12-Minute, Results-Driven Workout

“I don’t have time,” is the reason that most people don’t exercise. Well, they call it a “reason,” I like to call it what it really is: an excuse.

Most people believe their workouts need to be 60-90 minutes in order to really count. With this kind of time commitment, it is no wonder that exercise becomes the activity that you simply don’t have time for. Before you know it, one missed workout becomes two, and soon you realize that you haven’t put on your gym shorts for a month.

Missed exercise is a slippery slope toward irreversible consequences. Obesity wasn’t gained in one day…or even in one year. Neither was diabetes or heart disease.

Question: Have you ever wondered if long workouts really deliver the best results? The truth is that exercise doesn’t have to take 60-90 minutes anymore. The experts agree that short, intense bouts of exercise can actually deliver better results than traditional low-intensity exercise.

In fact, a study was conducted at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine that tested whether multiple short bouts of exercise would deliver better results than one long bout of exercise. They found that participants who performed short bouts of exercise stuck with the program longer and experienced greater weight loss than the participants that performed long bouts of exercise.

Throw out the idea that you need an entire afternoon or a free evening to have a great workout. It simply doesn’t take as much time as you think. Here’s one example:

Dumbbell Squat Press:

Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and hold a dumbbell in each hand at shoulder level. First, lower down into a squat position. Make sure that your knees do not go past 90 degrees. Exhale as you press the dumbbells overhead, while straightening your legs and return to the starting position. Complete 12-15 repetitions.

Sprint or Jump Rope for 30 seconds

Dumbbell Lunge and Curl:

Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and hold a dumbbell in each hand down at your sides. Exhale as you lunge forward with your right leg and curl the dumbbells up toward your chest. Make sure that your knee does not go past 90 degrees. Inhale as you return to the starting position and repeat on the other side. Complete 12-15 repetitions.

Sprint or Jump Rope for 30 seconds

Dumbbell Bent Over Rows:

Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and hold a dumbbell in each hand. Bend your knees and lean forward from your waist, keeping your back flat. Exhale as you drive your elbows back and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Inhale as you return to the starting position. Complete 12-15 repetitions.

Sprint or Jump Rope for 30 seconds

V-Ups:

Sit on the edge of a chair or bench and lean back. Exhale as you drive your knees in toward your chest, squeezing your abdominal muscles. Inhale as you lower your knees back down with control. Complete 15-20 repetitions.

Sprint or Jump Rope for 30 seconds

Think outside of the box.

Could you do a 10-minute workout in the morning and a 15-minute workout before bed?

Let’s be honest, you make time for the things that you feel are important. If I told you that for every minute you spent exercising I would give you a thousand dollars, would you find a minute to exercise? Sure you would! You’d probably find quite a few minutes to exercise.

Short bursts of intense exercise with dumbbells will give you the results you want. All you have to do is make the time for it.

Somewhere deep down inside you know that it’s now or never.

Will you choose to simply close this email and allow your hectic schedule to slowly push you down the path of obesity and health risk? Or will you find creative ways to fit exercise into your day as you steadily regain your shape and health?

Make this the day that you finally make the change. The choice is yours.