Time Required to Complete Each Workout (A/B), by Stage

J_Dragonfly

Hi all,

I'm nearing the end of Stage 1, and have been able to (just barely) squeeze the workouts into my lunch break at work. But, I've seen a couple times in posts that the other stages take more time to complete each workout. Can someone give me a breakdown of how many minutes the A/B workouts in each stage take? I'm trying to figure out when/ where/ how I can spend more time in a gym, while managing my twins, my job, my husband, sleep, etc.

I really appreciate the info, as I want to plan well to ensure my success with NROL4W. If it means changing my lifting days and joining a gym near home and going super duper early in the morning, then that's what I'll do!


~ Jamie

89nunu

Bump. Very good question!

lcuconley

everyone is different, but plan for the stage 2 workouts to take 60-70 minutes...especially when adding the HIIT.

Good luck!

lazyjane75

In my experience, full Stage 3 workouts have been in the 75-90 minute range (including warm-up and post-workout stretching). I don't rest the full recommended time between sets, either - that would take forever! Some people seem to get their workouts done in less time than that - I wish I could figure out how to do the same

cphaneuf16

Great topic! I've been wondering the same thing. Even at the gym, they have a childcare max of 90 minutes, and I'm worried I won't be able to finish the later stages and shower in time!

I've been able to do Stage 1 A and B in 30 minutes... but this is my last week before moving on to Stage 2.

Emtabo01

Stage 7 always takes me 75 minutes

sarah2002

If it means changing my lifting days and joining a gym near home and going super duper early in the morning, then that's what I'll do!

In the New Rules of Lifting book (the "man" one), the author says not to lift heavy until you have been out of bed for a full hour. I can't remember what exactly was the reason, but he said it could cause serious back injury. So something to consider there.

I think the biggest jump in time will be between the 1st stage, which is short and easy, and the 2nd one which is much longer. I found that I went from around 30 minutes to around 60. I am on stage 5 right now, and I don't think I have ever spent longer than 75 minutes. But I also don't always rest the recommended time in between sets, and I do the ab/crunch workout as one long set instead of resting since the ab work in this workout is just way too easy for me no matter how I try to make it more challenging (planks kill me, though!).

morkiemama

If it means changing my lifting days and joining a gym near home and going super duper early in the morning, then that's what I'll do!

In the New Rules of Lifting book (the "man" one), the author says not to lift heavy until you have been out of bed for a full hour. I can't remember what exactly was the reason, but he said it could cause serious back injury. So something to consider there.

I think the biggest jump in time will be between the 1st stage, which is short and easy, and the 2nd one which is much longer. I found that I went from around 30 minutes to around 60. I am on stage 5 right now, and I don't think I have ever spent longer than 75 minutes. But I also don't always rest the recommended time in between sets, and I do the ab/crunch workout as one long set instead of resting since the ab work in this workout is just way too easy for me no matter how I try to make it more challenging (planks kill me, though!).

The reason not to workout within an hour of waking up has to do with fluid in the spine. When you sleep, you're lying horizontally for hours and your back has no compressive loading. As a result, water fills back into your discs to nourish them (nightly hydration).

Imagine your discs are water balloons. If they're half full and you push one side, the water will move around and return when you let go. However if they're full, they can burst when you push. That is what can happen to your spine if you do any kind of heavy bending first thing in the morning.

After the first hour of being up, your spine dehydrates by about 90% of what it will for that day. Thus, the risk of lower back injuries plummets after that first hour.

That being said, I've woken up at 4:25am and been at the gym working out by 5:00am (bad I know). I do make sure I am being extra careful with my back/spine on those days.