The 10-Minute Exercise Routine |
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To get the most from your workout, health professionals advise working out for half an hour to an hour every day. But what if your work schedule or other factors don't leave you that much time to devote to exercise?
by BenedictHunter
To get the most from your workout, health professionals advise working out for half an hour to an hour every day. But what if your work schedule or other factors don't leave you that much time to devote to exercise?
Identify New Opportunities
If your schedule doesn't allow you a big chunk of time in which to work out every day, you will have to make do with several smaller chunks. The good news is that there is always time to get in shape, even if it simply means moving around more in your spare time and on your day off. Use household chores as a chance to exercise and get your home clean at the same time! Gardening and walking the dog around the block are great everyday activities that need to be done anyway. And they all count as exercise.
Use Your Time Wisely
A couple of 10-minute windows in your day may not seem like enough time to get a good workout, but a recently conducted study suggests differently. It determined that men and women who took 10-minute walks or engaged in other exercise for a similar amount of time had a higher probability of exercising regularly. Also, they lost more weight on the whole than participants who worked out in 1-hour intervals.
The Professional Consensus
In a groundbreaking study made in Virginia, Glenn Gaesser, an exercise physiologist, instructed the male and female participants to accomplish 15 sets of 10-minute exercises in one week. In less than a month, each participant's fitness level matched that of persons belonging to a much younger age group. Their endurance, strength and agility are comparable to those who are 20 years younger.
Breaking your workout up into small chunks to better fit lifestyle has many benefits. Harold Taylor, who specializes in time management, says that short bursts of exercise can boost your self-esteem and keep you motivated to stay healthy and keep moving. Otherwise, you can become frustrated that you don't have time to work out and give up altogether.
An Addition, Not An Alternative
Small workout sessions are great solutions for busy workdays and lagging enthusiasm, but they shouldn't replace your regular routine. If you are continuously time-challenged and don't anticipate being able to frequent the gym anytime in the near future, there are other ways to work a real exercise program into your day. You don't have to do them all, just pick the best ones for your situation and stick to it.
* When you pick up the morning paper, take a quick 5-minute walk up the street and back again.
* If you work from home or take a day off because your child is sick, take a ride on the exercise bike or make use of the treadmill.
* Set aside a few minutes to do jumping jacks. You can burn 90 calories in just 10 minutes this way.
* Do a few sets of upright push-ups while standing at the kitchen counter. This works your arms and shoulders.
* Shoot hoops with your kids or play baseball in the backyard.
* Take a moment to do a few dumbbell exercises before going to bed each night. Sheila Cluff, a professional exercise instructor at The Palms in Palm Springs, CA, leaves a set of dumbbells in her bathroom.
* Take your kid to baseball practice and walk around the field while you wait.
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