Zero to Hero with Harry AA
Zero to Hero with Harry AA
Harry Aikines-Aryeetey is a team GB sprinter and a fan-favourite mainstay of Saturday evening tv. He loves to keep fit and healthy, and he has shared four follow-along workouts to get you into tip-top shape while having fun along the way.
How To Work Out Like Harry AA
These four workouts are designed to grow with you, increasing in difficulty as your strength and stamina increase. To use these as a training plan, you can exercise three times a week (ideally leaving a gap between each exercise session.) Once you’re able to comfortably complete week 1 three times, you can move onto week 2. You can also mix these videos into your existing exercise routine, whenever you feel like you need a dose of Harry’s positivity.
What Weights Should I Use?
This will vary depending on a lot of factors. We’ve included the weights Harry uses for each exercise, but some people will train with heavier weights and some people will train with lighter weights.
Most people will find certain exercises easier or harder, so having a Dumbbell Set and Kettlebell Set will be beneficial, but you can perform all these exercises with just one pair of dumbbells and one kettlebell.
Harry AA's Workout Tips
Go at Your Own Pace – Pause the video and have longer rests between exercises, reduce the weights, or take advantage of the ‘make it easier’ exercise variations listed below. You don’t have to match Harry to make progress in your own fitness journey.
Hydrate – Sip water in-between sets to keep yourself hydrated and healthy. Read more about the link between hydration and athletic performance.
Rest – You should rest for at least 30 seconds between each set with a longer rest before starting a new superset/triset.
Form – Perform the exercises carefully. Move the weights in a controlled manner to exercise safely. If you’re new to strength training, practice the movements before jumping straight into the workout.
Warm Up and Cool Down – Make sure you stretch and gently warm your muscles before and after you work out. Need some inspiration? Check out our blog on warm up exercises.
Zero To Hero - Week One
Harry’s first workout includes three supersets. One half of each set is a bodyweight exercise, and you’ll perform each superset three times before moving onto the next pair of exercises.
Set One
12 Goblet Squats
Harry Uses - 16kg Kettlebell
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold one kettlebell in both hands, against your chest. Squat down and push through your heels to stand back up.
10 Push Ups
Get onto your palms and toes, facing an exercise mat. Lower your chest towards the ground and then straighten your arms to rise up.
Make it Easier - Perform a push up with your knees on the ground. The wider your legs, the easier this exercise will be.
Set Two
12 Dumbbell Bent Over Rows
Harry Uses - 12.5kg Dumbbells
Hold a pair of dumbbells. Hinge at the hips, keeping a flat back, with the dumbbells hanging in front of you. Pull your shoulder blades together to lift the weights.
30 Seconds High Plank
Get onto your palms and toes (similar to the push up position earlier) and stay still. Keep your core tight and don’t arch your back.
Make It Easier - You can perform a low plank by resting on your toes and forearms.
Set Three
12 Dumbbell Lat Raises
Harry Uses - 7.5kg Dumbbells
Stand up straight, holding a pair of dumbbells by your hips. Lift your arms straight out to the sides, so that your hands end in line with your shoulders.
15 Glute Bridges
Lay on your back on a gym mat, with your heels on the floor, close to your torso. Lift your hips off the floor and squeeze your glutes.
Zero To Hero - Week Two
We’ll be increasing the number of weighted exercises this week. We’ll start with two supersets and finish with a triset. You’ll still perform each set three times.
Set One
10 Dumbbell Split Squats
Harry Uses - 10kg Dumbbells
Hold a pair of dumbbells by your sides. Step your front foot forward and lift the heel of your rear foot off the ground. Pulse up and down. Perform ten reps on one side, then ten reps on the other side.
12 Dumbbell Shoulder Presses
Harry Uses - 5kg Dumbbells
Stand with your arms bent, palms facing away from you, holding two dumbbells by your ears. Push the weights higher, until your arms are fully straight.
Set Two
12 Kettlebell Romanian Deadlifts
Harry Uses - 16kg Kettlebell
Hold one kettlebell in both hands. Lower the weight towards the floor, keeping your back straight, stopping when the kettlebell reaches your mid-calves. Stand back up, bringing the weight with you.
12 Kettlebell Single Arm Rows
Harry Uses - 12kg Kettlebell
Stand with a slight bend in your knees and lean your chest forwards. Hold a kettlebell in one hand, near your calf. Pull your elbow towards the ceiling, so the weight ends next to your abdominal muscles. Perform 12 rows on one side before switching to the other.
Make It Easier - If you have a weight bench or plyo box, you can stabilise yourself with your free hand.
Set Three
15 Kettlebell Swings
Harry Uses - 12kg Kettlebell
Stand with your feet wide apart, holding one kettlebell in both hands with your knuckles pointed towards the floor. Hinge at the hips to send the kettlebell between your legs, then use momentum to lift it towards the ceiling. The weight should end up at eye-level. Allow the weight to swing back down and through your legs as you hinge at the hips. Use your body’s momentum to unhinge and swing the weight back up to eye level.
10 Renegade Rows
Harry Uses - 5kg Dumbbell
Get into the high plank position from week one. Balance on your toes and one palm, using your free hand to row the dumbbell, pulling the elbow past your body. Complete ten reps on each side before switching.
Make It Easier - This exercise can be quite tricky, so you might perform three reps, then rest on your knees for a few seconds before continuing.
10 Deadbugs
Lie on your back with your fingers and knees pointing at the ceiling. Extend your left arm behind your head as you straighten your right leg. Bring them back towards your torso and then extend your right arm and left leg. You’ll perform ten total reps on this exercise, sending each limb out five times.
Zero to Hero - Week Three
We’ve reached week three and Harry’s starting to push you harder. This week he’ll be guiding you through two trisets, meaning you’ll be working for longer between each break. You’ll perform each triset three times.
Set One
10 Lunges
Harry Uses - 10kg Dumbbells
Hold two kettlebells at your sides. Step your front foot forward, lowering your back knee towards the ground. Push through your heels to stand back up and switch feet. You’ll be performing ten reps in total, five per side.
Make It Easier - If you struggle to lower your knee during this exercise, you can perform short lunges, where you only lower the knee slightly.
15 Sumo Squats
Harry Uses - 10kg Dumbbells
Stand with your feet as wide apart as possible, with your arms hanging straight down, holding a pair of dumbbells against each other. Squat down, lowering the weights towards the floor. Make sure you keep both feet firmly planted on the ground throughout this exercise. If you find yourself wobbling a lot, bring them closer together.
20 Seconds Glute Bridge
Lie on your back with your feet on the floor. Press your shoulders and upper back into the ground and lift your glutes and lower back off the mat. Hold this position for twenty seconds.
Set Two
8 Push Ups with Eccentric Contraction
Rest on your palms and toes with your arms straight. Slowly bend your arms and lower your chest towards the floor before quickly rising up.
Make It Easier - You can also perform eccentric push ups on your palms and knees. Just make sure that you lower slowly and rise quickly.
12 Upright Rows
Harry Uses - 7.5kg Dumbbells
How To: Stand tall, holding two dumbbells in front of your thighs. Bend your arms as you lift the weights. Your elbows should end up in line with your shoulders. Straighten your arms again to complete one rep.
10 Push Presses
Harry Uses - 7.5kg Dumbbells
Stand upright, holding a pair of dumbbells over your shoulders. Bend your knees and, as you straighten your legs, also straighten your arms, pushing the dumbbells into the air.
Hero to Zero - Week Four
It’s the final session with Harry and he’s picked some belting exercises. We’ve got two trisets again, and you’ll perform them three times each.
Set One
10 Kettlebell Goblet Squats
Harry Uses - 12kg Kettlebell
Just like in week one, hold the kettlebell against your chest, with your legs shoulder width apart and squat down ten times.
10 Short Lunges
Harry Uses - 10kg Dumbbells
Hold two dumbbells at your sides, take a step forward and lower your back knee slightly towards the ground before standing and swapping legs. You’ll perform ten reps in total, five on each side.
Reverse Crunches
Lie on an exercise mat, with your back and arms pressed firmly against the ground. Keeping your legs bent, lift your glutes off the mat in a quick, pulsing movement.
Make It Easier - You can perform leg lifts by keeping your legs straight. If you’re doing this variation, you should do them slower than Harry’s reverse crunches.
Set Two
12 Lat Raises
Harry Uses - 5kg Dumbbells
Hold a pair of dumbbells by your hips. Keeping a slight bend in your elbows, lift your dumbbells out to the sides. They should end in line with your shoulders.
10 Shoulder Presses
Harry Uses - 7.5kg Dumbbells
Hold two dumbbells by your ears, with your palms facing away from you. Straighten your arms, pushing the weights above your head.
8 Dead Stop Push Ups
Begin doing a regular push up, but when your chest touches the floor, lift your palms off the ground for a brief moment. Then push yourself back up to complete one rep.
Make It Easier - As with all our push up variations, you can perform this exercise on your palms and knees. If you struggle with dead stop push ups, you can also replace these with the traditional push ups or eccentric push ups from previous weeks.
Zero to Hero - Going Forwards
Well done! You’ve completed Harry’s four workouts. That’s pretty impressive! Want to keep going in your strength journey? We have dozens of Dumbbell Exercises and Kettlebell Exercises in our exercise guides.
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Tags: Equipment > Dumbbells ; Equipment > Kettlebells ; Exercise Type > Strength ; Misc > Workout ; Misc > Mirafit Ambassadors