By Tara Ballard
Recently I asked the question to my Facebook followers: what is the number one reason for not reaching your health and wellness goals? The answer I heard over and over is, “I don’t have time!” Well, my friends, I am here to dispel that thought! The following are 5 tips to squeeze in a workout and also incorporate fat loss eating when you have “no time”.
- Evaluate your typical day. What time do you get up and go to bed? What extraneous activities occur during the day that you could cut back on or eliminate altogether? For me, it is watching TV and mindless web surfing. I cannot tell you how many hours I have wasted doing these things, and then told myself that I had “no time” to cook my clean eats or work out. Um, really? I have started implementing a 30 minute rule when it comes to TV and web surfing. And you know what, I really don’t miss it!!
- Even a (very) short workout can be effective. When it comes to working out, if you can carve out 10 minutes in your day, then you have time to exercise! Seriously! And it doesn’t even need to be 10 minutes at once. The key is intensity. In Metabolic Effect, we use “burst” and “blitz” training to achieve maximum results in minimum time. An example of burst training would be doing as many squat jumps as possible in one minute-pushing as hard as you can during that minute. A couple hours later, you could do a minute of switch jumps. And so on and so forth. I think it’s safe to say that we can all find a minute several times throughout the day to burst, no? See an example video below from Metabolic Effect.Blitz training is similar, but with it you would focus on one body part, pushing to complete failure with that one exercise. An example of burst training for chest would be to do as many push-ups as possible until you reach failure. Rest no more than a couple seconds, then do push-ups to failure again. Your workout is complete when you can no longer do one push-up.
If you can carve out 10 minutes at once, one of my favorite things to do is pick 3-4 exercises body weight exercises that I can do anywhere, and do them 30 seconds each until I reach 10 minutes. Again, the key is intensity. You should get breathless and burning and HAVE to rest lots during the workout. My go-to exercises are burpees, squat jumps, switch jumps, mountain climbers and push-ups. Simple in concept, but oh so challenging in execution if you give it your all! - Prepare the minimum. We all know that living the Fat Loss Lifestyle involves a day of food prep, usually on Sundays. I’m going to let you in on a little secret: there are some weeks when I don’t do food prep (GASP!!!). I’m not big on cooking, and sometimes I just really dread messing/cleaning up the kitchen. Silly, I know, but it is what it is. What I do do, however, is load up on convenience fat-loss foods such as those steamer microwave veggie bags and pre-washed salad greens, etc. Then I will pick up a rotisserie chicken or chicken breast and eat that with veggies or in a salad. It’s quick and requires minimal effort and time.
- Enlist the help/support of a friend/spouse/partner. There is nothing better than having an accountability buddy :). And you don’t have to actually meet – just a supportive phone call or text is so helpful when you’re not feeling motivated. Sometimes Jill and I will text when we are away from each other, “ok, getting ready to get my back workout going…” In a sense, we work out “together” even when we are apart, just by sending little motivational messages to each other.
- Finally, take baby steps. Jade with Metabolic Effect says (and I paraphrase here): “In order for a change to be successful, it must be easier than what it is replacing.” Instead of saying, “I will wake up 1 hour earlier each day to workout,” go for 5-10 minutes earlier. Start small, and gradually build. For lasting change, it must be sustainable and manageable for YOU.
Related: Lots of 10 Minute Downloadable Videos available at the JillFit Lifestyle site
