4-Week Body Transformation Walking Exercise Plan
This body transformation walking challenge is for anyone new to exercise who has some excess weight to lose. This walking exercise plan includes bodyweight exercises to help you strengthen and tone from head to toe! It’s a home exercise plan suitable for all body sizes, from 10 pounds to 50 pounds or even 100 pounds plus excess weight, and it’s a great place to start if you’re overweight, obese, or unfit.
Walking is the best place to start for beginners. It’s gentle on your joints, muscles, and tendons, so there’s less risk of injury than launching straight into a running plan. It’s great cardio and has many long-term benefits for your physical and mental health.
A walking plan is a terrific workout for your legs and core but has less impact on your upper body. To counter this, the body transformation walking challenge includes strength training exercises to target the full body—no equipment is required. If you’d prefer a simple walking-only challenge, try our popular 6-week Walking Exercise Plan For Overweight, Unfit Beginners.
The 4-Week Beginner Walking Plan
This exercise plan aims to transform the body; we want to see results after four weeks. Getting started will be the toughest step, followed by sticking to the plan. So, this plan gradually eases you into exercising over the first two weeks and ramps up the training (within reason) over the last two weeks. It’s a beginner walking plan for people who never exercise and have a lot of weight to lose. Getting into the habit of exercising is tough, but at the end of four weeks, you’re going to love your new body.
Before you get started, check in with your doctor. If you haven’t exercised for a while, you’re carrying a lot of excess weight, or you have any pre-existing medical issues, it’s always best to check with your doctor before starting an exercise program.
The 4-week plan starts with short walking sessions three days a week plus two sessions of bodyweight exercises. It builds up to slightly longer walking sessions five days a week plus three bodyweight strength training sessions. These sessions are short, and you can fit them into a busy schedule. It’s better to do shorter regular walks and exercise sessions than overdo it and feel too stiff and tired to exercise the following day.
Week 1
The exercise plan gets off to a gentle start with just 10-minute walks—5 minutes out and 5 minutes back, or use a treadmill. Aim for at least three walks a week. In week one, try to complete two exercise sets—Set 1 and Set 2 (scroll down for details). Each exercise set takes 5 minutes. Complete them after walking when you’re fully warmed up. The total exercise time in Week 1 is 40 minutes.
Week 2
This time, we’re keeping the walks to just 10 minutes, but you’re walking five times a week. Keep your pace up—these are brisk walks. You’re completing two exercise sets again—Set 1 and Set 2. Your total exercise time this week will be 60 minutes.
Week 3
This is where the fun starts! Slightly longer walks and one extra exercise set. Five walks this week for 15 minutes, 7.5 minutes out and 7.5 minutes back. Plus, this time, you’re completing three exercise sets—Set 1, Set 2, and Set 3. Total exercise time: 90 minutes. You’ve got this!
Week 4
You’re on the home straight! Ready to really push? This week, you’ll take five 20-minute walks, 10 minutes out and 10 minutes back. Again, you’ll complete three exercise sets: Set 1, Set 2, and Set 3. If you’re feeling strong, repeat Set 3. The total exercise time will be 115-120 minutes.
Walking Pace
Don’t set off too fast! Ease into your stride. When you’re walking for fitness, the aim is to walk at a brisk pace. A brisk pace is different for everyone. It means walking with purpose. You should still be able to talk, but you’re making an effort.
If you find walking hard, you may find yourself out of breath—even on level ground. Take a break, get your breathing under control, and then start walking again. Find a walking pace you can maintain.
The Bodyweight Exercises
There are three different sets of exercises. The first two sets build strength, and the third set, introduced in Week 3, boosts cardio.
Set 1
- Arm Circles (90 seconds)
- Boxercise Jab (90 seconds)
- Glute Bridge (1 minute)
- Bird Dog (1 minute)
Set 2
- Side Leg Raises (1 minute each leg)
- Superwomans (1 minute)
- Reverse Table Top (1 minute)
- Half (Modified) Push Up (1 minute)
Set 3
- Jumping Jacks (1 minute)
- 20-second rest
- Side to Side Skater Jumps (1 minute)
- 20-second rest
- Inch Worm (1 minute)
- 20-second rest
- Burpee Jump (1 minute)
Arm Circles
- Stand up with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Hold your hands out parallel to the floor.
- Make small circles using your whole arms.
- After 45 seconds, change direction and keep going without letting your arms relax to your sides for the whole 90 seconds.
Boxercise Jab
- Start in a boxer’s stance with your knees slightly bent and fists up to your chin.
- Alternate jabs, transferring your weight forward with each punch and allowing your core to rotate slightly.
- Drive the punch with your hips and shoulders.
- Keep going for 90 seconds.
Glute Bridges
- Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet hip-width apart.
- Squeeze your glutes as tight as you can and engage your core.
- With your upper back on the ground, lift your hips off the floor, squeezing all the time. Don’t arch your back.
- When your hips are fully lifted, pause and squeeze everything even tighter. Then lower your hips, still keeping everything tight and your glutes engaged.
- Repeat for 1 minute.
Bird Dog
- Start on all fours with your wrists underneath your shoulders and your knees in the same plane as your wrists. Look down and concentrate on maintaining a neutral spine.
- Squeeze your shoulder blades and your abs, keeping your spine straight. Extend one arm and your opposite leg, squeezing your glutes.
- Pause and make sure your spine stays straight. Lower your limbs and repeat with the opposite arm and leg.
Side Leg Raises
- Lie on your side with your body in a straight line. Rest your head on your extended bottom arm.
- Lift your top leg, keeping it straight. Lift until you feel the pull in your lower back or obliques.
- Lower your leg until it’s approximately 6 inches above your bottom leg and raise again.
- Repeat for 1 minute for each leg.
Superwomans
- Start on your stomach with arms straight in front and legs straight out behind.
- Lift your arms and legs off the floor, keeping your head in a neutral position. Aim for your hands and feet to be about 4-6 inches off the floor.
- Hold for 2-3 seconds. Lower yourself to your starting position and repeat.
Reverse Table Top
- Sit with your knees bent in front of you.
- Place your hands behind your hips, shoulder-width apart.
- Reverse your hands so that your fingertips are facing towards you.
- Inhale and, by pressing your palms into the ground, push yourself up so that your hips and butt are off the ground.
- Aim to get your chest, hips, and knees in one straight line.
- Hold the pose for a count of 10. Lower and repeat for 60 seconds in total.
Half (Modified) Push Up
- Start on your hands and knees in a standard push-up position with your hands slightly wider than your shoulders.
- Engage your core and glutes. Keep your gaze on the floor in front of you.
- Lower your chest towards the ground with your weight over your shoulders, but keep your knees on the ground and your arms tight to your side.
- When your upper body is halfway to the ground, push back up to the starting position.
- Repeat and do as many as possible in 60 seconds.
Jumping Jacks
- Start with your hands by your side and jump, landing with your legs apart.
- Raise your hands overhead at the same time.
- Jump back to the starting position!
- Keep going for one minute.
- An easier option is to step from side to side instead of jumping.
- To make it harder, start from a crouched position.
Side-to-Side Skater Jumps
- Stand with your legs slightly bent and arms at your side.
- Jump to the right. As you jump, take your left foot behind you and bring your left arm in front of you.
- Then jump to the left with your right foot behind you and right arm in front of you.
- Repeat for 1 minute.
Inch Worm
- Stand at one end of the mat with feet hip-width apart.
- Hinge from your hips so that your hands reach the ground, and walk your hands out in front of you.
- Continue as far as you can until you’re in an extended plank position.
- Walk your hands back again and return to standing.
- Repeat for 1 minute.
Burpee Jump
- From a standing start, bend your knees and hinge at the hips, keeping your back straight.
- Bring your hands down to the ground in front of your shoulders, push with your hands, and explosively jump both feet backward into a plank position.
- If you’re feeling strong, add a push-up here before jumping straight back to your original squatting position with your knees toward your chest.
- Push the ground away with your hands to quickly stand up and add a little jump, raising your hands in the air.
Take The First Step
I’d love you to save my pin, but don’t wait to start walking! Take your first steps today. The plan will help you hit the recommended guidelines for physical activity.
When you have a lot of weight to lose, walking is an important part of the solution. It will make you feel better about yourself, and you’ll be more inclined to eat better and be kind to your body.
Your diet is more important than exercise for weight loss, but if you fail to exercise, you’ll lose muscle mass, and keeping the weight off permanently will be so much harder.
