How to work out when you don't have much time

If you are one of those who have many responsibilities and busy schedules, and you think you don't have enough time to exercise, and maybe believe exercise is just a luxury, not a priority to set time for, then this article is just for you.

Or if you really want to exercise but don't have enough time or put daily tasks before workouts, this article is for you too.

Many women think they don't have enough time to exercise, but the real question is, do they really lack time? Or is it just an excuse to skip workouts? Be honest with yourself. Keep reading this article for a full plan on how to exercise when you don't have much time.

How much time is enough to exercise?

You need to follow a plan tailored for you for working out It saves some time, but not necessarily a lot. Scientists showed that short workout sessions can be just as effective for weight loss, health, and fitness as longer ones.

Also, many people find it easier to stick with short workout sessions than long ones.

Besides, scientists found that short workouts have the same effects as long workouts in lowering blood cholesterol and reducing heart disease risk.

So if you don’t have enough time to exercise, you can split your workouts into multiple 10-minute sessions. You’ll see you can fit training in and that lack of time was just an excuse.

How to find time to exercise in your busy schedule

First, if you want to change your busy schedule to make time for exercise, you have to want and be excited about it first. People who exercise don’t always have more time than you, but they definitely want it more.

Those people decided their workout is worth more than anything else they could do at that time, like sleeping, eating with friends, watching TV, or even doing chores.

Exercise is like anything else. If it’s not one of your real priorities, you’ll never make time for it. Exercise might have hundreds of reasons to motivate you, but you’re the only one who can decide if it’s really worth it to you or not, and based on that you’ll make time for it.

Knowing why you do anything is the only way to change things for the better, so ask yourself some questions and answer honestly, for example:-

1. Do you really lack time for exercise, or is there another reason stopping you from training?

You need to admit the truth and start exploring your view on exercise and why you don’t train. Maybe you’re afraid of failing or don’t know where to start. Maybe it’s not about time at all.

2. If exercise is in your schedule, how can you find some time for it?

Sit down with your schedule and think how you can fit exercise into it. Maybe you can wake up 15 minutes earlier to do some strength exercises, or use part of your lunch break for a brisk walk. Make a list of times you can work out, no matter how short.

3. What can you change to help your schedule allow time for exercise?

Keeping your previous list in mind, what should you change to help you exercise? For example, if you’ll work out in the morning, prepare your workout clothes the night before and wake up earlier than usual. Or try a full day including exercise, then see what you need to change to stick with it.

4. What kind of exercise is right for you?

If you decide to get up in the morning to exercise, the next question is what exercise suits you? Is it walking outside, yoga, or circuit training? To figure this out, make a list of activities you enjoy and decide which ones you can do regularly.

5.  Do your exercises

Using the info you gathered, you can set a workout schedule and stick to it for two weeks for example. Then reassess how you’re doing with it, what changes you made, and see if it’s working or needs more tweaks. Keep adjusting until you find a schedule that fits and works well for you.

Here’s a quick workout plan that can help you build your schedule

You might think only long, sweaty workouts count as real exercise, but that idea needs to change. Even 5-10 minutes per session is a good start to making exercise part of your life.

Here’s a quick workout schedule you can use to create your own plan and how to fit 10-minute training sessions into your day:

1. Day one: 3 cardio exercises for 10 minutes.

2. Day two: 2-3 strength exercises for 10 minutes.

3. Day three: 3-4 cardio exercises for 10 minutes.

4. Day four: Rest.

5. Day five: 2 cardio exercises for 10 minutes + 1 strength exercise for 10 minutes.

6. Day six: 2 strength exercises for 10 minutes + 1 cardio exercise for 10 minutes.

7. Day seven: Rest.

The plan has short exercises but you can do them at high intensity and harder than long workouts to make them effective and worth it. This means if intensity is a scale from 1-10, try to keep your effort around 7-9 the whole time. It might seem hard, but you only do it for 10 minutes.

Examples of cardio exercises you can include in your plan

Your short workout plan should include at least two sessions of cardio exercises, you can pick any cardio activity you like, but since you want to increase intensity, some cardio exercises work better than others and let you raise your heart rate, Some cardio activities include:-

• Running.

• Brisk walking.

• Jumping Jacks.

• Squat hops.

• Step Jump.

• Kickboxing.

• Jumping Rope.

• Power dancing.

• Fast cycling.

• Cardio machines at the gym working at high intensity levels.

Examples of strength exercises you can add to your routine

Strength training This is another activity you should include in your short workout schedule. So if you have 3 short sessions planned, each lasting 10 minutes, you can split them into two cardio sessions and one strength session.

To get the most out of strength training, you can follow a circuit routine, where you do 10 strength exercises in 10 minutes, about one exercise per minute, Here are the strength exercises you can do:-

• Squats.

• Walking lunges.

• Side lunges.

• Squats with leg lifts.

• Pushups.

• Bent over rows.

• Shoulder press.

• Tricep dips.

• Barbell bicep curls.

• Crunches on the ball.

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