The Best Chris Heria Workout Routines

Chris Heria is one of the most well-known calisthenics personalities on the web. He has published heaps of YouTube videos, runs the Thenx School of Calisthenics, and has his own workout app. Today we’re going to explore his best workout routines. 

Chris Heria workout routines focus on developing strength, calisthenics techniques, endurance, athleticism, and getting shredded. Chris has developed workout routines for losing fat, increasing strength, and working with progressions to perform harder exercises such as handstands and the planche. All Chris Heria workout routines are divided into beginner, intermediate, and advanced. There are daily routines, weekly workout routines, and even a full 30 day program. 

Keep reading to find a Chris Heria workout routine that is suitable for you and your fitness goals. I’ve been trying them myself at home over the last couple of weeks and so far I’m satisfied with the results. I feel more shredded already. 

Chris Heria Beginner Workout Routine

When most beginners start working out they want to build muscle or burn fat, says Chris. The problem is that beginners don’t have the proper foundation, experience, or skill set and this limits the amount of potential progress and gains that can be made. 

A lot of beginners do workout routines that are too complicated and as a result do not engage the muscles properly, warns Chris. It is possible, he says, that you are going through the motions without really training your muscles and are unlikely to see much progress, if any. 

Therefore, the first thing beginners need to do is master the fundamentals. According to Chris Heria, the fundamentals are pull ups, push ups, dips, squats, L-sits, and even handstands. Each of these fundamental moves should be started from their first progression. 

For those who don’t know, a progression is a series of exercises that start out simple and easy and gradually get more difficult until you are able to do the main exercise. 

These fundamental exercises engage every muscle in the body and include the motion that is at the core of calisthenics fitness training. Once you have mastered the fundamentals you have a base from which you can progress to the hardest, most impressive calisthenics exercises, while building strength and losing fat. 

Chris Heria workout routines for beginners are comprised of the fundamental calisthenics exercises. You are able to make the workout routine harder by altering the angle and intensity at which you perform the exercises, making it suitable for absolute beginners and beginners with a little more experience. 

“When doing exercises with the proper foundation and knowledge, you’ll be engaging your muscles properly which engages more muscle fibers, which will develop way more strength and muscle and burn way more calories” 

Chris Heria

Chris Heria compares training with progressions to increasing the intensity on the machines in the gym: “You wouldn’t go straight into attempting to curl 60 pounds and only use the 60 pound dumbbells to learn how to curl. You would start with something like 10 pounds, master those, and slowly work your way up the weight.” 

Remember: at its core, strength training is all about pushing and pulling. Every exercise is a variation on one of these fundamental motions.

Let’s look at how to master the fundamentals with this Chris Heria beginner workout routine: 

Exercise One: Pull Ups

Goal: Perform 10 Pull Ups with perfect form

First Progression: Australian Pull Ups x10 – wide grip, closed grip, supinated grip

Second Progression: Jumping Pull Ups x10

Third Progression: Jumping Negative Pull Ups x10 

Final Step: Perform 1 Normal Pull Up 

Repeat until you can do 10 normal pull ups.

Exercise Two: Push Ups

Goal: Perform 15 Push Ups with perfect form

First Progression: Elevated Push Ups x20

Second Progression: Knee Push ups x20 

Final Step: Perform 1 Normal Push Up

Repeat until you can do 15 normal push ups with perfect form.

Exercise Three: Dips

Goal: Perform 10 Dips with perfect form 

First Progression: Bench Dips (changing the heigh of the surface will alter the difficulty of this exercise) x15

Second Progression: Jump Negative Dips x10

Final Step: Perform 1 Normal Dip 

Repeat the progression until you can do 15 full dips.

Exercise Four: Squats

Goal: Perform 20 squats with perfect form

First Progression: Chair Squats x20

Final Step: Do as many squats as you can

Note: Pay close attention to form while performing squats and do not attempt to do weighted squats until you’ve mastered the body squat as there is a high chance you will injure yourself. 

Exercise Five: L-Sit

Goal: Hold an L-Sit for 45 seconds

First Progression: Bolt Hold for 45 seconds 

Final Step: L-Sit, baby. 

Exercise Six: Handstand 

First Progression: Pike Push Ups x12 

Second Progression: Elevated Pike Push Ups (or Pike Hold) x12

Third Progression: Wall Walks – Yes, literally walking up and down the wall, starting in push up position.

Exercise Seven: Bar Hang [Bonus Exercise]

The bar hang improves you grip. It is essential to have a strong grip for most of the exercises you will be going. 

Goal: Hang from one arm for one minute, then switch arms

First Progression: Hang from both arms for one minute 

Workout Tip: Reps and Sets 

Now that you know which exercise to do, it’s time to increase reps and sets. Start by performing as many reps and you can without sacrificing form. Then do three or four sets – that’s all the exercises, and all the sets, one after the other three or four times. Good luck. 

And there you have it. Starting out with Chris Heria calisthenics is all about mastering the fundamental exercises by training with progressions. 

Chris Heria Morning Workout Routine

Now that you have mastered the fundamental exercises needed to do Chris Heria workout routines, it’s time to move on to intermediate and advanced routines that focus on specific fitness goals. 

This Chris Heria workout routine should be done in the morning. It aims to get your metabolism pumping, burn fat, improve endurance, and get you shredded for the summer. 

7 Minute Fat Burning Morning Workout Routine

Here is a 7 minute, low impact routine designed by Chris Heria to burn fat and build muscle first thing in the morning. I’ve tried this one myself and I have found it a great way to start the day. 

“This is more effective than running on the treadmill for 30 minutes”

Chris Heria 

One advantage of the morning workout routine is what Chris calls the after burn effect. When you workout first thing in the morning you jumpstart your metabolism and so your body will continue burning fat for up to 24hrs after you complete the routine. 

1. Half Burpees – 45 seconds | 15 second break
2. Plank with alternating toe taps – 45 seconds | 15 second break
3. Side plank – 45 seconds | 15 second break
4. Low plank to high plank – 45 seconds | 15 second break
5. Butt kicks – 45 seconds | 15 second break
6. Knee raises – 45 seconds | 15 second break
7. Jumping squats – 45 seconds | 15 second break

10 Minute Fat Burning Morning Workout Routine

The power of a morning routine, says Chris, is that it keeps you consistent, starts your day off right, and ingrains the discipline you’ll need to achieve your fitness goals. 

“If you want to see results to you have to be disciplined and you have to be consistent”

Chris Heria 

Following his own advice, Chris Heria starts every single day by doing 100 push ups. 

The Chris Heria Push Up Challenge: Start by doing 50 Push ups every morning. Do them in sets if you want. Mix up the type of push ups you do. Work towards completing 100 push ups in a row

After his push ups Chris Heria starts his workout routine. Here’s what Chris Heria’s calisthenics workout routine looks like in the morning. It is a HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) routine that includes eight exercises, each performed for 45 seconds with a 15 second break in-between.  

1. Jumping Jacks – 45 seconds | 15 second break
2. Burpees (No Jump) – 45 seconds | 15 second break
3. Switching Mountain Climbers – 45 seconds | 15 second break
4. Plank Knees to Elbows – 45 seconds | 15 second break
5. Seated In and Outs – 45 seconds | 15 second break
6. High Knee Taps – 45 seconds | 15 second break
7. Squat Lunges – 45 seconds | 15 second break
8. In and Outs, Open and Closed – 45 seconds | 15 second break

Chris Heria Evening Workout Routine

According to Chris, this evening workout routine is great for everyone. It doesn’t matter if you’ve already worked out during the day, or if you didn’t have time and this evening routine is the first chance you get to train, it will be beneficial. 

This is a no equipment workout routine, designed by Chris Heria to help you burn fat, build muscle, and, you guessed it, get shredded! It is another HIIT routine, which are particularly effective and reducing fat because they increase the rate at which calories are burnt. 

Like during the morning routine, each exercise is done for 45 seconds and followed by a 15 second break. 

If you are feeling tired, Chris advices slowing down rather than stopping. Do your best to continue for the full 45 seconds. 

1. Burpee No Jump – 45 seconds | 15 second break
2. High Side Plank Raises – 45 seconds | 15 second break
3. Push Ups Side to Side – 45 seconds | 15 second break
4. In and Outs, Open and Closed – 45 seconds | 15 second break
5. Russian Twists – 45 seconds | 15 second break
6. Low Plank to High Plank – 45 seconds | 15 second break
7. Side to Side Jump Squats – 45 seconds | 15 second break

For those of you who did a workout during the day, Chris advises doing this routine once during the evening. For those of you that didn’t get the chance to train during the day, do this routine at least 3 or 4 times to get the best results. 

Chris Heria Weekly Workout Plan

I’ve not yet managed to find Chris Heria’s weekly workout plan, but he has shared his whole day. I assume he trains almost everyday. He has said he does 100 push ups and 100 pull ups every single morning, but I don’t know whether or not he takes a rest day here and there. Chris Heria workout routines involve a lot of HIIT routines, calisthenics, martial arts, and cardio.

Here is an overview of Chris Heria’s Weekly Workout Plan:

Chris Heria starts his day with 100 push ups and then 100 pull ups

Afterwards he jumps on the stationary bike to do some cardio training. 

Chris Heria does cardio at least four times per week – this includes going skateboarding and using the stationary bike.

Chris Heria will typically cycle for 30 minutes, altering the intensity throughout the ride. 

He trains boxing and Muay Thai kick boxing several times per week. Normally on different days. 

On days that Chris doesn’t train martial arts he does no equipment HIIT workouts from home.

He completes his day with a final workout, normally one that is available on his app. 

Before the business took off, Chris Heria would train at least two hours a day at the Thenx gym. 

Chris Heria 30 Day Program

“Perseverance: Steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success. If I could sum this whole 30-day body transformation into just one word, it would be perseverance.”

Chris Heria

Looking to get shredded like Chris Heria, then take the Chris Heria 30-day challenge. He started the 30 day program after a period of traveling and working that left him with less time to workout. After having trained two hours a day previously, he felt he was developing a “Dad Bod” and wanted to get back in shape fast. 

Chris wants to be better, stronger, and faster every year. He wants to improve on the previous version of himself. If you have similar goals, Chris recommends doing the 30 day challenge at the start of the year because it will set the tone for the year to come. 

When Chris first started the 30 day body transformation challenge he felt rusty. It took him a few days to get into the swing of things. 

But when the challenge kicked in he noticed improvement across the board. Not only was Chris training everyday, he was more focused on his diet and was eating healthier food. The results speak for themselves, as over the course of the 30 days he gained four or five pounds of muscle. 

“I think what’s really cool about a challenge, or a 30 day body transformation in general, is that you really hold yourself accountable, at least for a consecutive amount of days”

Chris Heria

While Chris found it a challenge to get started with the 30 day challenge, by the end he was working out automatically, he didn’t have to think about it, he just went ahead and did the workout that he had planned. 

For Chris, regaining that mental disciple to stick to his training schedule was a big part of the motivation for undergoing the 30 day program. I feel certain that I would also benefit from bumping up my mental disciple by giving myself a workout challenge like this one. 

If you want to try the Chris Heria 30 day program you can see the training schedule here. It is one of the most thorough Chris Heria workout routines there is.

Chris Heria Abs Workout Routine

Abs, abs, abs. A lot of guys out there want abs, and Chris Heria clearly has a well developed set of stomach muscles. Following his abs workout routine, in combination with a proper diet regimen, I’ve no doubt that you will start to see yours pop. 

This workout routine is a no equipment, calisthenics routine developed by Chris Heria to build stomach muscles and get defined abs. 

This particular workout can be done by anyone, regardless of fitness level. It is broken down into four sections that give you a complete six pack abs workout. Unlike other ab workouts, this routine engages all the abdominal muscles, ensuring a well-rounded workout. 

Again, this is HIIT workout routine that maximizes effectiveness by reducing your workout time while simultaneously increasing your metabolism. 

Part One – Warm Up Exercises Focused on Low Abdominals 

1. Leg Down Hold – 45 seconds | 15 second break
2. Laying Leg Flutters – 45 seconds | 15 second break
3. Laying Leg Raises – – 45 seconds | 15 second break
4. Laying Hip Raises – 45 seconds | 15 second break
5. Crucifix – 45 seconds | 15 second break

Part Two – Focused on Obliques using Twisting Exercises 

1. Russian Twists – 45 seconds | 15 second break
2. Star Crunches – 45 seconds | 15 second break
3. Bicycles – 45 seconds | 15 second break
4. Switching Mountain Climbers – 45 seconds | 15 second break
5. Side Plank Reach Throughs – 45 seconds | 15 second break

Part Three – Seated Abdominal Exercises 

1. Seated Leg Flutters – 45 seconds | 15 second break
2. Seated In and Outs – 45 seconds | 15 second break
3. Side Boat Hold Crunches – 45 seconds | 15 second break
4. Reach Ups – 45 seconds | 15 second break
5. Crunch Reach Through – 45 seconds | 15 second break

Part Four – Plank Position Abdominal Exercises 

1. Plank Knees to Elbow – 45 seconds | 15 second break
2. High Side Plank Raises – 45 seconds | 15 second break
3. Plank Open and Closed – 45 seconds | 15 second break
4. High Plank to Low Plank – 45 seconds | 15 second break
5. Plank Hold – 45 seconds | 15 second break

Well, if you don’t get rock hard, defined abs from doing that workout regularly then you are doing something wrong. That is a whole lot of ab exercises. 

Workout Tips from Chris Heria 

Here is a collection of general training tips I’ve picked up from doing Chris Heria workout routines:

• Mastering the fundamentals is the best way to start for beginners

• Use progressions to avoid plateaus in your fitness progress 

• Start your day with a full glass of water to rehydrate and start the body off metabolizing stored fats and carbohydrates 

• Go at your own intensity – for beginners this means take it slow and work on perfect form, for intermediate and advanced training pick up the pace and use intensity to increase the effectiveness of each workout routine. But ultimately, go at a pace that you feel comfortable with. 

• “You don’t find time you make time”: Being consistent with your workouts is the only way you will achieve your workout goals. 

Looking for cardio workout routines? Try these Chris Heria Cardio routines.