When wellness entrepreneur Liz Earle agreed to front the latest issue of Women’s Health, we couldn’t go without hitting up her PT for her workout plan, too. She trains with fitness coach Michael Garry, and his goal is to help Liz make progress in minimal time – including with her upper body.
‘Every exercise we do does double or triple duty,’ Garry explains. ‘We focus on compound movements which work several muscle groups at once, while supersets (performing two moves back-to-back without rest) keep Liz moving rather than standing around between sets.’
How long you’ll rest is just as intentional: Garry says they rest for at least 45 seconds between every strength move to allow you to recover properly before lifting again, meaning you can lift heavy in every set. Below, find the six arm, shoulder, back and chest exercises taken from Liz’s exact upper-body and conditioning workout. Use our form tips to learn how to do them with proper technique, then follow Garry’s instructions for making them into a workout.
After that, sign up to the Women’s Health COLLECTIVE to find Liz’s full 4-week time-saving training plan, including how to progress your upper-body workout week-on-week, plus her lower-body and core session, and her full-body strength workout.
Liz Earle’s 6 upper-body exercises
- Warm-up: 5 minutes skipping and arm circles.
Do 3 sets of 6-10 reps, resting for 45 seconds between sets.
- Assume a high plank position, hands stacked directly below elbows and shoulders.
- Bend your elbows to slowly lower your chest to the floor. Keep your upper arms from flaring out as you push back up explosively to a straight arm position. Modify by performing the move on your knees.
Do 3 sets of 8-10 reps, resting for 45 seconds between sets.
- Stand tall holding a pair of dumbbells at your sides.
- With minimal momentum and keeping your upper arms tight to your body, curl both dumbbells upwards to your chest, keeping your palms facing each other throughout. Lower both bells and immediately repeat.
Dumbbell front raise
Do 3 sets of 8-10 reps, resting for 45 seconds between sets.
- Stand tall holding a pair of dumbbells in front of your thighs with your palms facing your body. Without using momentum from the hips, raise both arms straight up in front of you until they are in line with your shoulders.
- Pause here before slowly lowering the dumbbells under control to the starting position. Repeat.
Do 3 sets of 6-10 reps, resting for 45 seconds between sets.
- Place your hands on a box or bench with your fingers facing forward, arms straight. Hover your bum just in front of the bench with your legs extended straight out in front of you.
- Inhale as you bend at the elbows to lower your body until your arms are at a 90-degree angle. Exhale as you drive back up to the starting position.
Do 3 rounds of 20-30 second holds, resting for 45 seconds between rounds.
- With your elbows stacked directly below your shoulders, step one leg back at a time to get into a low plank position. Maintain a straight line from head to heels, and engage your core, glutes and quads as you hold the position for the stated time.
Do 3 sets of 8-10 reps, resting for 30 seconds between sets.
- Lie flat on your back with your legs extended and your hands behind your head. Engage your core and raise your knees to a 90-degree angle.
- Exhale as you rotate your torso to bring your elbow to the opposite knee while keeping the other leg straight. Pause for a second before repeating on the other side.
- Cooldown: 5 minutes stretching
Want to train like Liz? Liz’s PT, Michael Garry, has created a 4-week training plan exclusively for members of the WH COLLECTIVE. It’s designed to remove one of the biggest barriers to fitness: time. You’ll train for just 35 minutes three times a week – Liz’s exact strategy to build muscle, boost metabolism and support long-term health. Tap the link below to unlock 14 free days of training and start Liz’s plan today.
As Women’s Health UK’s fitness director and a qualified Pilates and yoga instructor, Bridie Wilkins has been passionately reporting on exercise, health and nutrition since the start of her decade-long career in journalism.
After earning a first-class degree in journalism and NCTJ accreditation, she secured her first role at Look Magazine, where she launched the magazine’s health and fitness column, Look Fit, before going on to become Health and Fitness writer at HELLO!
Since, she has written for Stylist, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Elle, The Metro, Runner’s World and Red. Today, she oversees all fitness content across Women’s Health online and in print, spearheading leading cross-platform franchises, such as ‘Fit At Any Age’, which showcases the women proving that age is no barrier to exercise.
She has also represented the brand on BBC Radio London, plus various podcasts and Substacks – all with the aim to encourage more women to exercise and show them how. Outside of work, find her trying the latest Pilates studio, testing her VO2 max for fun (TY, Oura), or posting workouts on Instagram.
