Do you want to get more out of workout sessions? As a busy mom, you most likely don’t have the luxury of simply adding more time to your workouts.
Luckily, there are lots of ways that you can increase the intensity of your workouts without increase their duration. Four options that will help you switch up your workouts for better results are listed below:
1. Do Full-Body Workouts
If you love strength training, you’ll get more bang for your buck by switching from a traditional body part split to full-body workouts.
Full-body workouts come with a number of benefits, including:
-
Burn more calories in a shorter period of time — since you’re working multiple large muscle group, your body has to expend more energy than it would if you only worked small muscles like the arms or shoulders.
-
Build more muscle — you’ll also see better muscle- and strength-building results since you’ll be able to work the same groups more frequently (i.e., you can train legs 2-3 times per week instead of just once).
-
More flexibility — when you focus on full-body training, you can workout wherever, whenever, without throwing off your whole routine. It’s much easier to squeeze these workouts in while traveling.
2. Increase Your Weight
If you’ve been lifting the same weights for a while now, your results have probably stagnated.
If you always reach for 10-pound dumbbells, increase the weight to 12 pounds. You may have to lower your reps, but the change will provide an extra challenge to push you out of a plateau.
You can also add weight to workouts that typically don’t require them. For example, use wrist weights while walking on the treadmill. Or, if you prefer a low-impact workout like water aerobics, use pool weights to increase the intensity without extra pressure on your joints.
3. Improve Your Focus
Where does your mind go during your workouts? Are you focus on the actual exercises, or are you thinking about your grocery list or the ever-growing pile of laundry in your bedroom?
When you focus on the exercises, you improve your mind-muscle connection. This connection will, in turn, help you see better results from your workouts.
It’s also important to avoid wasting time talking or texting in between sets while you’re working out. This is especially important if you tend to let your gym time double as catch up time with a friend. It’s great to have a gym buddy, but make sure you’re still prioritizing your workouts in order to see improvements.
4. Try Interval Training
If efficiency is the name of the game when it comes to your workouts, you need to be incorporating high-intensity interval training (HIIT) into your routine. HIIT workouts involve alternating between short bursts of very intense exercise and low-intensity periods of recovery.
HIIT allows you to burn a great number of calories in a shorter period of time. It also increases your metabolic rate after working out, meaning your body will keep burning calories even after you’ve left the gym.
When you’re first getting started with HIIT, it’s important to start slow to avoid injury.
You might spend just ten minutes alternating between thirty seconds of moderate running and thirty seconds of walking. When you’re more comfortable, you can up the ante and add periods of sprinting.
If you’re in a workout rut and are struggling to see results, consider making one of these changes to your current fitness routine. They don’t require any extra time, but they’ll definitely help you see the changes you’re looking for.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
Speak Your Mind