do own some workout equipment, like a pair of dumbbells, here's a four-move workout for you to try, which will not only build muscle, but improve your cardiovascular fitness too.

This feature is part of T3's Get Fit 2024 campaign. We’ll be bringing you a wealth of guides, features, deals and news to help you get healthy, fit and ready for anything the new year can throw at you. Whether you’re a newcomer to fitness or someone with a passion for it, we’ll bring you all the best workouts, diet advice and gear to set you on the right track.