When you are pressed for time but still want to get a good workout try one of these routines. Below I have outlined an upper body workout and a lower body workout. These workouts can easily be completed in less then 30 minutes. Even though they are quick, they will still work the muscles hard and stimulate growth.
Upper Body Workout:
Do a circuit of chin ups, dips, incline sit ups, and hyper extensions. These exercises will work all the major muscle groups of your upper body. This workout can be done very quickly because all the exercises use bodyweight only. This saves time because you don’t have to change weight plates, set up machines, etc.
Chin Ups: do 1 set of as many reps as you can do.
Rest a minute.
Dips: do 1 set of as many reps as you can do.
Rest a minute.
Incline Sit Ups: do 1 set of as many reps as you can do.
Rest a minute.
Hyper Extensions: do 1 set of as many reps as you can do.
(Repeat the circuit 3-4 times.)
Chin Ups
Dips
Incline Sit Ups
Hyper Extensions
Lower Body Workout:
Probably the single best muscle building exercise that you can do is 20 rep breathing squats. It is quite possibly the hardest exercise that you can do as well. 20 rep squats separate the men from the boys in the iron game.
After a couple progressively heavier warm up sets of squats, load the bar with a weight that you normally squat for sets of 10 reps. Un-rack the weight and step back into position. Take 2-3 deep breaths, hold the last breath and squat down and up, take 2-3 more deep breaths, hold the last breath and squat down and up, etc. Keep doing this for each rep. After about 5 reps you’ll be fully warmed up and into the rhythm. After 10 reps you may need to take 3-5 deep breaths in between reps. Reps 15-20 will really test you and you’ll have to really grind them out. But the fact that you only have to do 1 set will make it easier mentally. You can go all out without having to conserve energy for more sets.
After the 20 rep breathing squats take a few minutes to rest and catch your breath. Then move on to the leg extension. Take a weight that is about 50% of what you normally use for sets of 10 reps. Get set up on the machine and do rest pause reps until you have completed 100 total reps. Do as many reps as you can do, then take 10-15 seconds rest, do another set of as many reps as you can do, then take 10-15 seconds rest, etc. until you have completed 100 total reps.
After the leg extensions repeat the same pattern of doing 100 total rest pause reps for lying leg curls and calve raises.
Squats
Leg Extensions
Leg Curls
Calve Raises
Don't let lack of time keep you away from the gym and prevent you from having a good workout. The next time that your busy schedule threatens to keep you out of the gym, make yourself a priority and give one of these workouts a try.