I have a LOT of thoughts on fitness and exercise, but to be brief, I have found my fitness routine to be most successful when it’s:

1. Under 30 minutes – I’m prone to squeeze in a workout while a kid is napping, between chores, or if I just so happen to have a little energy at the end of the day, so I like it brief and to the point.

2. Uncomplicated – People waste SO much time meandering around a gym trying to figure out what to do next, it’s silly. A workout should be intentional and straight-forward.

3. Dynamic – If I’m going to accomplish anything in 30 minutes, I have to do compound movements to work multiple muscle groups at a time while also keeping my heart rate up.

So, here you have an introduction to my 5:30:5 Routine: only five exercises, each performed for 30 seconds on / 30 seconds off intervals, for a total of 5 minutes per exercise. You’re dunzo after 25 minutes. Wahoo!

To break it down further: I start the stopwatch on my phone. As soon as it begins, I start the first exercise movement and do it for 30 seconds, max effort – MAX effort (come on, you can do anything for 30 seconds). Then I rest for 30 seconds. Repeat for a total of 5 intervals then start exercise 2… and so on for 5 exercises. Do as follows on your stopwatch:

0:00-0:30 interval 1

0:30-1:00 rest

1:00-1:30 interval 2

1:30-2:00 rest

2:00-2:30 interval 3

2:30-3:00 rest

3:00-3:30 interval 4

3:30-4:00 rest

4:00-4:30 interval 5

4:30-5:00 rest

5:00-5:30 Begin intervals for Exercise 2 (and repeat straight through for a total of 5 exercises)

Here’s the workout for this week 1/15/18! You literally don’t need a single piece of equipment but shoes are recommended :-). Let me know if you try it and please modify exercises for your personal fitness level.