Training for the Modern Woman
With the advent of mobile technology the working day now has no discernible end. You may have left the office but your still answering calls and emails on the train home, and the laptop is back out when you get home, dogmatically working on that project with deadlines looming. You finally get to bed and lay stressed about the day’s events and what tomorrow will hold. Add on to this a busy social and family life and where is the room for health and fitness?
In my experience there are two options. The first is to prioritise the important things in your life. For example; number one would probably be your family and loved ones. Number two would probably have to be your occupation as we all have to keep a roof over our heads and food on the table. The next few spots are really up for grabs. Social? Gym? Hobbies? The answers are up to you, but the question remains, if your health is important to you then what are you doing to fulfil that part of your life? Could you be better organised at work so that you don’t have to work long in to the night? Could you jog/walk/cycle into work? Is it really that important for you to go for post work drinks before you go home? Decide what is important and take the necessary steps to achieve your goal.
The second step is that even if you’ve taken a long hard look at your life, prioritised, organised, and sacrificed you still can only find 30 minutes to workout at lunch then efficiency is the key. You had better get a hell of a lot of bang for your buck!
The easiest way to do this is with the superset. Super-setting involves pairing exercises back to back with little or no rest between exercises. If you get it right this can up to double the work load of your training session. Double the results in half the time? Sounds great, but it does mean hard work!
Try pairing an upper body exercise like a chin up (assisted if necessary) with a lower body exercise like a squat or a lunge for 5 sets of 8-10 reps with only a 30 second rest between exercises. This type of training will give you a cardiovascular, muscular and neuromuscular hit, whilst saving time and getting results. Happy days!
Try this workout next time you’re in the gym.
Warm up:
Grab an empty barbell and perform the following exercises with the best form possible
Squat to Press, Overhead Lunge, Deadlift and Bent Over Row and Single Leg stiff Legged Deadlifts. Perform 2 Circuits of 10 reps for each exercise (Lunges and Stiff Legged Deadlifts that’s 5 reps each leg)
Main Workout:
Use a weight that would allow you to get 2 more than the prescribed repetitions with good form on the 1st set. Complete all sets of A1 and A2 before moving on to B and C. Rest 30 seconds between exercises and 2 minutes between pairs.
5 Sets of:
A1. DB Squat to Press x 8 (30 Second Rest)
A2. Chin up x 8 (30 Second Rest)
Rest 2 minutes whilst you set up for the next pair
4 Sets of:
B1. Dip x 10 (30s Rest)
B2. DB Step up x 8 Each leg (30s Rest)
Rest 2 minutes whilst you set up for the next pair
3 Sets of:
C1. Glute Bridge x 10 (30s Rest)
C2. Medicine Ball rotation x 20 (30 seconds rest)
This should be a pretty short and sharp workout that will leave you absolutely smoked if you get the weights right. DO NOT BE AFRAID TO GO HEAVY!
If you’ve still got time or energy left then try this little finisher for your workout – it could even be used as a workout on its own if you are short on time!
These exercises are performed with no equipment – just your bodyweight.
24 squats, 24 Lunges (12 steps each leg), 12 squat jumps, 12 jumping split squats (6 each leg)
So remember pair exercises together, go heavy, and keep moving! But above all, remember what’s important to you!
