The grocery bags. The stairs. The low couch. Twenty minutes, three times a week, trains all three.

Dear friend,

Think about the last time you carried the shopping in from the car.

Or took the stairs with a laundry basket. Or got up from a deep, low couch.

You don’t plan those moments. They just happen, every day. And every one of them is a strength move.

That’s what this kit is about. Not a gym. Not a body goal. Just the ordinary things you want to keep doing with ease.

Protein has a partner

“Eat your protein.” You hear that one a lot.

The second half of the advice gets said much more quietly.

In 2025, four US medical and nutrition societies wrote a joint advisory on eating well on these medications. It pairs protein with strength exercise. It says protein by itself is unlikely to be enough without strength training.

So you nod. Strength exercise. Sure.

Then you get home, and the questions start.

Here’s where the advice stops

Which moves? How many? How heavy? What if getting down on the floor is a whole production? What if a gym is the last place you want to be?

Search for it, and you get a fitness star doing jump squats on a beach.

So the strength part waits. Next week. Next month.

That’s a missing plan. Not a missing effort.

Why most workouts don’t fit

Most workout plans are written for people who already work out. Floor work. Jumping. Counting reps while you gasp for air.

Start there, and the first week is often the last.

What works is the reverse. Start in a chair. Keep a hand on the counter. Let a timer do the counting. Then add a little at a time.

That’s the whole idea behind this kit.

The 20-Minute Strength Kit

8 weeks of home strength for complete beginners. 20 minutes a session.

The heart of the kit is our new book, A Little Stronger. There are 14 moves. Each one has a picture of the start and the end, plus an easier and a harder version.

We asked what stops beginners from starting. Then we built the plan around each answer:

• “I can’t get down on the floor.” You don’t have to. Every move has a version you do standing, sitting or on a firm bed.
• “I don’t have time.” One session is 20 minutes, start to finish. 3 to warm up, 14 of moves, 3 to cool down.
• “I won’t know what to do.” The timer tells you when to move and when to rest. You never count reps.
• “I’ll forget the moves.” The phone cards show one session per screen, in big type, with a picture of each move.
• “Some days I have no energy.” There’s an 8-minute day for those. And repeating a week is part of the plan, so you can’t fall behind.
• “I’ve never done this before.” Good. Weeks 1 and 2 use the easiest version of every move, with no weights.

Every move practices something you already do

• 

  Stand

  Chair sit-to-stand

  Practices getting up from a chair

• 

  Carry

  Suitcase carry

  Practices walking with a bag at your side

• 

  Climb

  Supported step-up

  Practices a stair, hand on the rail

• 

  Push

  Wall push-up

  Standing up, hands on the wall

↑ Every move has a start and end picture, plus an easier and a harder version. (Illustrations from the book.)

That’s what each move trains. How your own week feels is yours to notice. The tracker gives you a line for it.

Here’s one session, straight from the book

Workout A, weeks 1 and 2. Six moves, done twice.

One 20-minute session from the book, minute by minute

Warm-up: easy march and gentle reaches	3 min
Round 1: sit-to-stand, wall push-up, step-up, calf raise, standing march, balance	6 min
Break and set up	1 min
Round 2: the same six again	6 min
Break	1 min
Cool-down: easy walk and slow breaths	3 min
One whole session	20 min

In week 1, each move is 30 seconds of work and 30 seconds of rest. By week 7, it’s 45 and 15. The plan grows by the clock, the version and the weight. Not by more time.

Need a longer rest? Take it. The session can run past 20 minutes. That’s fine.

And you can start this week

• Weeks 1 and 2 use no weights at all. You learn each move first.
• Later, a light pair of dumbbells (about 2 to 5 lb). Closed water bottles or cans can stand in at first.
• A sturdy chair against a wall, and a counter or wall to hold on to. That’s the whole gym.
• A support hand within reach on every balance move.
• A clear “stop and sit down” list on page 2, before your first session.
• Your own numbers only. The Week 1 and Week 8 check-ins have no age scores and no norms.

You against you: the chair check-in

Here’s a little contest built into the tracker. The only person you play against is you.

In week 1, with your clinician’s OK, sit in a sturdy chair against a wall. Start a 30-second timer. Count how many times you stand up at a comfortable pace, using your hands if you need them. Write the number down.

In week 8, same chair, same timer. You count again.

Then you put the two numbers side by side. No age charts. No scores. Just your week 1 and your week 8, in your own handwriting.

Protein is built in

The book has a chapter on protein for strength days. It gives the general adult reference, with its source. It shows 12 easy protein foods. And it keeps the habit simple: spread protein across the day, and have a protein food at the next meal or snack.

Your own amount stays a talk for you and your clinician or a dietitian. We never set a target for you.

The kit also comes with six small plates from our cookbook, A Little Something, with their photos and protein per serving:

The six Strength-Day Plates and their protein per serving

Beef & spinach rice bowl	36 g
Chicken, lentil & avocado bowl	35 g
Lemon salmon & pea couscous	29 g
Spinach & cottage cheese eggs	21 g
Strawberry cheesecake cup	19 g
Cocoa yogurt shake	12 g

Every figure is worked out from USDA food data, recipe by recipe.

Here’s everything you get

A plan alone can still leave gaps. So we asked one question: what stops people from using it? Then we added a fix for each answer.

1. The core

   A Little Stronger: the 8-week home strength plan

   The full 54-page book. 14 moves with pictures, the 8-week plan on a clock, the 8-minute day, and the chapters on protein and on hair and food.

   Value $27

2. Bonus 1 · for “I’ll forget the moves halfway through.”

   Phone Workout Cards

   Every session, one screen at a time, sized for your phone. Prop it on the counter, start the timer and follow along, so you never stop to flip pages.

   Value $12

3. Bonus 2 · for “What did I do last week?”

   8-Week Strength & Protein Tracker

   A printable session log, a page for each week, and the Week 1 and Week 8 check-ins. Write down the version you used, so next time you know exactly where to start. And at week 8, you can look back at week 1.

   Value $9

4. Bonus 3 · for “What should I eat after?”

   Strength-Day Plates

   Six recipes from A Little Something, the same pages as in the cookbook, with their photos and protein per serving.

   Value $7

See the pages for yourself

These are real pages from the kit. Tap any one to open it full size.

↑ Real pages from the kit. 14 moves like this, all on your phone tonight.

So what does it cost?

Add up what’s in the kit:

Stack value of each part of the kit

A Little Stronger: the 8-week home strength plan	$27
Bonus 1: Phone Workout Cards	$12
Bonus 2: 8-Week Strength & Protein Tracker	$9
Bonus 3: Strength-Day Plates	$7
Total value	$55

You won’t pay $55. You won’t even pay the $27 the book is worth alone.

Today, the whole kit is $19, one time.

That’s about 79¢ a session for the 24 sessions in the plan. No gym fees. No drive. No class times. No subscription, ever.

Now picture next Monday

Your phone is propped on the counter. The chair is against the wall. You tap the timer.

Sit, stand. Hands on the wall, push. One step up, hand on the rail. Rise up on your toes. The timer beeps, and you rest.

Twenty minutes later, you’re done. You write one line in the tracker: which version you used.

Wednesday, you do it again. Friday too.

No guessing. No gym. Just the next session, already planned.

The Three-Session Guarantee

Do three sessions. Then decide. Why three? Because that’s one full week of the plan. One session can’t tell you much. A week can. If it isn’t for you, we’d rather hand your money back.

So the risk is all ours.