Get it all done in 1 hour per day??

austelle

Hi!

I have a dilemma: I am willing to devote 1 hour, Monday - Saturday to exercise, but no more.

I want to take it to the next level without adding more time. How do you fit in cardio and strength training in that amount of time?

So far, this has been my schedule:
M, W, F full body strength training with plyo or running laps in between sets to keep heart rate up 45-60 minutes
T, Th, Sat, running 40-60 minutes on the treadmill or outdoors

I am looking at adding a level of intensity to the weight training. The plans I have looked at call for splitting up the body on different days. Also, I have been reading that for fat loss it is better to increase cardio to 5-6 days per week.

Does anyone have a 1 hour per day/ 6 days per week schedule they'd be willing to share? I need tips for fitting it all in without having it take over my life!

Qarol

I don't normally combine strength training days with cardio. And I also don't worry about keeping my heart rate elevated on strength training days. It gets up there, but I don't try to make sure it stays up there.

Sp1nGoddess

I do a full body workout in 45 minutes then stretch for about 15 minutes. I group my exercises together so I don't really rest I'll do say the one set or dead lifts then one set of push ups then after 3 sets I move on to the squats/bent rows. When I reach 12 reps I increase the weight next time.

Here's my current workout:

Stiff legged dead lift 3x12 & Push-up 3 x12
2 foot squat 3x8-12 & Bent Rows 3x12
Single leg Squat 1x8 (alone)
Shoulder press 3x12 & Bench Dips 3x12
Cook Hip lift (for glutes ) 3x12 & Plank 3x to fail
Clam (for hips/glutes) 3x12 & Side Plank 3 to fail

If you want to do a traditional split you can structure your exercises so that you get done more quickly. I don't do cardio & strength in the same day and I am a huge fan of stretching.

You could do say:
1-Hamstrings & deadlifts
2-Chest & Triceps
3-Back & Biceps
every other day do Abs & Calves

or

chest
back
shoulders
bis and tris
abs/calves
legs

Beeps2011

I'm a huge fan of stretching, too....which I didn't use to be. But, as I age, I am finding this more and more important to my overall health picture.

I think doing 5 - 6 times of cardio per week is less than optimum, particularly if you are time-crunched. I think the biggest bang for your buck will be compound weight-lifting moves, that target MORE than one muscle group (i.e. squats, deadlifts, lunges, etc.) and maybe throw in a little HIIT since you won't have time for steady-state cardio.