Love celebrating with festive fun this time of year? Why not bring the holidays to your workout routine too! This 12 Days of Christmas Workout is a fun way to engage your whole body in a great sweat session, whether you’re working out alone, with a group, or with your kiddos.
Note: This post was first published in 2014 and has been updated in 2023.
Disclaimer: This post was written and reviewed by Chrissy Carroll, MPH, ACSM Certified Personal Trainer. It is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as training advice. Consult a doctor prior to starting any new exercise routine.
Who is this workout for?
If you do not have any contraindications to exercise or any injuries, this workout might be a great option for you! It requires no equipment (other than a chair around your house) and can be done anywhere. It is a high intensity workout but it’s super fun.
Keep in mind you can make modifications according to your fitness level. Modification ideas are provided underneath the workout!
How to do the workout
The workout goes along to the 12 days of Christmas song. Do the workout just like you’d sing the song, doing the exercises that are listed for each day of the song. This will make sense when you pair the song with the image below. It will sound like this…
- “On the first day of Christmas, my trainer gave to me – 1 plank for 20 seconds”
- “On the second day of Christmas, my trainer gave to me – 2 burpees, and 1 plank for 20 seconds.”
- “On the third day of Christmas, my trainer gave to me – 3 push-ups, 2 burpees, and 1 plank for 20 seconds.”
And so on!
12 Days of Christmas Workout
You’ll find the workout image below which you can pin, share, or print out. The workout is also written in plain text below the image with links that show tutorials for the exercises you may be unfamiliar with, or may need some help with proper form.
Here’s how the workout goes:
“On the first day of Christmas, my trainer gave to me…”
- 1 Plank for 20 Seconds
- 2 Burpees
- 3 Push-Ups
- 4 Star Jumps
- 5 Squats
- 6 Chair Dips
- 7 Boxing Punches (just like it sounds – do some quick jabs into the air)
- 8 Mountain Climbers
- 9 Jumping Jacks
- 10 Alternating Lunges
- 11 Crunches
- 12 High Knees
Here is the entire workout as sung to the song if you’re unfamiliar with how the song goes or want to see what it looks like structured together:
- Round 1 – 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 2 – 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 3 – 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 4 – 4 star jumps, 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 5 – 5 squats, 4 star jumps, 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 6 – 6 chair dips, 5 squats, 4 star jumps, 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 7 – 7 boxing punches, 6 chair dips, 5 squats, 4 star jumps, 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 8 – 8 mountain climbers, 7 boxing punches, 6 chair dips, 5 squats, 4 star jumps, 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 9 – 9 jumping jacks, 8 mountain climbers, 7 boxing punches, 6 chair dips, 5 squats, 4 star jumps, 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 10 – 10 alternating lunges, 9 jumping jacks, 8 mountain climbers, 7 boxing punches, 6 chair dips, 5 squats, 4 star jumps, 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 11 – 11 crunches, 10 alternating lunges, 9 jumping jacks, 8 mountain climbers, 7 boxing punches, 6 chair dips, 5 squats, 4 star jumps, 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
- Round 12 – 12 high knees, 11 crunches, 10 alternating lunges, 9 jumping jacks, 8 mountain climbers, 7 boxing punches, 6 chair dips, 5 squats, 4 star jumps, 3 push ups, 2 burpees, 1 plank for 20 seconds
Modification Suggestions
If you’re not comfortable with some of the exercises listed, here are suggested modifications for some of the more challenging or high impact exercises. Do what feels right for your body!
- Plank – Feel free to alter the arm position to a forearm plank, do a plank on your knees, or reduce the time to 10 seconds (or what is doable for you).
- Burpees – You can skip the push-up portion of the burpee, and rather than jumping your feet, step them back. If the jump up is too much, simply skip that as well. (If you combine all three modifications, this would look like squat down, place your hands down, step your feet back into a plank, step your feet back up on each side of your hands, stand up).
- Push-ups – Do a push up against a wall or bench instead, or on your knees. (If doing them on your knees, be sure you’ve extended into a plank position from the knees).
- Star jumps – Instead of jumping, squat down then come up, stepping one foot out to the side while bringing both arms up in the air. Repeat on the other side. (This is a good video showing a star jump modification).
- Chair dips – Bring your feet in closer to your body (this makes the exercise easier than having your feet further out) and only lower your arms a few inches before coming back up.
- Mountain climbers – Place your hands on an elevated surface like a sturdy chair against a wall, a weight bench, or a countertop. Having an elevated incline should make the exercise easier compared to being on the ground.
- Jumping jacks – Step your feet out rather than jump your feet out, alternating the sides.
- High knees – Instead of the high impact version, you can do the movement slower as a march bringing your knee to your chest each time.
More Fun Workouts
If you’re looking for more fun workouts to add to your routine, here are some of the other favorites on the blog:
- 15 minute treadmill workout (great for super busy days during the holiday season)
- Arms, abs, and cardio circuit workout
- Wedding songs workout (am I the only one that LOVES these cheesy wedding line dances?!)
- Alphabet workout (this is a great one to do with friends or even your kiddos – obviously modify exercises if they need to!)
- Clockout knockout workout
Pretty awesome, right?! Enjoy this Christmas themed workout, and feel free to let me know what you thought of it!
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How long did this workout take you?
Hi Abby! It’ll take different people different amounts of time depending on the amount of rest they might need, but 20-25 minutes is probably an accurate time frame 🙂
What are star jumps and chair dips?
Hi Candy!
Star jump = start in a squat position, then jump up explosively. When you jump up, you’ll extend your arms and legs outwards, so your body looks like a star or an X. It can be a little tough on the knees, so you can always modify with another exercise if you have any knee problems.
Chair dips = Find a steady chair and stand in front of it. Squat down and place your arms behind you on the chair. You can keep your legs bent like this, or you can extend them outward. Use your arms to lower then raise your body up and down, but don’t allow your elbows to go past a 90 degree angle. (You should be using your arm strength (rather than leg strength) to do this exercise.)
Hope that helps! I’ll try to get some photos up in the post soon to help illustrate the exercises.