10 Minute Workouts.  Why?

by Ed Scow (aka The Fit Dad) - Certified Fitness Professional and Fat Loss Expert for Busy Moms and Dads

A common question I get from some bewildered readers and clients is "Can I really lose fat with 10 minute workouts?"

I understand their confusion.

You’ve been told for years that you need to do cardio for anywhere from 30-60 minutes in some magical fat burning zone or that you have to hit the gym and separate your body into different chunks in order to lose fat.

But the question should never be "Is more exercise better?", the question I ask myself, and the question you should be asking yourself, is "Is more exercise necessary?"

Do you have to workout for 30, 45 or 60 minutes a day in order to see results or can you lose fat in less time...a lot less time?

We’ve been taught over the years that to lose fat via exercise you have to do lots and lots of cardio or that you have to head to the gym most days of the week for at least an hour using all those machines, or go to aerobics style classes, or that you have to buy some gadget from TV or some giant machine from your local sporting goods store.

But nowhere has anyone ever told you that you can lose fat while doing 10 minute workouts, without spending lots of money on equipment and without even leaving your house.

Because of that, I can understand the confusion.

But the truth is that you can absolutely lose fat while using 10 minute workouts.

The reason behind this is that there are no wasted movements, no wasted exercises and no wasted time during the 10 minute workouts.

The secret behind my 10 minute workouts is that I cut through all the fluff and get down to only the most effective fat burning exercises that will deliver results in that 10 minute window.

10 minute workouts should never focus on exercises like crunches, biceps curls, triceps kickbacks, or leg extensions because those just don’t work enough muscle to elicit a big fat burning effect, either immediately or for the hours after your workout is completed.

Sure they might feel nice on that area while you’re doing the exercise, but the truth is that they do very little to help you lose fat.

Another secret behind great 10 minute workouts is something called EPOC. That involves some geeky science stuff, but I’ll skip that and just tell you that EPOC means that long after you’re done with your 10 minute workout, your body is still burning A LOT of fat and calories.

Even while you’re grocery shopping, taking the kids to soccer practice, or reading to them before bed, your body’s fat burning machinery is still elevated from the 10 minute workout you did earlier in the day.

That is a pretty cool thing if you ask me.

I also don’t focus on cardio. Cardio, as it’s usually performed, is an overrated way to lose fat.

Is it healthy? Yes, but it’s very overrated and misunderstood as far as fat loss is concerned. That’s another topic for another day so I’ll just leave you with that statement.

Another great thing about 10 minute workouts is that you can build on them and "regulate yourself".

Take for instance this 4 exercise 10 minute workout circuit...

1A) Push-up - 8 reps

1B) DB Rear Flies - 8 reps

1C) DB Lunge - 8 per leg

1D) Burpees - 8 reps

Let’s say that when you do that circuit today you can only get 2 total circuits and only 4 burpees rather than 8 in the 10 minute workout because of your current fitness level.

Yes, you worked very hard in that 10 minutes, but you only got 2 circuits in.

Let’s also assume that you continue on the remainder of the week and do your workouts as you’re supposed to.

Next week you come back to that same workout and this time you get in 2 1/2 circuits in plus you do 6 Burpees. You did better than last week, which means you’re getting stronger and will have burned more fat because you got more work in.

Let’s also say that on this particular day you had more than 10 minutes to do your workout and you’re in one of those moods where you’re excited about working out and you’re feeling good.

Then what? Do you stop at that 10 minute workout or is there something else you can do?

Well, one option would be to repeat the same 10 minute workout. There’s nothing wrong with that.

Or you could add a 4 minute abs workout like this one...

1A) Plank Extension - 8 per arm

1B) Cross Body Mountain Climber - 30 seconds

Complete as many of that mini-circuit as you can in 4 minutes which will not only work your abs very well, but will also leave you pretty winded...cardio plus abs!

See what I mean?

You are able to build on these 10 minute workouts and regulate yourself from week to week and workout to workout.

Everyone starts from different place. Some are more advanced and some are true beginners.

That’s the cool thing about the 10 minute workouts I show you.

It doesn’t matter what your current fitness level is because it will get better via these workouts!

I’m not lying when I say I do these workouts on a regular basis.

They work for me just as well as they will work for you.

Sometimes I can only do 10 minutes, while other days I can get in 20 minutes.

How cool is that?

So the answer to your question is yes, you can get a great fat loss workout done in only 10 minutes and yes it will burn a lot of fat. 

 

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