Living
No Time? No Sweat! – 30-Minute Workout Ideas And Apps
Making time for physical fitness is essential, yet still so hard to do. We've got workout ideas and app recommendations to help you work up a sweat in 30 minutes or less
Lots of us would love to move around more and work out often, but our schedules just don’t allow it. Sound familiar? Luckily there are plenty of innovative, fun and simple ways to work up a sweat that take only half an hour – or even less. We share our picks for the best workout apps and tips that can get even the busiest of people moving again.
Switch Between Machines
Celebrity trainer Adam Rosante is no stranger to clients with hectic schedules. The New York-based instructor offers this easy workout that alternates between cardio machines for more fat-burning potential while targeting different muscle groups: Start with a 5-minute dynamic warm-up to create some elasticity in your muscles and mobility in your joints. Then, pick two cardio machines (treadmill, rower, bike, elliptical, etc.) that are ideally right next to one another.
Instructions:
(1) Get on machine 1 and start at a moderate “jog” pace for 60 seconds. Then, go as fast as you can for 60 seconds. That’s 1 round. (2) Continue this 60-second jog/60-second sprint format for 4 more rounds. That’s 10 minutes. (3) Immediately move to the second piece of equipment and start at a moderate “jog” pace for 60-seconds. Then, go as fast as you can for 60-seconds. Repeat for four more rounds. (4) Cool down with 5-minutes of static stretching.
Sign Up For Video Coaching
One of the more popular solutions these days is to use online videos and chats to help you get in a workout regardless of your location; as long as you have an internet connection, you’re set. Platforms like Mission 360 are one-stop shops for fitness, nutrition and mental health, offering guided workouts from top instructors across the country. When it’s this easy, there’s no excuse.
Pay For Your Time At The Gym (Literally)
POPiN is a new app that allows users to choose from gyms around a particular city and pay for only the time they’re there, down to the minute. Allowing you to access premium fitness clubs without paying a membership fee, the app offers rates between 16-25 cents per minute, and the first workout is free. POPiN is only available in New York for now, but will be expanding to other cities soon, making it a great option for travellers looking for a location-independent gym solution.
Pick The Right Hotel
As the new generation of business travellers demands more from their accommodations, hotel chains are beginning to listen. At the Four Seasons Hotel in Houston, for example former MLS player Michael Chabala opened Sphere, a workout studio modelled after soccer workouts from his 25+ years of experience at all levels of the sport. One of the shorter programs is POWA, a 30-minute HIIT workout of interval cardio and strength training that uses a medicine ball to amp things up. Classes are reasonably priced and are scheduled before and after the workday to cater to professionals.
Make A New Friend
Another new app allows exercise enthusiasts to find each other in a “Yelp-Meets-Tinder” type environment through a new platform called Fitmatch. Users choose which activities they’re interested in and meet others using geolocation technology much like other location-based apps. Fitmatch is brand new, released in July, and will be expanding from NYC to Los Angeles and Miami soon.
Hit The Outdoors
For those of us who live close enough to the trails, we try to take advantage of them as much as possible. Sometimes, our travels take us to the great outdoors too. Enter REI’s Trail Run app, which offers detailed descriptions of a growing list of trails and paths. You can profile your run and preview it with photos, reviews and more.
Search For A Yoga Studio
As the group fitness competition heats up in cities around the world, studios are competitively pricing classes to get bodies in the door. This means free trial classes that are perfect when visiting a city for just a couple of days. A simple search engine query can get you a list of free or low-cost classes offered wherever you may happen to be.
Burn For Charity
We’ve all been there: those days when gumption is lacking and there’s no motivation to hit the gym. Fortunately, new app Charity Miles is there to give you a for-good incentive to get going. Underwritten by bigger corporate sponsors, the app donates a few cents for every mile run, biked or otherwise completed. So far the app has raised more than USD 2 million for various charities.
Variations On Barre
While the basic Barre workout has established itself as a popular choice, variations are popping up alongside the traditional classes. Depending on your location, you can find everything from HIIT interval Barre training to programmes that incorporate new mothers and their children. Strapped for time? Checkout Xtend Barre’s online workouts in manageable sessions of 10, 15 and 20 minutes.
Find A Paddleboard
Although the sport has a storied history, stand-up paddleboarding hasn’t really caught on until the last few years. Adventure operators in countries around the world are taking notice and putting together full programs that offer gentle gliding along some of the world’s calmest waters. The barrier of entry is pretty low too: 30 minutes with a “SUP” expert and you’re ready to hit the water – just don’t lose your balance.
Mental Maintenance
With all the pressures of modern life, mental wellness is more important than it has ever been. Jam-packed schedules and hectic days don’t leave much time for rest and decompression, but certified wellness coaches can help you achieve better mental well-being through goal-setting and tailoring a personal plan that fits your needs. Programmes vary, but they’re meant to be the perfect complement to physical workouts and push you that much farther.
Article by Geoff Nudelman
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.