Muscle and Form Building Workout

Total Body Transformation - Month 1

During the first four weeks, Chris Powell from Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition helps you build muscle and perfect lifting form
By Jen Ator and Chris Powell womenshealth

Transform Your Body - Part 1

Do eight to 12 reps of each move, with little to no rest between exercises. Rest one minute. Do the entire circuit a total of three times.

Struggling to lose? The Women's Health Diet will send your metabolism soaring and burn 3 times your normal daily calories.

PLUS: Crank Up Your Cardio

Complete this interval workout with any type of cardio (e.g., running, swimming, biking, walking) two or three times a week. After a five-minute warm-up, increase your effort using a scale of 1 to 10: Do three minutes at 5, two minutes at 7, one minute at 9 (near your all-out max). That's one circuit--or "shredder," as Powell calls it. Do five. (Looking for a killer interval plan?)

Think of this as the starting point. "Your body is constantly trying to adapt, so you have to make tweaks, especially if you're not getting the results you want," says Powell. Every six workouts, change one of four things: frequency (from two cardio workouts a week to three), intensity (say, bump up your rpm on the bike by at least 15), time (add one to three additional circuits per workout), or type (go from elliptical to jump rope, or from treadmill to trail).

VIDEO: If you are running intervals, make sure to have the proper running form and technique to prevent injury.

MORE: Here's how to push your body into the ultimate workout zone

Quick Tip

Another way to mix up your cardio: Add a partner. Run ahead 30 seconds, and have your friend try to catch you. Switch places and repeat.

Click here to see the workout for month 2. To return to the original Total Body Transformation story, click here.


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