There never seems to be enough time…
We always want more time to spend with friends and family, time to do the things you enjoy, time to exercise.
Time seems to be the kryptonite for so many busy parents and professionals. I know for one that after having Avery, time to work on myself completely went downhill.
Today I want to give you 3 ways to increase the productivity you have in the gym. These strategies can help you keep the time in the gym short, while making the most out of that time in the gym.
These tactics are super helpful for those who can only fit in 20-30 minutes of exercise on those really busy days. Do these things to help you get the most out of the time you have!
Does spending more time in the gym mean you get a better workout?
Before I dive into the 3 tactics I want to quickly discuss why a longer workout isn’t necessarily better for you.
There have been various articles on how our bodies perform best in the 45 minute - 1 hour mark of exercise. This totally depends on the intensity of the workout…however let me explain why spending 2 hours in the gym doesn’t mean you get more results.
I think the common thought might be when you spend more time doing something, you get better at it…or that it’s simply better.
For example, is going on a 45 minute run better than going on a 15 minute run? I think most people would say that if you put in 45 minutes of work, you’ll get 3x as much benefit.
Where this might be true in some cases (example, wanting to get better at longer runs), you’ll definitely want to spend more time doing the run.
However if your goals are general fitness, staying healthy…then there might not be a benefit to spending more time in the gym.
I’ll say it another way: if you spend more time at the gym…are you really working out the whole time?
For example I remember going to Gold’s gym in high school and I would always be interested in seeing people who were at the gym before me, and then still there after I was done. I thought to myself, are they getting more out of this?
Then I inevitably see that person on their phone sitting down, walking around…not doing too much actual exercise.
Now if you enjoy spending time at the gym, be my guest and spend as much time there as possible! If it’s partly a social experience also, then that’s fine too.
However it certainly doesn’t mean that you are getting a better workout in.
3 ways to maximize your results
30 minutes can be very beneficial if you do the right things, at the right intensity. Here are 3 things that you can do to make sure you are getting the most out of your workouts!
Use Supersets
A superset is when you do 2 exercises back to back with no rest, only resting after the second exercise is finished. What this does is limit the time needed to rest. My favorite supersets look something like this…
Perform 5 reps of deadlift
Perform 10 reps of TRX Rows
Rest 2 mins
With a lower and upper body exercise you are enabling the body to properly lift the weight without being pre-fatigued. When you are able to give an exercise your full effort, you give yourself the best chance to get stronger, grow muscle and burn more calories.
So when your hamstrings, glues, and lower back are activated during the deadlift…those muscles rest while you then hammer out some TRX Row which works your biceps, forearms, and upper back.
Another example of a superset would look like this:
Perform 12 Goblet Squats
Row for 1 minute
This superset is more cardio focused - the goblet squat is not super exhausting (uses quads, glutes, hamstrings) so it’s okay to then hit the rower after (which also uses the legs, but more in an endurance fashion).
Supersets are a great way to get a full body workout with only 2 exercises, with limited time investment needed. As I said before, when one part of the body rests, the other part of the body is working!
You can gain a ton of strength using supersets!
2. HIIT Training
Ah yes the very popular HIIT style training. Yes it’s been talked about so much over the past decade...and for good reason!
Interval training is one of the best ways to burn calories in a short period of time. Forget the days of running on a treadmill for 40 minutes. Instead, how does 10 or 15 minutes sound?
This style of training calls for short periods of very hard work, followed by adequate amounts of rest. For example this might be an interval circuit that you can do:
Fast jog / Sprint for 30 seconds
Walk for 1 minute
Repeat this 5-10x depending on level of conditioning.
The science behind interval training is that you will be increasing the intensity of your exercise up to 80-95% of max heart rate. You then dial way back and actively rest as your heart rate comes back down close to normal. (or atleast, you're normal for being at rest during a workout).
This creates a bit of an oxygen deficit, which in turns causes your body to try and recoup that far after your workout is done. The technical term here is EPOC or “Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption”.
So while your body is regaining oxygen to your muscles, your body must burn energy to do so. This increases the calorie burn.
So in many ways, you can get just as much if not more of a benefit from increasing your intensity, not your duration of workout time.
3. Prioritize compound movements
Finally my favorite one of the bunch here - doing the most effective movements.
If you’ve read some of these blogs in the past, or just know how we coach clients here at FFM…you’ll know that we make sure to do compound movements.
What is a compound movement?
Compound movements are those that require multiple joints to perform. For example, doing a Squat will have you hinge your hips, bend your knees, and flex your ankles. This exercise has 3 joints working and therefore requiring more muscles to do the movement correctly.
On the other hand, if you did an isolation exercise you won’t get as much muscle recruitment, and therefore not as much benefit. Think about how a bicep curl only requires you to bend your elbow. A core exercise like a situp only requires you to move your hip joint. These are far less effective in burning calories, getting you stronger, and ultimately getting you in better shape.
Some of the big compound movements that you NEED to have in your routine are:
Squat
Lunge
Deadlift
Horizontal Push (Chest Press)
Vertical Push (Shoulder Press)
Horizontal Pull (Bent over row)
Vertical Pull (Chinup)
Carries (walking with weight in hands)
So if you can take the same 30 seconds and do squats instead of sit ups, you are going to be in far better shape. (Even though core exercises get so much credit…they really aren’t special!)
Use more muscles in less time and get more benefit. Yes, yes, and yes!
Final thoughts
Time is of the essence and there’s no reason that you can’t find 30-45 minutes to exercise a few times a week. Time is one of the biggest roadblocks that I hear from new clients starting an exercise routine.
However you don’t need as much time as you might think, as long as you are making the most out of the time you can commit to yourself.
Seriously even if it’s 15 minutes that you have…you can do 15 rounds of 20 seconds of burpees with 40 seconds of rest. You’ll feel amazing AFTER (yeah there’s no denying that workout sounds like death) and get so much more out of the workout then you would if you spent even MORE time doing less effective movements.
Do your future self a favor and stop wasting your time doing unproductive work at the gym, start implementing these 3 things and you will both save time, AND get better results. Commit to 2-3x a week for 30 minutes to start and see how you feel after 4 weeks. I think that’s a pretty damn good deal there.
I bet you’ll feel like a different person.
You got this.
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