Capability · What you can do · 9 min read
The 12-week Ready Body programme, free and gym-free
The Ready Body programme is a free 12-week plan: three walks, two short strength sessions and one stair session a week, using nothing but stairs, a chair, a wall and two shopping bags. It is built around the NHS guideline of 150 minutes of activity plus strength work on 2 days a week (NHS, checked 26 August 2026).
What this programme is
This page is the whole programme. It’s free, there’s nothing to sign up for, and there’s nothing to buy: you need stairs, a sturdy chair, a clear stretch of wall, two shopping bags you can load with tins and bottles, and ideally somewhere to hang, like a bar in a park.
It exists because the five Ready Body tests tell you where you are, and plenty of people then ask what to do next. This is the answer, laid out week by week. The structure is Prep Not Panic’s own standard, not a clinical rehabilitation plan, and it is deliberately built around the NHS physical activity guidelines: at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week, plus strengthening activities that work all the major muscle groups on at least 2 days a week.
One line before anything else, and it applies to every week below: speak to your GP first if you have not exercised for some time, or have medical conditions or concerns. That is the NHS’s own advice, and we’d add pregnancy and recent surgery to the list.
Week 0: take the five tests
Before week 1, spend a few days taking the five Ready Body tests: carry, walk, get up, climb and hang on. Don’t train for them, just find out where you are. Your score out of 5 sets your starting point, and the same five tests at week 12 are how you’ll know the programme worked.
Where do I start? Scale it to your score
| Week 0 score | Where to start |
|---|---|
| 0–1 tests passed | Week 1, using the lighter numbers: 2 × 3 kg carries, 15-minute walks, sit-to-stands from a normal dining chair, 2 flights per stair session. Build to the printed week 1 numbers when they feel easy. |
| 2 tests passed | Week 1, exactly as written. |
| 3–4 tests passed | Start at week 3. |
| 5 tests passed | You don’t need the programme. Keep to the NHS 150 minutes plus 2 strength days, and retest every 3 months. |
If a week ever feels like too big a jump, repeat the one before. There is no prize for finishing on time, only for finishing.
The 12 weeks at a glance
Six short sessions a week: three walks, two strength sessions, one stair session. Brisk means the NHS definition: you can still talk, but not sing.
| Week | Three walks | Two strength sessions | One stair session |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 min, comfortable pace | Sit-to-stands 3 × 8; carries 2 × 5 kg, 3 walks of 30 m; step-ups 2 × 8 each leg | 3 flights, rest as needed |
| 2 | 25 min, last 5 brisk | Sit-to-stands 3 × 10; carries 2 × 7 kg, 3 × 40 m; step-ups 2 × 10 | 4 flights |
| 3 | 30 min, brisk for half | Sit-to-stands 3 × 10 to a lower seat; carries 2 × 8 kg, 4 × 40 m; step-ups 3 × 10 | 5 flights |
| 4 | 40 min, brisk throughout | Sit-to-stands 3 × 8 with a slow 3-second lower; carries 2 × 10 kg; one flight loaded with 2 × 3 kg | 6 flights |
| 5 | 30 min brisk, one walk with a 2 kg pack | Carries 2 × 10 kg; get-ups from a cushion, 5 each side; step-ups 3 × 10 holding 2 × 3 kg | 6 flights |
| 6 | 35 min brisk, two walks with the pack | Carries 2 × 10 kg for 60 m; one flight with 2 × 5 kg; get-ups | 7 flights |
| 7 | 40 min brisk, pack up to 4 kg | Floor get-ups without hands, 5 each side; two flights with 2 × 5 kg; step-ups | 8 flights |
| 8 | 40 min brisk with the pack | Carries 2 × 10 kg; two flights with 2 × 7 kg | 8 flights, steady pace |
| 9 | Two at 40 min, plus one long walk of 60 min | Two flights with 2 × 8 kg; get-ups; step-ups | 9 flights |
| 10 | Two at 40 min, long walk 65 min with the pack | Two flights with 2 × 9 kg; carries 2 × 10 kg for 60 m | 10 flights, rest as needed |
| 11 | Two at 40 min, long walk 70 min | Two flights at full test weight, 15–20 kg combined | 10 flights, steady |
| 12 | One easy 30 min early in the week | One light session, then two rest days | Retest week: all five tests |
Start every strength session with wall presses, the same push movement as in Strength after sixty: hands flat on a wall at shoulder height, step back, bend and straighten your arms, 2 sets of 8 to 10. It’s what keeps your chest and shoulders in the picture alongside all the carrying.
Finish every strength session with 30 seconds of grip work: hold the loaded bags at your sides, or squeeze a rolled towel hard, or hang from a bar if you have one. That’s the whole preparation for the hang test.
Why these weights? The government’s Prepare campaign puts the minimum at 2.5 to 3 litres of drinking water per person per day (GOV.UK Prepare, checked 26 August 2026). A week of that for one person is around 21 kg, which is why the carries build to 15–20 kg across two bags: it’s the weight of the most important supply there is.
What does a week actually look like?
Spread it out. A pattern that works: walks on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, strength on Tuesday and Friday, stairs on Thursday, Sunday completely off. Keep at least one day between the two strength sessions. Apart from the long walks in weeks 9–11, no session should take more than about 25 minutes.
The walks can be commutes, school runs or errands; carrying the shopping home counts as a carry. The programme is trying to disappear into your week, not take it over.
Does this meet the NHS guideline?
It is built around it. Three brisk 40-minute walks give you 120 minutes of moderate activity, which is short of the 150 on its own. The NHS lists walking up stairs as vigorous activity and treats 75 vigorous minutes as broadly equivalent to 150 moderate ones, so the stair session and the loaded walks help close the gap. The two strength sessions cover the NHS’s “at least 2 days a week” of strengthening work, using your legs, hips, back, chest, shoulders and arms. Adults 65 and over have the same weekly targets, plus strength, balance and flexibility work on at least 2 days, which the sit-to-stands, wall presses, step-ups and carries also serve.
Rest, soreness and pain
Some muscle soreness a day or two after a session is normal in the first few weeks, especially from sit-to-stands and stairs. It’s a dull ache that eases as you move, and it fades as the weeks go on. Keep the rest day between strength sessions, sleep properly, and if a week leaves you sore into the next one, repeat it rather than pushing on.
Pain is different, and the signals are not all the same. Chest pain or tightness, dizziness or feeling faint: stop straight away, whatever week you are on. If chest pain or tightness does not quickly ease once you have stopped, call 999. If you are unsure what a symptom means, call NHS 111. For pain in a joint rather than a muscle, or pain that gets worse from one session to the next, stop and speak to your GP before carrying on. Adjusting is always allowed: a higher chair, a lighter bag, fewer flights with a hand on the rail.
If you’re over 60, or doing this with a parent
The programme works at any age, and the NHS asks adults 65 and over for the same 150 weekly minutes. But if the week 1 numbers look like a wall, start with the gentler chair-based pattern in Strength after sixty and move over to this page when its versions of the tests feel easy. That page also covers doing this alongside an older parent.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a gym or any equipment?
No. Stairs, a sturdy chair, a wall, two shopping bags, tins and bottles to load them with, and a small backpack from week 5. A bar in a park is useful for the hang test but a pair of loaded bags substitutes for grip work.
What if I miss a week?
Repeat the last week you completed and carry on from there. Twelve weeks is the design, not a deadline, and a fortnight off for illness or holiday just means the retest lands later. Nothing resets to zero.
Can I run instead of walking?
Yes. The NHS lists running as vigorous activity, so it more than covers the walking minutes. Keep the carries, step-ups and stairs though: running builds none of the strength the carry, get-up and hang tests measure.
Is six sessions a week too much for a beginner?
It’s fewer minutes than it sounds. Most sessions are 20 to 25 minutes, roughly two and a half hours a week in total, which is close to the NHS’s 150-minute guideline. The scaling table exists so the effort inside those minutes starts small.
What if I scored 0 and it still feels too hard?
Start with just the walks and the sit-to-stands for a fortnight, then add the rest. And take the NHS line seriously: speak to your GP first if you have not exercised for some time, or have medical conditions or concerns.
I passed all five tests. Is there any point?
Not really, and that’s fine. Keep doing roughly what you’re doing, check it against the NHS guideline, and retest every 3 months. Weeks 9–12 make a decent maintenance block if you want structure.
Sources & review
- NHS, Physical activity guidelines for adults aged 19 to 64: at least 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous activity a week; strengthening all major muscle groups on at least 2 days a week; brisk walking as moderate and stair climbing as vigorous activity; speak to your GP first if you have not exercised for some time, or have medical conditions or concerns. Checked 26 August 2026.
- NHS, Physical activity guidelines for older adults: the same weekly targets for adults 65 and over, plus strength, balance and flexibility activities on at least 2 days a week. Checked 26 August 2026.
- UK Government, Get prepared for emergencies: a minimum of 2.5 to 3 litres of drinking water per person per day, the basis for the carry weights. Checked 26 August 2026.
The 12-week structure, session numbers and pass standards are Prep Not Panic’s own, built to sit inside the NHS guidelines above. They are not a medical or rehabilitation programme and have not been clinically validated. Professional review: TBC. Review date: 26 August 2026.