In this article, we’ll discuss actionable tips for staying fit and healthy as a tradie (construction worker) or anyone with a physically demanding job. 

This guide will provide useful knowledge on incorporating resistance and aerobic training to improve your strength, energy, and overall fitness.

Engaging in both types of training offers numerous benefits: You’ll feel more energised at work, become fitter and stronger, and, most importantly, reduce your risk of injury both on and off the job.

We’ll explore fitness from two main approaches:

1. Resistance Training, focusing on building strength and muscle stability.
2. Aerobic training, also known as cardio, for enhancing endurance and cardiovascular health.

Are Tradies Fit?

It’s assumed that tradies who work physically demanding jobs are naturally fit and strong. After all, they lift, carry, and move heavy materials all day. 

While most tradies are likely stronger than the average untrained person, this physical work doesn’t necessarily cover all aspects of fitness, especially cardiovascular health and flexibility, which can vary widely among tradies.

Research even suggests that work-related physical activity doesn’t provide the same health benefits as leisure-time exercise and isn’t a substitute for structured workouts. 

A balanced fitness routine, including strength and cardio, can help tradies stay truly fit, address gaps in overall health, and reduce injury risks. 

Resistance Training and Strength Training for Tradies 

Regular strength and resistance training is critical for staying fit and healthy as a tradie or someone in a labour-intensive job. 

It will be highly beneficial in helping combat the repetitive physical stress from your work. 

Strength exercises enhance muscle balance and joint stability and reduce the risk of overuse injuries, such as repetitive strain injuries (RSIs). 

Studies have shown that resistance training, mainly targeting back, neck and shoulder muscles, can reduce pain in these areas. 

Resistance training helps reduce physical strain and improve muscular function by targeting muscle endurance and stability.

Regular resistance training will benefit people who work in jobs that require physical strength, such as tradies who face repetitive, physically demanding tasks.

Research shows that resistance training reduces symptoms such as lower back pain and arthritic discomfort.

To explore these benefits further, read the complete study on why “Resistance Training is Medicine” here.

Resistance training : 

Resistance training involves exercises where muscles work against a force (Resistance), such as weights, bands or body weight. 

Some benefits include improved health, strength, endurance, and muscle tone. It also helps muscle activity and health.

It’s a broad category that includes strength training.

According to a study published in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), resistance training improves overall muscle function and endurance, which is crucial for those in physically demanding jobs like construction workers.

Strength training : 

Strength training is a specific type of resistance training focused on progressively increasing the weight or resistance to build muscle, strength and power. 

While physically demanding tasks at work will technically involve some resistance training (any time you carry something), they lack the progressive overload and constancy part.

Structured strength training outside work can significantly enhance overall muscle development and capacity, making physically demanding tasks easier and reducing fatigue and injury risk. 

A study shows that strength training effectively reduces pain in critical areas like the lower back and shoulders, especially when combined with stretching and non-specific exercises (e.g. cycling or pilates) that support flexibility and endurance. 

What is Aerobic training, and why is it essential for tradies

Aerobic training, also known as cardio, involves exercises that increase your heart rate for an extended period.

Some simple examples are running, cycling, or swimming.

Aerobic training is essential for cardiovascular health. 

It helps regulate blood pressure, improves circulation, and enhances lung capacity, all of which contribute to more energy and stamina on the job and help you stay fit and healthy. 

Studies suggest that aerobic exercise benefits heart health and improves sleep, mood, and immune function, making it a key component for staying fit and maintaining long-term well-being.

In an upcoming post, I’ll discuss aerobic training for tradies in more detail, including how to tailor it to your needs and around your work. 

How tradies have stayed fit

A healthy lifestyle is possible even with a busy and physically demanding job.

I know plenty of people who manage to stay fit as tradies; some hit the gym regularly, others have a home gym set up, and a few stick to running or surfing as their primary form of exercise. 

Whether you prefer weightlifting, cardio, or functional workouts, finding what works best for you and your schedule is essential.

Let’s break it down into the best three options : 

1. Morning Workouts:

Morning workouts are great for those who want to start the day right and feel fresh while working out or for those who wish to have evenings free for family or social activities. 

If you already have an early start, you might have to get up earlier to fit in a quick session, which you can do effectively as long as you are a morning person.  

2. After-Work Sessions: 

Working out in the evening is a solid option for those who prefer to unwind after work and take their time. 

Signing up for a gym and going after work worked well for me.

After dealing with recurring injuries and fatigue, I found that regular workouts helped significantly. 

I invested in a personal trainer and focused on strength training and running, which gave me something to look forward to after work.

3. Weekend Training: 

If your weekdays are too packed, you can focus on more intense sessions over the weekend. The training can be a mix of strength training or cardio sessions. 

Ultimately, it’s your choice, depending on your schedule and personal preference.

Common Fitness Challenges for Tradies (With Solutions)

If you’re already thinking of a reason to get out of it, hang tight! 

You’ll see that there are solutions for any challenges, and your progress is totally within reach.

Here are some ways to overcome your fitness challenges and some of the barriers you may face when it comes to improving your fitness :

Physical Exhaustion ( too tired )
Solution: Lighter workouts and build consistency.  

While you may feel too tired after work, exercising has been proven to increase your energy and vitality while decreasing fatigue.

However, it’s not just your muscles that get tired—your nervous system also becomes fatigued from repetitive, demanding tasks, impacting your overall energy, concentration, and recovery.

Begin with lighter workouts, avoiding heavy lifting and keeping the volume of sets low, which helps your body and nervous system adapt without additional strain.

Consistency is key. 

Ensure adequate rest, including quality sleep, to allow your nervous system to recover fully.

Over time, gradually increase the intensity and volume of your sessions as you build resilience.

Nutrition also plays a huge role. Fuel your body with the right foods to support energy levels and prevent burnout. 

Stress management techniques, like deep breathing or stretching, can also help alleviate nervous system fatigue.

Time Constraints (no time)
Solution: Focus on short, effective workouts.

You don’t need to spend hours at or even go to a gym. If you have some weights at home, you can use them for a quick and efficient workout. 

Resistance training just once or twice per week is enough to see results. 

Depending on your current level, as long as you train to muscular fatigue, you will see improvements or maintain your strength.

All it takes is 30 minutes to an hour each week, and you’re up and running (literally!).

You can find more information here, a good review about having no time to lift. 

Inconsistent Schedule
Solution: Having a flexible workout plan. 

Have a plan B for those days when your schedule changes, like shorter full-body workouts. 

For example, on busy days or weeks, do a 20-minute full-body workout instead of your usual workout, which might be 40 minutes long. 

If you can’t hit the gym, another easy solution is to do a quick bodyweight circuit at home or squeeze in some stretches and mobility work to keep the ball rolling.

Soreness and Injuries
Solution: Focus on recovery and mobility. 

If you have serious injuries, you should always see a trained professional; a physiotherapist or chiropractor will provide the necessary treatment. 

If you experience any pain or discomfort during your workout or at work, it’s important to stop immediately and assess the situation. For example, if you feel sharp pain in a joint such as the knees, shoulders, or elbows or if you notice a muscle strain, like a pulling or tearing sensation in a muscle, it’s important to stop.

These types of pain could be signs of an injury, and continuing to push through can make it worse. Listening to your body and giving yourself time to recover can help prevent long-term damage.

For any non-serious soreness, like delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) or general work-related aches, take a few lighter days in your training by reducing the intensity or volume. 

There are many great home recovering tools, including stretching, foam rolling, ice baths, and saunas. 

Remember, rest days are essential for avoiding burnout, so working out 3-4 times per week is a good balance of recovery days to hard days.

Effective Exercises for Tradies

When planning your workouts, focus on movements that build strength and stability. 

As a tradie, your body already handles physically demanding tasks daily, making staying fit challenging.

It is important to choose exercises that complement your work without overtraining the muscles, which will help improve performance on the job.

All exercises that challenge your body contribute to your overall improvement. 

Here are a few basic exercises and how they relate to work-related tasks:

Exercise	Description
Squats	Legs and Core: Increasing your ability to lift heavy materials.
Deadlifts	Full-body strengthening: This closely relates to safely lifting materials from the ground. Think of how many “deadlifts” you already do each day.
Rows	Back: Helpful for carrying or manoeuvring heavy tools and materials.
Pull-Ups	Back: Builds overall upper body strength, helping with on-site physical tasks like pulling movements or when climbing things like scaffolding.
Overhead Press	Shoulders: Strengthening them will reduce shoulder strain and fatigue. The muscles used when lifting materials or tools overhead.
Push-Ups	Chest and Shoulders: Builds upper body strength, improving your ability to move equipment or push a wheelbarrow.
Lunges	Legs: Similar to stepping motions or moving through uneven terrain at work while carrying weight.
Farmer’s Walk/Carry	A compound movement that improves grip strength and overall strength: Vital for carrying heavy toolboxes or equipment across job sites or buckets.

Important note: 

These are just a few examples. Listen to your body and avoid overworking certain muscle groups. 

If you’ve been carrying or lifting materials all day, avoid exercises like farmer’s walks or heavy deadlifts at the gym. 

Instead, focus on other movements that build overall fitness and strength (like an accessory exercise) without repeating work-specific tasks. 

Balance is key.

Exercise Technique

It’s crucial to focus on proper technique when doing exercises. 

One way to master your form is to watch short videos on YouTube and to take notes of your body positioning and the cues ( for example, “Drive through your heels” when squatting).

Then, either look in the mirrors at the gym or film yourself performing the exercise and compare the two.

Another way is to learn from a personal trainer (PT) or have a friend watching.

This guidance can help you understand correct movement patterns, preventing you from rushing into heavy weights too soon. 

Progressive Overload

Before you start, it’s essential to understand progressive overload. 

The key to strength gains and the primary way to consistently improve is to gradually increase weights, repetitions, or intensity, challenging your muscles more each time. 

Muscles will then adapt, growing bigger and stronger over time. This approach helps prevent plateaus and enhances overall performance.

Push, Pull and Legs training split (PPL), for Tradies

There are many types of training splits, but a Push, Pull, and Legs (PPL) training split is a good workout for tradies and an easy one to learn. 

This workout structure targets all major muscle groups while ensuring proper recovery between sessions.

This training split offers flexibility and efficiency, fitting well into a busy work schedule while supporting long-term fitness goals.

For tradies, PPL helps build strength in the key areas around pushing, pulling, and leg movements, which are critical for daily work tasks. 

It also reduces the risk of injury by promoting balanced muscle development, adequate recovery time and progressive overload helps ensure continuous improvement over time. 

Example workout plans

Here is a workout plan for tradies. It uses some of the exercises mentioned above and adds some accessory ones to give you a good example. 

Ideally, you want a rest day between each session, but if necessary, it could be done three days in a row. 

Day 1: Push (Chest, Shoulders, Triceps) 

Exercise	Sets x Reps	Focus
Warm-up – Dynamic Stretches	5-10 minutes	Warm up your shoulders and upper body.
Bench Press	3 x 8-10	Chest, Triceps
Dips	3 x 8-10	Shoulders, Chest, Triceps
Dumbbell Incline Press	3 x10-12	Upper Chest
Overhead Press	3 x 8-10	Shoulders, Chest
Lateral Raises	3 x 10-15	Lateral delt (side of your shoulder)
Plank	3 x 30-60 seconds	Core
Side plank	3x 20-30 seconds	Core

Day 2: Pull (Back, Biceps, Core) 

Exercise	Sets x Reps	Focus
Warm-up – Dynamic Stretches	5-10 minutes	Upper body
Deadlifts	4 x 5-8	Back, hamstring, glutes
Pull-ups or Lat Pulldowns	3 x 6-10	Back, Biceps
Bent-Over Rows	3 x 8-12	Back
Barbell/Dumbbell Bicep Curls	3 x 10-12	Biceps
Single-Arm Dumbbell Row	3 x 8-12	Back, Biceps
Face pulls	3 x 8-10	Rear dealt, traps and rhomboids
Side plank	3x 20-30 seconds	Core

Day 3: Legs (Quads, Hamstrings, Glutes) 

Exercise	Sets x Reps	Focus
Warm-up – Dynamic Stretches	5-10 minutes	lower body
Hack Squat machine	3 x 8-12	Quads, Glutes
Hamstring Curls	3 x 10-15	Hamstrings
leg extentions	3 x 8-10	Quads
Lunges	3 x 8-12 (per leg)	Quads, Glutes
Bulgarian split squat	3 x 6-8	Glutes, Quads, Hamstrings
Hanging Leg Raises	3 x 8-10	Core

A Quick Intro To Nutrition For Tradies 

People often overlook the importance of proper nutrition for tradies. Yet, it’s essential for maintaining energy levels and overall health, even if you don’t work out regularly.

Focusing more on quality lean proteins, complex carbs (not sugar), healthy fats, and fruits and vegetables can make a huge difference in your health. 

Meal prepping and smart snacking can transform your nutrition habits, and I’ll create a more detailed post on this topic soon. 

For now, focus on these very basics and just start training.

Stay tuned for a comprehensive guide to nutrition for tradies!

Summary 

Staying fit as a tradie doesn’t have to be complicated.

Consistency is key. Even small changes will lead to significant results over time. 

Focusing on strength training, your favourite type of cardio, making smart nutritional choices, and finding a routine that fits your busy life can improve your fitness, reduce injuries, and improve your overall health.

Now that you know what works best for you, take action. Sign up at your local gym, start a new routine, go for a run, or even commit to a few bodyweight exercises each day.

Your health and performance at work will only benefit you.

If you found this guide helpful, look for my next post, where I’ll discuss nutrition tips specifically for tradies. 

Let’s make staying fit part of every tradie’s lifestyle.

References

1. National Center for Biotechnology Information. Effects of resistance exercise on musculoskeletal pain, injury, and rehabilitation. PubMed Central. 2020. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9045238/
2. National Center for Biotechnology Information. The influence of resistance exercise on the prevention of musculoskeletal injuries in physically demanding jobs. PubMed Central. 2014. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4273961/
3. American College of Sports Medicine. Resistance training is medicine: Effects of strength training on health. Curr Sports Med Rep. 2012;11(4):241-247. Available at: https://journals.lww.com/acsm-csmr/fulltext/2012/07000/resistance_training_is_medicine__effects_of.13.aspx
4. National Center for Biotechnology Information. Aerobic exercise and cardiovascular health in the elderly. PubMed Central. 2020. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9206544/
5. National Center for Biotechnology Information. The influence of resistance exercise on the prevention of musculoskeletal injuries in physically demanding jobs. PubMed Central. 2014. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4273961/
6. Cleveland Clinic. The many benefits of a cardio workout. Cleveland Clinic. 2021. Available at: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/the-many-benefits-of-a-cardio-workout
7. National Center for Biotechnology Information. The role of exercise in reducing cardiovascular disease risk in adults. PubMed Central. 2009. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2465144/
8. National Center for Biotechnology Information. Cardiovascular benefits of aerobic exercise in the elderly. PubMed Central. 2020. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8449772/
9. National Center for Biotechnology Information. Aerobic exercise and cardiovascular health in the elderly. PubMed Central. 2020. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9206544/
10. National Center for Biotechnology Information. The effects of aerobic exercise on heart health and fitness in older adults. PubMed Central. 2018. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5983157/
11. National Center for Biotechnology Information. The impact of aerobic exercise on overall health and fitness in the elderly. PubMed Central. 2014. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4215195/