Will I still be able to lose weight if I have a limited time to workout?

Any amount of exercise is going to be better than none at all. Three times a week is a good start for anyone and if that is all you have time for, you must make the most of that time. If you simply walked for 30 minutes a day, three times a week you will at some point hit a plateau, and you will not see any new fitness improvements and most likely no additional weight loss. This means you must take the 30 minutes and make them more productive to help increase your metabolism to aid in weight loss. The 30 minutes of cardio alone will not burn enough calories to keep you losing weight. You need to get your body to burn more calories after the workout. To do this, start by adding higher intensity exercises such as 30 second medium to high intensity intervals followed by 30 seconds of recovery, or lower intensity exercise. Repeat this circuit three to five times before going into a longer recovery period, which might mean walking at your normal pace for several minutes. Then repeat the circuit again, with 30 seconds high intensity exercise followed by just a 30 second rest. You can begin by doing this once a week while keeping your normal walking routine the other two days. After a few weeks you can try two interval days per week. For those that are working harder than just walking, you are on the right track but you will still hit a plateau eventually and will need to increase your metabolism. The circuit days will be beneficial to you as well. These circuits need to be at a higher intensity than your normal workouts in order to see the benefits. It might be 30 second sprints followed by a 30 second jog repeated six to eight times in a row and done several times a week. It is not the amount of time that is going to help with the weight loss, but rather the intensity that is the key.

When you have a limited amount of time to workout, you may choose a high intensity interval training session (HIIT).Performing a HIIT 2-3 times a week is a great start. It can be done using most forms of aerobics: running, swimming, biking, or on an elliptical. HIIT is a great cardio session that consists of a warm up followed by alternating high intensity repetitions with medium intensity repetitions followed by a cool down period. A HIIT can be completed in 20 minutes.

 

 

Time is limiting factor for many individuals these days. Between work, children, the significant other, friends, social obligations, and soccer practice, where does one find the time for exercise? And with so little time, should you even bother? The first question you must ask yourself is, "Is losing weight important to me?"

When something is important to you, you will find, or make time for it. Even 20-30 minutes, 2-3 times per week can be a good start. Try replacing TV time with a brisk walk, or getting up 30 minutes earlier for a quick home workout. Losing weight is all about burning calories, and some exercise is certainly better than no exercise. Yes, you can lose weight even with a limited time schedule when you make weight loss important to you.

Time is one of the most common reasons people cite as to why they cannot exercise. There is no such thing as too little time to work out. Losing weight is a matter of burning more calories and eating fewer calories. We can find all kinds of ways to burn more calories during daily life such as parking farther away from our destination or walking up the stairs instead of the escalator. Calorie burning need not always take the form of structured gym workouts. So, yes weight loss is totally possible even if your time is limited.

When it comes to scheduling workouts, take a good look at what time you have available. Chances are that you can put aside 20 minutes 3 times a week to start. If time is so limited that travel to and from a gym is out of the question, workout at home taking walks around the neighborhood and with some dumbbells or using your bodyweight for resistance training.

Unfortunately, due to the busy schedules we keep it is often difficult to devote as much time as we would like to our workouts. The good news is that weight loss is still possible with limited workout time. The lose weight you must burn more calories than you consume. You can find different methods to burn those calories during your day through your activities. Adding “accidental exercise” throughout the day is a great way to get started. Park further away from your destination, take the stairs and wear a pedometer to track your daily steps, working towards 10,000 steps per day. When you do workout, try to devote at least 20-30 minutes, 3 times per week to your activity. If possible, participate in high intensity activities such as interval training and circuit training to ensure you are burning the maximum amount of calories and raising your metabolism. Finally, with the limited time to workout, making sure your diet is on track will be very important. Log your food to ensure your calories are where they need to be to create the calorie deficit needed to lose weight.