What one exercise?

futurerunner

If you could only do one exercise 30 minutes a day what would it be? What burns the most calories? I'm trying to make every minute count during my workout since I have very little time at the gym.

PrettyLittleLiar79

I would have to say the elliptical......I freaking love that thing, and I love all the calories I burn, even more! =-.)

shovav91

Running, if all you're looking for is cardio and calorie burn, you can't beat it!

princessd3b

Turbo Fire!

andshrinking

i like low impact high burn
so either walking on the treadmill at a 9 or 12% incline

or on the elyptical not going to fast but dripping in sweat because level 26 feels like mud

lightinurlife

Burpees!!

OSC_ESD

It really depends on your goals. What areas you are trying to target. Anything fast paced / cardio will burn the most calories. But if it is toning you desire ... something with weights / movement is key.

arat123

I really enjoy playing squash. It's is one of the best calorie burning exrecises you can do and so enjoyable. You can burn over 1000cals in 60mins. But the best way to know how many calories you are burning during any exercise is using a Heart Rate Monitor with a chest strap.

violon

Burpees!!

i agree! may not be enjoyable but gets the job done

jbeauchamp1

Burpees will definately get your heart rate pumping and burn calories but doing those for 30 minutes straight would probably kill you...haha. Our gym has the precor adaptive motion trainer and it is the highest calorie burn other than running fast on the treadmill. It combines the motion of the Elliptical, running and stair climbing all in one. Hard stuff and I love it. I typically burn 430 calories in 30 minutes on that thing. I think the next best thing is the Elliptical.

Dauntlessness

Running or the Elliptical

With the treadmill, I switch it up constantly. I can also put the incline to 3-5 on the lower mphs if my heart rate is not above 140.
1 minute - 3.2 mph
2 minutes 3.8 mph
3 minutes 4.5 mph jogging
1 minute 5.0 mph jogging
7 minutes total, 3 times over. (Or in your case, 4 times)

asyouseefit

Circuit training, mix of cardio and strength.

SteffieB

What is Squash?

anthonyager1

if you are short on time, try someting called Tabata Protocol. It applies to any kind of exercise. I use it once a week on the treadmill and it only takes 4 minutes.

20 seconds at maximum effort (the fastest you can run or the heaviest weight you can lift etc)
10 seconds rest
Repeat 7 times for a total of 8 sets = 4 mins

It works your VO2 max aerobic and anarobic but is a killer. If you google Tabata, you will findout a little bit about the theory behind this type of training.

anthonyager1

Squash is the British word for racketball

Aegelis

Kung Fu. Running is good, but I find it boring comparatively.

PrettyLittleLiar79

Another thing you can do it look into a Peak 8 excersize.........You burn calories 2 hours after as well.....Very intense if you do it right, but so well worth it.

MusicKeepsMeSane

For me I burn the most calories on the elliptical!

AZackery

Tae Bo.

wolfchild59

I'm assuming that you're talking about cardio since it's such a short time frame and strength training isn't meant for calorie counting.

So, for me, my calories burns - from highest to lowest - are:
Running - 6MPH or higher, minimum incline 1.5
ARC Trainer (or adaptive motion trainer) - doing intervals
Ellipitical - doing intervals
Stationary bike - 16-17MPH at varying resistances

Though, if you are looking for maximum calorie burn in a short window of time, HIIT is probably your best bet. And you can do HIIT on pretty much any of the above really, but it's probably easiest to do while running.

starmist

Bodyrock.

jjsamp202

Personally if i only had 30 minutes at the gym every day, I would spend it lifting. If you keep a good pace it's a good cardio workout on top of the obvious strength training.

DoncasterPhotography

Kettlebell.

I burn 370-440 cals in a 20min routine.

Lt_Hawkeye

Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred or Ripped in 30. It's a good all-around workout for the entire body since it's circuit training done in only 20 minutes (for 30DS) or 30 minutes (for Ripped in 30).

paul_draper

Though not as calorie consuming as running you could try cycling. Make it part of your journey, ie commuting to work or a small grocery shop. The steering will work on your upper body.

TreadmillManiac

If i had a concept2 then 30mins flat out on that would be a killer workout.

Lyadeia

I would do Turbo Kick, or regular ol' cardio kickboxing if TK wasn't available. I burn more calories doing that than running, stepmill, Insanity, or anything else that I have tracked with an HRM.

ksubbert

Running, if all you're looking for is cardio and calorie burn, you can't beat it!

+1

I like to run after work. The quiet solitude of running outdoors on a fall evening gives me time to unwind and transition from the office to home.

razorspells

for me it would be the stair climber.. 30 min of this wears me out completely

scarletleavy

Jump roping.

futurerunner

Thanks Everyone! You've given my so great ideas/starting point.