These multi-week programs will prepare you to be ready for anything—in sport or in life.
By John Christie and Karen Iorio Adelson
Fitness is a lifestyle, not a hobby. So when your fitness improves, you’ll notice that everything from carrying loads of laundry to playing your weekly pickup basketball game feels a little easier. That’s why, at Tonal, Improve Fitness is considered the “ready for anything” goal.
These programs and workouts help you unlock the next level of competency and confidence in your movements. Gaining movement proficiency preps your body for the demands of everyday life and improves athletic performance.
Workouts and programs designed to improve fitness include progressively complex, multi-joint exercises that mirror the natural movements you encounter as you haul groceries, pick up your kids, push and pull heavy doors, or lift your suitcase into the overhead compartment on a plane. There’s also an emphasis on developing rotational stability and explosive power that will benefit both athletes and weekend warriors.
If you’re training for a 5K race, looking to boost your golf game, or simply aiming to feel better as you move through daily life, this is the goal for you.
What Are The Benefits of Improve Fitness Programs on Tonal?
When you select an Improve Fitness program on Tonal you can expect a focus on functional strength training: moving with whole body movements in a three-dimensional space with ever-increasing resistance. At the beginner level, you’ll master pain-free movement through a full range of motion with good control. As you move on to more challenging workouts, you’ll see more complex movements that challenge your balance and stability. These often show up as single-limb exercises, such as a single-arm squat with row or half-kneeling single-arm overhead press.
Because so much of how we move is rotational in nature—think: how we swing our arms and legs opposite each other when walking or running—Improve Fitness programs also include movements such as Pallof press variations designed to develop controlled rotation.
You’ll also gain cardiovascular fitness and muscular endurance in these programs. They’re designed to progress in intensity and density, meaning you’re doing more work per minute, a great measure of fitness. In the more advanced programs, you’ll see shorter rest periods that test your ability to manage your heart rate, breathing, and metabolic recovery.
How Should Improve Fitness Workouts Feel?
During these workouts, you should feel balanced, stable, and in control of your movements. It might not feel that way at first, but by the end of a two- or four-week program, you’ll likely notice a difference in your competency. These sessions will be nearly as much a mental challenge as a physical one, but they’re meant to develop your confidence over time. As you stick with this goal, you’ll be ready for any physical demand the world presents.
Ready to get ready for anything? Follow the progression of programs below which are listed from easiest to hardest (or jump in at your level if you’ve been doing these types of workouts for a while) to enjoy all the benefits of improving fitness on Tonal.
Improve Fitness: Beginner
Easy on the Joints – Coach Liz Letchford
Each workout in this four-week program emphasizes developing pain-free movement in only three exercises at a time. Coach Liz offers considerate and educational instruction, helping you remove distractions and sharpen your focus on movement quality in each session.
Back At It – Coach Allison Tibbs
This two-week program is a great next step within the Improve Fitness goal. All the workouts are under 30 minutes in length so they’re easy to slot into a busy schedule. They feature simple moves and a focus on building movement competency. The workload builds with additional resistance on Tonal in the second week as you become more confident in the exercises.
Full Body Burnout – Coach Nikki Metzger
This two-week, energizing program focuses on expressing power with great movement quality. Additionally, this program features an increased emphasis on developing your muscular endurance with Burnout Mode sets, which allow you to safely and effectively break through barriers and demand more from your muscles.
When to Move on to Intermediate Programs
It’s time to consider leveling up to Intermediate programs when you’re consistently finishing sessions at or ahead of the time listed on Tonal or you’re feeling confident and pain-free throughout all your beginner-level workouts.
Improve Fitness: Intermediate
20-in-20: Metabolic Burn – Coach Ash Wilking
This four-week program includes five weekly sessions that give you the perfect dose of density and intensity. Workouts are short but effective, and you’ll build muscular endurance and mind-body control with the quicker pace of each session compared to beginner programming.
Stronger for Sport – Coach Allison Tibbs
In Stronger for Sport, you’ll work through functional strength exercises and explosive athletic moves on Tonal. Coach Allison masterfully weaves rotational stability and power into this program, making the translation from training to performance smooth and natural.
Athletic Strength and Stamina – Multiple Coaches
This two-week program features more challenging, full-body compound exercises. With instruction from four expert Tonal coaches, you’ll get a taste of each one’s unique motivational style.
When to Move on to Advanced Programs
You know you’re ready to move on to Advanced programs when you feel confident in your movements during Intermediate workouts. You’re not stumbling or stalling out mid-rep, and with each move, your range of motion line looks smooth, not like a scribble. If you’re consistently finishing Intermediate sessions feeling like you’ve got more in the tank, that’s another sign it’s time to level up.
Improve Fitness: Advanced
Strength Made Me – Coach Kendall Wood
With this customizable Programs+ program, you have the option to adjust the difficulty level and duration of each workout to match how you’re feeling (and what you have time for) on a particular day—making it a great introduction to advanced-level programming. The movements are challenging and dynamic, and they’re balanced with corrective mobility work.
Power Packed Power HIIT – Multiple Coaches
This high-intensity two-week program will push the limits of your strength, capacity, and explosiveness. This program includes workouts for upper, lower, and full-body training with ascending rep schemes that progressively test your physical (and mental) fortitude.
Athletic Shred – Coach Nikki Metzger
This four-week, five-days-per-week program will challenge you from every angle. It features complex movements, a creative and varied emphasis throughout each week, and plenty of exposure to high-intensity and high-workload sessions. This program is certainly demanding but equally rewarding as you finish each workout.
What’s Next?
Once you’ve mastered these Improve Fitness programs, you can choose what direction to take your workouts based on your goal. If you want to build upon your strength and power, consider Build Muscle programs. To test the limits of your muscular endurance, try the higher-volume Get Lean programs.
Substitutes While on the Go
If you’re away from Tonal, you’ve always got access to great programming to improve your fitness. To stay challenged, explore Tonal’s “On the Go” content and try bootcamp, boxing, or sports content. To recharge and ready yourself for your Tonal program, explore mobility, yoga, or Pilates sessions.
