Maximizing effectiveness of short workouts

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lorals05
lorals05 Posts: 47
in Fitness and Exercise
I hit the gym after work most nights, but only have about 30-45 minutes to actually work out before I have to leave (not due to physicial limitations but schedule constraints). I try to watch portion size along with caloric intake and all that but seem to still gain weight.

Currently I usually try to do at least 20 minutes of cardio (either jogging or eliptical) and I aim to hit the weights however that doesn't happen often due to the equipment being in use by other members. I need to know what is a simple and very effective way to use the gym time I do have. HELP! :)

Replies

  • koosdel
    koosdel Posts: 3,317 Member
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    Unless you're training for an invasion, 30-45 minutes is not a short workout.
  • lorals05
    lorals05 Posts: 47
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    Hey you never know when the zombies will come ha ha jk :laugh: I used to go to the gym for close to an hour and a half, but that was before responsibilities invaded my life. Just trying to make the most of it cuz I really don't feel like it's doing much for me....
  • deekaydee
    deekaydee Posts: 158 Member
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    Most of my workouts are 30-45 minutes. I think that is plenty of time.

    I alternate weights and cardio. I always have a hard time combining them because I feel like at least one or the other suffers (if I go all out on weights, I'm beat and can't put much effort into cardio). Plus, that way I can do a full-body weight workouts, and have a day to recovery before going back to weights again.

    I also do interval work once a week on cardio days, which is a shorter but more intense workout. You don't want to injure yourself, so do some research, but intervals essentially are short bursts of high intensity followed by a little longer recovery time. For instance, I do 1 minute of fast running, followed by 2 min of comfortable jog, then repeat. Once I've done that for 25 minutes, I am DONE.
  • lorals05
    lorals05 Posts: 47
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    Most of my workouts are 30-45 minutes. I think that is plenty of time.

    I alternate weights and cardio. I always have a hard time combining them because I feel like at least one or the other suffers (if I go all out on weights, I'm beat and can't put much effort into cardio). Plus, that way I can do a full-body weight workouts, and have a day to recovery before going back to weights again.

    I also do interval work once a week on cardio days, which is a shorter but more intense workout. You don't want to injure yourself, so do some research, but intervals essentially are short bursts of high intensity followed by a little longer recovery time. For instance, I do 1 minute of fast running, followed by 2 min of comfortable jog, then repeat. Once I've done that for 25 minutes, I am DONE.

    I've done some of the interval workouts on treadmill and eliptical both and I agree. It wears me out. About an hour after I leave the gym tho, I don't feel like I've accomplished much. That could just be my body trying to get used to the shorter workout time I suppose. I just wanted to make sure that I'm getting the most out of my time there.
  • addisondisease
    addisondisease Posts: 664 Member
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    Currently I usually try to do at least 20 minutes of cardio

    Cardio kills your gains.

    Pick a cardio day, and do cardio. Pick a day to lift and lift on that day.

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