No time? No excuse!

We all know how much time can be spent in the gym, not just in the gym of course, but getting there and back, showering, parking etc… However, it doesn’t always need to be this way. I’m certainly not saying start substituting your regular hour or more heavy weights session with a 15 minute short-cut, but if you’re short on time, or damn short on time, this could be a key 15 minutes that keep your muscles on their toes and ensuring shorter gaps between your heavy workouts.

For starters, doing an exercise once to exhaustion doesn’t mean you’ll achieve 3 times less growth than if you were completing the exercise 3 times. It’s a lot closer than you’d think and certainly ten times better than doing nothing at all. After warm-up, complete each exercise to exhaustion, rest 30 seconds and move on to the next muscle group. After hitting the chest, back, legs, shoulders, biceps and triceps, start from the beginning, hitting the first four muscle groups twice and the arms just once. Furthermore, by alternating exercises as well as muscle groups, you’re hitting as wide a variety of muscles as you would on a full body, hour plus workout.

Again, don’t think this’ll give you huge gains by using it 3 times a week consistently. It’s a get-out clause for those times you’d otherwise skip the gym so no more excuses, no more whining, we’ve all got 15 minutes to spare!

15 minutes in the Gym

Here’s a good routine to cover all muscle groups in 15 minutes: Remember, each set must be completed to exhaustion, resting for 30 seconds in-between sets.

• 3 minutes warm-up using light weights and minor stretching
• Bench-Press, 8-10 reps.
• Squat, 8-12 reps
• Seated shoulder press, 8-10 reps
• Bent-over rows, 8-12 reps
• Barbell Curl, 8-10 reps
• Tricep extension, 8-10 reps
• Incline Bench-Press, 8-10 reps
• Deadlift, 8-12 reps
• Shrugs, 10-12 reps
• Seated Rows, 10-12 reps

10 exercises, all to exhaustion with 30 seconds in-between sets.

15 minutes at home

If you can’t make the gym (and I’m talking apocalyptic reasons), grab a pair of dumbbells and give your 15 minute best.

• 3 minutes warm-up using light weights and minor stretching
• Press-ups, 50+
• Dumbbell shoulder press, 8-10 reps
• Bent-over dumbbell rows, 8-12 reps
• Barbell Deadlifts, 8-12 reps
• Dumbbell bicep-curls, 8-10 reps
• Dumbbell tricep extensions, 8-10 reps
• Flat Dumbbell Fly’s, 8-10 reps
• Dumbbell lateral raises, 8-10 reps
• Dumbbell lunges, 10-12 reps
• Crunches, to near exhaustion

In conclusion, remember these example workouts are supposed to be replacements for the gym; I just get frustrated with people’s excuses as to why they’re out of shape. Even if you’re not the most dedicated bodybuilder in the world, 2 or 3 gym sessions a week aren’t gonna eat up all your time and if you’re really struggling, a simple 15 minute workout will exercise those lazy muscles and will at least get your blood pumping so get off the sofa, miss the second half of Coronation Street and pick up those damn weights!