Working Out When There Is No Time in the World 

By Michael Collins
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Sometimes we feel that we just don't have any time in the world to spare for our workouts.

With the pressures of work and family it seems that every hour of the day is taken doing something other than keeping up our promise to ourselves to stay on the fat loss track.

Take a deep breath and get excited because there are solutions to this hectic lifestyle that can give you the same fat loss results while leaving you with plenty of time to get everything else done.

 

As trainers in NYC, we truly know how hectic life can get. It's not uncommon for me to get the "Mike, I only have 20 minutes to get the workout in today because I'm on a flight to Seattle at 4:30" phone call.

 

My answer? "No problem"

 

Here's some things you can incorporate into your regimen to optimize your time and fat loss results.

 

The over riding, Numero Uno principle to follow is:

 

Shorten your workouts while greatly increasing effort
 

If you're like most people, your workouts last between 40 minutes (decent) and 2 hours (as Eugene would say, "GAH").

 

If your goal is fat loss, you simply don't need work out for that long. In fact, in some cases you could be overtraining and actually signaling to your body to store fat.

 

Many people equate fat loss = time spent in the gym

 

That's false.

 

A better way to attack fat and burn it off is to progressively perform more work in a shorter period of time.

 

Here's what you do.  On your next regular workout, do what you'd normally do, but take a memo pad with you.  Write down everything.

• What exercises you did

• How much weight you used

• How much time in between sets

• Total time of your workout

For your next visit to the gym, start adding in some variables that will make intensity greater. 

 

The first thing to consider is exercise selection.  Are you performing compound or isolation exercises?

 

Compound exercises are multiple joint exercises, meaning that 2 or 3 joints are involved in the execution of the exercise.  For example, on a bench press, the shoulder join and elbow joint are involved in getting the weight from the bottom position to the top position.

 

Compound exercises give you the most bang for the buck calorie- wise because:

 

A) You're working more muscles at once 

B) You can generally lift more weight, resulting in more intensity.

 

                        

 

Isolation movements are single joint exercises like bicep curls (here the elbow joint is involved), and leg extensions (the knee joint in involved).  Isolation movements should be minimized or eliminated from your workout if you're pressed for time, as we are here.

 

Back to the memo pad:

 

Change out any isolation movements for compound movements and eliminate unnecessary sets.

 

The compound exercises will let you handle heavier weight than before. This will greatly increase intensity. Compound movements also allow you to eliminate sets.  If you had been doing 4 sets of squats, you can increase the weight, and drop 1 set, for a total of 3 sets. 

 

During the next workout, write out how much weight you're able to handle on these compound movements for future reference.

 

Now, Take a look at the time you rest between sets.  It may be a minute, 2 minutes?  Whatever it is, you can gradually decrease your time in between sets over the next few weeks. 

1 minute becomes 45 seconds, then becomes 30 seconds.

 

Getting the same amount of work done, or more, in a shorter period of time, as I've said is fat loss gold.

 

After applying these time and fat loss "optimizers" to your workouts, can you see that you'll be slashing your workout time by half?

 

And for those of you who are screaming, "yeah but what about cardio?"

 

If you're doing 40 minutes or more of (read: long, slow, boring) cardio, STOP.  Instead, perform intervals, or uphill sprints

 

As you know by now, if you've been reading our newsletters, that creating a caloric deficit is the most important factor in losing fat. Of course if you haven't signed up for the newsletter, do it right now, right here. Hey, it's free! (And we give you a fat loss report and fat burning foods chart too!)

In creating a caloric deficit, we can use all the help we can get.  The good news is that doing anything burns calories.

 

Here are some little extra's you can do to save time and optimize fat loss:

 

If the dog needs a walk, then how about taking it for a run instead.  You will still be out for the same amount of time but you will be getting increased calorie burn from running rather than walking.

 

Not only will you be burning extra weight off, but your pet will also be healthier.

Lets say have to mow the lawn on the weekend. Then try walking faster with the mower, or if you have a big property run with the mower. It'll give you a good workout and you'll have more time for relaxation in the time you have saved by mowing the lawn faster.

Try walking to work rather than driving the car or park the car a little further from your office and walk the extra distance.

Go for a walk or run at lunchtime rather than sitting in the lunchroom or your office.

If you are sitting in an office all day working at a desk try doing leg extensions as you sit there. Even without weight resistance you will still be exercising your legs and you can add weights if you like to get more benefit from these exercises.

You'll be creating an unstoppable fat burning 1-2 punch by tearing it up in the gym, and adding in the extra calorie burners- in shorter time

 

So to wrap up this article:

 

1) Shorten your workout and increase your intensity

2) Get rid of isolation exercises

3) Add compound exercises

4) Shorten rest periods

5) Do the calorie burning "extra's".

 

P.S. If you're looking for a solid, comprehensive fat loss book, look no further. Eugene and myself have put together Black Book of Secrets- 61 fat loss tips, tricks and techniques you can use to burn the fat off NOW. Read about it here. We're so confident that it'll do wonders for you that we have an unbeatable money back guarantee!