There will come a time when you just need to get in a 15-30 minute workout. You have no more time that day.
I used to think it was better to just take the whole day off to recover. And sometimes you need to do this. But honestly I think more people need to move more so an "off day" should still include some kind of "workout". No, walking doesn't count here. It's good to walk. Do it daily. No kidding right? But as I go along in my life and my fitness journey I feel it's imperative to do something physical- with some kind of structure for AT LEAST 15 minutes a day.
Today I had about 23 minutes. Between clients that's all I had. The rest of the day just doesn't allow for it today. This is rare for my not to have at least an hour dedicated to my physical fitness but today was one of those days.
So what did I do? What should you do?
Here's what I did and some ideas for you. I will keep it brief because I know our attention spans are what, 5 seconds or so?
So I did a mostly upper body- focused session.
Started with a warmup of bodyweight exercises- jumping jacks, reverse lunges, squats, pushups, trx facepulls.
Then I got into some circuits. I did pushups with feet elevated, chest supported rows, db cleans, lateral raises and db presses. High reps. No rest between exercises. I did this for a good 5-6 rounds then I mixed in some reverse lunges, trx face pulls and more pushups. Another 2-3 rounds and then I was done.
Not much equipment needed. And not much time.
You can find 15 minutes. It will make a difference.
Not only in your physique but in your mind. Your will. Keeping the habit of working to improve yourself daily is important. It's not just about burning fat but that's an element of it, for sure.
If you have no equipment you can do 15 minutes of bodyweight exercises. Start with squats and pushups. Do 5 reps and increase by 1 each set going back and forth until you reach failure. Then go to planks and reverse crunches, doing as many as possible then reducing the reps and/or time each set until you are done with 4-5 rounds.
There are many ways to get it done.
You could do it outside with no equipment. Mix in some sprints with bird dogs. Go for 5 minutes back and forth with limited to no rest. Then rest 1-2 minutes and repeat 2-3 more times.
15 minutes is enough.
In my opinion it's better than taking the whole day off to "rest" just laying on the couch eating and watching tv. Sure you can do that, I'm not against relaxing and taking some time off when you need it but overall we need to do more work. Be more active.
So do it daily.
You won't regret the days you do it.