Want to burn more calories? No need to get stuck on one particular exercise or train for twice as long—just don’t sit down. Simply keeping your body moving during a workout, especially between sets, raises your metabolism and promotes fat loss better than any gimmick. Follow this program for four weeks and you’ll get the results you’ve been restless for.
How it works
These routines use circuits—exercises done back to back without rest—to train the whole body, making the most of every second you spend in the gym. The key is to vary the intensity, mixing hard moves with easier ones so you burn the most calories without burning yourself out. (After all, a workout is no good if you can’t finish it.) So between sets of squats and rows, for instance, you’ll do rope jumping, which will keep you moving but not completely exhaust you. You’ll stay energized enough to give subsequent sets your best effort, while also making your downtime between sets work for you—and your abs.
Directions
Perform each workout (Day I, II, III, and IV) once per week. Rest a day between workouts II and III. Exercises marked with a letter are done in sequence without rest in between. Complete them and then rest a minute afterward, and repeat for the total number of prescribed sets. So you might do one set of A, then immediately a set of B and then C before resting. Complete all the exercises in one group before moving on to the next.
Chris Doukakis is the owner of 2 Town Fitness in El Segundo, California.
