Pressed for Time : 10-20 minute workout

[E. Nashton]

On those days or weeks when there are a million things to do and I don't really have the energy or the strength/endurance to go through a complete 45-60 minute workout I'd still like to stay in habit and do SOMETHING. 

 

Typically, because I'm approaching my 40s, I would spend about 5-8 minutes of it doing some sort of mobility work or flow and then for part B I would just do whatever exercises I felt like doing. 

 

I'm asking the group after my mobility work what few exercises would you recommend to just get the minimum effective dose on these days? Mind you I have no interest on these days to go heavy which typically means I don't do heavy compound exercises (heavy deadlifts, heavy squats, etc). 

 

Some ideas I have come op with are kettlebell flows, some bodyweight exercies, TRX exercises, etc.  

 

Hit me with your ideas/tips!

Thanks!

[shhughes1116]

54 minutes ago, Dean said:

On those days or weeks when there are a million things to do and I don't really have the energy or the strength/endurance to go through a complete 45-60 minute workout I'd still like to stay in habit and do SOMETHING. 

 

Typically, because I'm approaching my 40s, I would spend about 5-8 minutes of it doing some sort of mobility work or flow and then for part B I would just do whatever exercises I felt like doing. 

 

I'm asking the group after my mobility work what few exercises would you recommend to just get the minimum effective dose on these days? Mind you I have no interest on these days to go heavy which typically means I don't do heavy compound exercises (heavy deadlifts, heavy squats, etc). 

 

Some ideas I have come op with are kettlebell flows, some bodyweight exercies, TRX exercises, etc.  

 

Hit me with your ideas/tips!

Thanks!

I do a 15-min circuit that includes pull-ups, dips, hip thrusts (or lunges), inverted rows, and some core work.  Every now and again, when I have a few extra min, I’ll throw in some isometric work at the beginning or speed ladder work at the end.  

[maplevalue]

I enjoy the 20 minute strength workouts available through the Peloton app. Helps with motivation when you can just follow along to an instructor. 

[Rustycage]

How about your mobility work + however many burpees you can do in the remaining time

[Gregmal]

Worked with a trainer for a number of years. Half hour sessions. Lunges with 2 kettle bells. Squats with kettle bells. Pull ups. Last 10 minutes using the ARX. 2-3 times a week. 

[Cod Liver Oil]

My favorite 3 short workouts:

Hill sprints

Kettlebells

Sledmill (pushing and pulling)

[Stuart D]

I like doing one exercise per gym session. It keeps them short & focused. 

[Paarslaars]

I have a home gym and typically do 2 supersets (this is where u alternate exercises with opposing muscle groups to avoid time loss due to fatigue.) One exercise per muscle group, 3 compound and one isolation. It goes like this:

 

Back (rows, snatch, deadlift, pull ups...)

Chest (incline/decline bench, flys, dumbell press, dips,...)

 

One of each, repeat untill you finish your #sets. I mix it up, 5x5, 4x10, 3x8,...

 

Legs (squat, lunges,...)

Isolation (calves, biceps, triceps) or abs.

 

Same as above.

 

If you pick a low #sets with this workout (like 3x5 or 3x8) you should be able to finish in 20min.

 

I workout like this 3-4x per week though I often take 4-5 sets which takes me longer.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 3, 2023 by Paarslaars

[Ulti]

2nds on kettlebells. Doing them for many years …. If you have disposable cash …Concept 2 rowers are fantastic workouts with/ without kettlebell 

[Castanza]

Functional Calisthenics is going to be your best bet with that timeframe. Isolated weight work will be a waste of time with 20-30min

Just repeat the below for 30min straight. You can combine some of the things like burpees into a pull-up instead of a jump. Go heavy on the kettlebell. 

Kettlebell swings

P ushups

Dips

Pull-ups 

Burpees

your choice of sit-ups (v-ups my suggestion) maybe add in flutter kicks or good mornings. 

 

[Pelagic]

The peloton app is great for this, they have tons of 10-15 min workouts with weights. Very little rest between sets in their shorter classes and depending on the weight you decide to go with they can be pretty intense.

[Malmqky]

If you like lifting (and I understand you don’t want to lift heavy necessarily) looking into Jim Wendler’s 5/3/1. 
 

Besides the basic lifting, his programming has a lot of conditioning/mobility work built in.

 

I get in a 40ish minute workout 4x per week using his principles, which includes heavy lifting, some mobility work, and some conditioning. Maybe you can adapt some of the ideas to your needs.

 

Also look Brian Alsruhe’s stuff. He has lots of 20-30 minute conditioning templates (lots of circuit stuff with 50% squats, etc) that you might be interested in.

[shhughes1116]

12 hours ago, Cod Liver Oil said:

My favorite 3 short workouts:

Hill sprints

Kettlebells

Sledmill (pushing and pulling)

If you have a hill or a sled, these are two very solid ideas for improving overall work capacity and elevating your metabolic rate.  

[cubsfan]

Pressed for time?   Try Tabata - 1 Round is 4 minutes (8 exercises - 20 second per exercise,  10 seconds rest)  - 2 full Rounds of Tabata will do it.  

 

1 Round Tabata - 4 minutes

Rest for 2-4 minutes 

2nd Round Tabata - 4 minutes

 

12 minutes and you're done

Pick your exercises - use Tabata song website on your phone for time intervals/music

Adjust your weights to whatever you like...

 

 

 

 

Edited July 3, 2023 by cubsfan

[cubsfan]

If you're looking for something for your off days, after tough workouts. 

 

I always really liked this functional training routine (pick a few) that stresses mobility, coordination, balance and great core stability. It's an excellent routine - not brutal....

 

 

 

[Spekulatius]

I highly recommend this for those of us who are  older and have back issues. 5-7 min every morning:

@cubsfan recommendation above looks solid too. I have a small home gym and generally find free weights to be better than machines.

Edited July 3, 2023 by Spekulatius

[E. Nashton]

Thank you everyone for the suggestions. Will definitely check out the suggestions and test them out to see what works best for me. 

 

@Spekulatius - yup back pain from sports earlier in my life (ego lifting, hockey and basketball). Will check out the video!

@cubsfan - will definitely check out the videos. Thanks!

[boilermaker75]

7 hours ago, Ulti said:

2nds on kettlebells. Doing them for many years …. If you have disposable cash …Concept 2 rowers are fantastic workouts with/ without kettlebell 

 

I have had my Concept 2 for 29 years. Just got off it before reading this thread. I have probably used it at least three times a week during those 29 years. It is as durable a piece of work out equipment as I have had and I have had plenty.

 

Edit: The monitor does not work anymore, probably because I had a battery leak in it.

 

Edited July 3, 2023 by boilermaker75

[Ulti]

1 hour ago, boilermaker75 said:

 

I have had my Concept 2 for 29 years. Just got off it before reading this thread. I have probably used it at least three times a week during those 29 years. It is as durable a piece of work out equipment as I have had and I have had plenty.

 

Edit: The monitor does not work anymore, probably because I had a battery leak in it.

 

 

That's awesome... have used one on and off for about 2 decades... If i was on a small desert island and can only have 2 pieces of workout equipment: concept 2 and 16kg rkc kettlebell.

[ValueArb]

I do hot yoga nearly every day and the one thing its taught me is to throw in a few minutes of stretching exercises esp. if you sit at a desk all day. Every time I go back to a class after a few days off I can feel my spine popping back into place, it tightens pretty quickly.

[JAK]

Circuits / HIIT are pretty efficient if you are stuck for time. Though not sure if they work if you are also stuck for energy. 

Got these two from my trainer once (they take longer than 10 minutes, but sharing the concept, as you could adjust if you like the idea).
 

Deck of Cards: 

Assign a bodyweight exercise to each suit in a pack of cards (e.g. lunges, squats, mountain climbers, crunches). Pick cards from the deck. Do the number of reps of the matching exercise. Face cards count as 10. Aces are 1 or 11 depending on fitness. Jokers are a 30 second break.

50 Club: 

 

Pick a weight that you can lift 12 times in a set, no more. Try to hit 50 reps for that exercise in as few sets as possible. If you go over 12 in a set, the extra don't count, and you need to increase the weight next time. Rest no more than about 30 seconds in-between sets. Don't decrease the weights, even if you drop to 4-5 reps per set. 

Start with one exercise, do the cycle of 50, then move onto the next. Adjust number of exercises depending on time requirement. Example full session shown below. 

• Db thruster
• Bodyweight skull crusher 
• Db bent over row
• Dumbbell curl + press
• Db overhead tricep extension
• Db calf raise

 

[no_free_lunch]

One option if really pressed for time, try dumbell clean and jerks.  Simple and hits many body parts.  It's really not enough but if you do 4 , 5 sets you will feel it.  I try to do some push-ups too at the end as well and still within 20 minutes. 

Edited July 5, 2023 by no_free_lunch

[Gmthebeau]

On 7/3/2023 at 8:36 AM, Castanza said:

Functional Calisthenics is going to be your best bet with that timeframe. Isolated weight work will be a waste of time with 20-30min

Just repeat the below for 30min straight. You can combine some of the things like burpees into a pull-up instead of a jump. Go heavy on the kettlebell. 

Kettlebell swings

P ushups

Dips

Pull-ups 

Burpees

your choice of sit-ups (v-ups my suggestion) maybe add in flutter kicks or good mornings. 

 

 

+1 agree.

[sholland]

This routine is recommended by Nassim Taleb and myself. I did it for over a year before getting back longer duration routines.

[pricingpower]

Came here to recommend Body by Science as well