Only 10 minutes a day 3 times a week and you can have the body you want. We have all heard a hundred ads like this. I think that many of them actually do work, along with the right diet and additional exercises. Since most of us don’t have this personal lifestyle, it is a lot of people spend several hours in the gym a week. The gym can be a fun place to hang out with friends while feeling you are getting fit. However, if you are simply wanting to get in shape then there are better work out methods.

I have found that I can get in shape working out 5 days a week for 15 minutes a day. The difference between the TV advertised program and my routine is that it is not easy. It requires pushing yourself harder each time. Once you feel that you can’t do one more push-up, pull-up, or whatever, you set in your mind to do three or five more. Don’t take a 5 minute break to catch your breath, move on to the next activity quickly. Since your body doesn’t know what to expect, it has to adapt quicker. If I don’t wake up soar the next day then I know I haven’t trained hard enough.

When an exercise starts becoming easier, you can either increase the numbers or find a more difficult way to do it. For instance, if you are doing push-ups and find they become much easier, try elevating your feet or changing the positions of your hands. Some positions require a lot more energy than others. If you focus on these positions you will increase your strength much quicker.

I focus mostly on exercises that increase my strength and muscle tone and don’t require any equipment. Push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, jumping squats, wall sits, etc can all be done without any equipment and build body strength very quickly.

I will note that this system is not the best one for everyone. Since it requires pushing yourself very hard each time to see results, it is very easy to give up. It does however, allow you to start seeing and feeling a difference very quickly which can be a motivator.

If you really want to put on muscle, the following video is a pretty good guide.

300 Spartan Workout Training. Home Version – Celebrity bloopers here

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