Finding time to exercise can be hard. Between work, chores, errands, family responsibilities and general adulting, there are hardly enough hours in the day as it is, let alone any left over for training. Unfortunately for you, that’s where you’re wrong. Staying active doesn’t necessarily mean an hour in the gym every day – it means doing your best with the time and resources you have available. Take a look at what you can get done in just a few minutes.
10 minutes
You don’t have much time so let’s get that heart rate up with a Tabata workout! Named after Japanese scientist Dr Izumi Tabata, this workout features exercises of only four minutes each – so with ten minutes you’ll be able to do two! Do some stretches or on-the-spot jogging to warm up, then pick any exercise you like, from planking to pushups, squats, burpees, bear crawls, mountain climbers and more. Work out hard for 20 seconds, then rest for 10 seconds. Repeat that eight times, and you’ll have completed one Tabata. Pick a second exercise and repeat the same intervals all over again. Who says you can’t work up a sweat in just 10 minutes?
20 minutes
If you’ve got a bit more time, then high intensity interval training it is. A workout method that alternates low intensity periods with high ones, HIIT is a popular way to burn fat and improve endurance. Treadmills and spinning bikes work well, but if you can’t get to any machines, the road is always waiting. Warm up by jogging or cycling at 50% of your max for five minutes, then start your first interval: 30 seconds of sprinting at 90%, followed by two minutes and 30 seconds at 60%. Repeat five times, cool down and then maybe lie down if you have to.
30 minutes
Now you’ve got enough time to start doing some bodyweight exercises and flexing those muscles! Put together a circuit of five to six exercises, such as squats, static lunges, pushups, mountain climbers and burpees, remembering to start your programme with a warmup first. Do 10 reps of each exercise, then rest for one to two minutes, or until you’ve got your breath back. Repeat the entire circuit again, seeing how many you can do in total with the time you have available to you.
In the long term, there are far more benefits to choosing a healthy lifestyle than simply weight loss. Learn more about them here.
