5 Sandbag Routines That Take 15 Minutes Or Less!

While sandbag training offers a ton of variety within one's training program, most of the time, guys like you and me just want the meat and potatoes - hit it hard and heavy and get the heck out!

While smaller sandbags can be used for a multitude of movements, and are definitely worthy of being in any athletes strength program, most of the time guys will make 1 general sized sandbag and want to tear it up asap.

There are DOZENS of movements, if not more, that can be done with a medium to heavy sized bag, but today we're going to take a look at the BARE BONE BASICS and see all of the different routines you can do using the same movements.

The Russians call this "same but different" - you see, training is all about manipulating volume (how much you do) with intensity (how "heavy" relative to a 1 rep max, but often just though of as how hard you work - either way, both need to regulated). If all you did was the exact same routine week after week, well, don't expect any different results.

You will be just as strong, in the same condition, and just as muscular as you are now. Once you learn how to apply the "same but different" philosophy to your training, you will find that there are HUNDREDS of ways to attack the same movements and continue to get results.

So here are my top 5 sandbag training routines, each taking 15 minutes or LESS, using a medium to heavy sized bag. For most hard training athletes, this is around 100-150lb give or take. The movements performed are the essentials of sandbag training and will get you stronger from head to toe.

Routine 1: Nifty 50
Pick ONE full body movement and get a total of 50 reps, broken up however is necessary to get the job done most efficiently. Record your time and try to beat it the next time out.

Sample Movements for Nifty 50 (using a bag around 60-70% of your bodyweight for advanced trainees)
power clean
shouldering
clean and press
loading to a 36" or greater platform
power clean & zercher squat
shoulder + shoulder squat

Routine 2: Nifty 50 Divided by 5
Take 5 sandbag movements and perform each for 10 reps, not moving on until all reps are completed for each movement.

Example
1. clean and press x 10
2. shouldering x 10
3. power clean & zercher squat x 10
4. shoulder + squat x 10 (5 each side)
5. power clean x 10

Routine 3: 5 minutes per movement
Pick 3 movements and work each for 5 minutes; trying to get maximum reps in the allotted time.

example 1:
clean and press x 5 minutes
shouldering x 5 minutes
zercher squats x 5 minutes

example 2:
shoulder & squat x 5 minutes
power clean x 5 minutes
bent over row x 5 minutes

sample 3:
power clean + zercher squat x 5 minutes
clean and press x 5 minutes
bearhug or zercher goodmornings x 5 minutes

Routine 4: Make It Complex
This is a sandbag complex in which you are going for maximum rounds in 15 minutes
1. clean & press x 4-6
2. shouldering x 4-6
3. zercher squats x 4-6
4. bent over rows x 4-6

Routine 5: 100 reps of Misery!
Complete all 20 reps of each movement before moving on to the next...this is brutal!
1. clean and press x 20
2. shouldering x 20
3. bent over rows x 20
4. zercher or bear hug reverse lunges x 20 (10 ea)
5. goodmornings x 20

So gives these a try, on alternating days if possible and let me know how they work out (no pun intended) for you! Once you get a general idea on how to program your training, start mixing and matching movements on your own! Good luck!