The “No Excuses Workout”
May 14, 2015
No Gym? No Problem!
“Oh well, I can’t make it to the gym today.” How many times has that situation happened to you? Skipping the gym is easy to do – it usually falls low on your “to-do” list. However, what if I told you that you could blast calories and build strength with a 15 minute workout done from your living room. Or bedroom. Or wherever you have some space. A stopwatch is the only thing you will need (I like to use an interval timer on my iPhone). If you want to turn the workout up a notch, grab weights. If you do not have weights, look for household gadgets that can fill in (laundry detergent, duffle bags filled with “stuff” and your babies/toddlers all make great weights!) I call this the “no excuse” workout because it can be done anywhere and everybody has 15-30 minutes to spare.
It is important to warm the body up. You can do so by walking up stairs in your building/house, jogging in place, jumping jacks, etc. The goal is to get the body warm and your heart rate up. I wouldn’t push your hardest here – save that energy for the workout itself!
Following the warm up and some stretching, you will perform each exercise for 30/40/50 seconds. If you are a beginner, start with 30 seconds, if you are advanced, perform the move for 50 seconds (beginners will have a 30 second rest, the more advanced participants will have a 10 second rest – the new move starts at each minute). The goal is to perform each exercise as many times as you can in that time frame. Form is key, people! Don’t rush through repetitions and look sloppy. If you get tired, slow it down or take a little break.
Here are the fifteen moves:
- Jump Squats
- Push ups
- High Knees
- Burpees
- Alternating back lunge
- Side Plank (left)
- Side plank (right)
- Jump lunge
- Leg raises
- Narrow grip push up (arms close to your body – work those triceps!)
- Glute bridge (left)
- Glute bridge (right)
- Front/side/back lunge (left)
- Front/side/back lunge (right)
- Plank jacks
Perform this routine 2-3 times total. You really want to burn yourself out. HIIT (High Intense Interval Training) will change your body. Yes, it is tough, but no one reaches their fitness goals if it doesn’t feel challenging. Beginners – keep in mind that modifications can absolutely be made. For example: if jump squats are too much, do regular ones! Again, the goal is to challenge YOURSELF. Not everyone performs at the same level.
I hope all of you Kb followers give this routine a try! No time for the gym? No problem at all! Happy exercising!