Jessica Biel's PT shares 7-step workout with dumbbells to improve strength and mobility

Jessica Biel has worked with her personal trainer for over a decade, through projects like The Better Sister on Amazon Prime, which had everyone asking after her back workout routine.

This week, the star posted a full-body workout to Instagram, done alongside her personal trainer, Ben Bruno, who says that anyone can copy the exercises or just "steal bits and pieces" from the session to add to their own workout.

It starts with 10 minutes of mobility exercises “to loosen up” which Ben says is Jessica’s favourite part of the regime. “Honestly, Jess would be happy doing mobility the whole time if I let her because she loves it,” he says. “We always do full-body workouts but we went a little easier on the lower body this particular day because her legs were feeling extra spicy from the last workout.”

The exercises aren't for beginners, but if you know your way around a pair of dumbbells, you should be fine. If you're new to strength training, use lighter weights or do it as a bodyweight workout. As Ben says, you can choose how hard you want to go.

Jessica Biel's full-body workout

Lunge with arm rotation

A lunge is a compound movement, meaning it works multiple muscles at the same time. In this case, it's a glutes, hamstrings, and quadricep exercise. With the arm rotation, it also works the upper-body muscles.

Here's how to do it:

• Start in a long lunge position with your hands on the ground.
• Rotate the arm closest to your front foot and stretch it towards the ceiling, following your arm with your eyes.
• Lower your arm to the ground, switch legs and do the same on the other side.
• You can adapt this by resting your back knee on the mat.
• Complete 12 reps and switch sides, making sure to do both sides of the body.

Delt fly to overhead reach

Jess uses lighter weights to do this exercise, which is excellent for shoulder and back strength and flexibility. You can start off with no weights if that’s easier, or very light dumbbells.

You’re working the smaller muscles in your upper body so you don’t need to use heavy weights for this exercise.

Here's how to do it:

• Start with your legs in a wide stance, arms hanging below you holding the weights.
• Hinge forward, making sure to brace your core and lead with your glutes, rather than your lower back.
• Raise the dumbbells out to the sides with your arms straight, or a slight bend in the elbow.
• Move your arms in front of you so they meet.
• Reverse your arms and bring them back below you again.
• Complete 12 reps.

Hip thrust press

Ben says this is a great upper-body and glute exercise. “Jess is using 30lb (13.6kg) dumbbells which is pretty big time,” says Ben. He recommends starting with 10lb (4.5kg) weights for this move.

Here's how to do it:

• Rest your upper back and shoulders on a bench with your knees bent in front of you.
• Rest the dumbbells on your hips.
• As you lift your hips off the ground, raise the dumbbells straight above your head.
• Squeeze your glutes at the top and hold the move for a couple of seconds before slowly lowering yourself back down.
• Complete 12 reps.

Split stance batwing row

Ben says this exercise is a “great one for working the back and secondarily the hamstrings and glutes”.

Here's how to do it:

• Move your legs into a wide lunge position and hinge forward to lean over your front knee.
• Doing one side at a time, bring the dumbbell up towards your hip and lower it again.
• Complete 12 reps and switch sides.

Lateral raise in lunge position

Ben says this move mainly works the shoulders and thighs. “Jess is using 10lbs here without much of a struggle but you’ll probably want to start with 5lbs as it’s a lot harder than she makes it look,” the PT says.

Here's how to do it:

• In the lunge position, raise both arms laterally either straight or with a bend at the elbow.
• Then start a single-arm raise while keeping the other arm out to the side.
• Do your 12 reps and then switch sides.

Side plank with leg raise

Ben says: “If this next core exercise looks brutal that’s because it is. Jess usually calls me all kinds of obscenities when I make her do it, but thankfully I’ve got thick skin.”

Here's how to do it:

• Lie in the side plank position with both legs resting on a bench. Come up onto one hand, making sure to stack your wrist, elbow, and shoulder on top of each other in one line.
• Brace your core and raise your top leg off the bottom, making sure to keep your non-bracing arm above your head.
• Complete 12 repetitions then switch sides.