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Get fit in 15 minutes a week?
April 19, 2016

Less exercise with more benefit?


Can you be healthy with a 15 to 20 minute workout per week?

I am always looking for a less time consuming way to take care of myself and my kids, learning about this type of exercise has been fantastic. I started doing it years ago, and with moving and babies forgot about it. I just started it again recently and am reminded why I love it so much.

According to a number of doctors that are experts in exercise physiology, (Dr. Daniel McGruff, Dr. Fredrick Hahn, Dr. Joseph Mercola) you can release signals to your brain to increase muscle mass and strength in just 15 to 20 minutes. You also turn on growth hormone production.

Why would you want to do that? Having more muscle mass means you use more calories... a much better way to lose weight than trying to cut calories. Besides looking better, you also improve you fat burning capabilities, turn on growth hormone which helps repair the rest of your body, and you even get cardiovascular benefits without long arduous exercises.

How do you get these benefits?

Super slow weight training!

You don't need weights to do weight training. You can use your body as your "weight" for many of the exercises.

Simple Routine

Dr. Daniel McGuff recommends using the following five basic compound movements for your exercise set. 1. Pull-down (or alternatively chin-up) 2. Chest press 3. Compound row (Pulling motion in the horizontal plane) 4. Overhead press 5. Leg press

Alternately, try these 5 exercises at home:

1. Slow push up 2. Squat using handles of a door for balance (put a stool under you in case you need to give up.) 3. Slow crunch 4. Side lying leg raise 5. Going up on toes (one side at a time)

All these exercises can be customized to you fitness level. You can read more about it in Body by Science by Dr. Doug McGuff or Slow Burn Fitness Revolution by Dr. Fredrick Hahn.

• Start the movement as slowly as you can. Take about 3 seconds to start the motion.

• Move 1 inch per second through the movement, and take about 5 seconds to slowly reverse directions. Do not fully straighten your arms or legs.

• Don't rest until fatigue. It should take between 2-5 repetitions to reach fatigue. If it is taking longer that, increase the weight or difficulty the following workout.

• Once you have reached exhaustion, do not jerk or heave to try to get one more repletion.

• Immediately switch to the next muscle group and repeat.

Done this way, your workout should only take about 15 minutes. And you will be increasing your growth hormone and fat burning capabilities, whole improving cardiovascular fitness and strength.

Important pointers: If you are trying to lose weight, do not each carbs for 2 hours after the workout. Protein can help improve the results.

Another very important aspect of fitness is not to sit uninterrupted for hours at a time. It is really important to get up and move around. Use a standing desk, take the stairs, get up for breaks. Sitting for 6 hours uninterrupted will negate the benefit of a whole hour of working out.

For more information, check out the following resources:

Dr. Mercola's Article on Exercise

Body by Science by Dr. Doug McGuff

Slow Burn Fitness Revolution by Dr. Fredrick Hahn.

Wishing you health and freedom from pain!

Mary X. Psaromatis, DC

Dr_Mary@MusclePainSolutions.com
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