Recently I spoke to my long time friend Jason Ferruggia about training and time effective workouts:
Q: Jay, What’s the biggest mistake most people make in their fitness programs during the holiday season?
The biggest mistake people make around the holiday season is thinking that because they don’t have 60-90 minutes free to train they may as well skip their workouts all together. There are parties to attend, gifts to buy and cards to mail. Oh, and don’t forget about all the year end stuff that needs tending to at the office.
Even in my own gym I used to see attendance drop off around this time of year. That was several years ago before I shortened up all of our training sessions. Now that doesn’t happen anymore because I’ve found I’m able to get better results with people by keeping all of their workouts around 45 minutes or less.
Your body’s production of muscle building and fat burning hormones such as growth hormone and testosterone actually peaks at around the 27 minute mark of your workout. So by keeping them short you’re actually enhancing your results; not cheating yourself out of gains.
What more people need to realize is that you don’t need more than 30 minutes for an effective workout. The majority of my own personal workouts, in fact, only last an average of 35 minutes and I do the same with most of my clients. This helps you avoid overtraining and the excess production of cortisol, which is a hormone that eats muscle tissue and leads to the storage of bodyfat.
So please don’t think that you need a full hour to train. Nothing could be further from the truth. What might sound crazy to some people is that on really busy days I may only do ONE exercise for a grand total of 10-15 minutes and that’s my entire workout.
Q: How can you get an effective workout with just one exercise?
Easy. You pick a movement that works the entire body, like a clean and press from the hang or the floor. Warm up and work your way to a heavy set of 6-8 reps. This won’t be a true max but just a good clean heavy set that’s the best you can do on that day without letting your form get ugly. After your top end set strip about 20% of the weight off the bar and do 3-5 more sets of 8-10 reps with about two minutes rest between each.
That will come to ten or fewer total sets but I guarantee you that you’ll get a good workout. And all you need is three 15-20 minute training sessions per week like that!
If you have a half hour free, three times per week I suggest a hang clean and press, a deadlift and a modified muscle up using the TRX as your three exercises, using one at each session.
If you have the time for four 15 minute workouts per week try something like this:
Monday- Front Squat/ Push Press Combo
Tuesday- Chin Up
Thursday- Trap Bar Deadlift
Friday- Suspended Pushup
These moves will cover your entire body from traps to calves and your core will get a great workout at every session. Do two heavy sets of 5-7 reps and three lighter back-off sets of 8-10. That’s five total sets that will take you no more than 15 minutes.
And that’s all it takes to get a powerful anabolic (muscle building) and fat burning stimulus. Let’s face it; we’re all human and we’re probably going to succumb to eating too much dessert or having a few too many drinks between now and New Year’s Day. The short workouts I listed above can help combat the poor eating habits and stress that tends to take over at this time of year.
If you do things right and follow any of the wide variety of programs I’ve put together in my new manual, Minimalist Training there’s no reason why you can’t prevail this holiday season and actually get in better shape than you are right now… while everyone else around you is letting themselves fall apart.
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AC
PS – to check out FIFTEEN time-effective exercise programs – get over to Minimalist Training
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