4 Workout Hacks To Get More Done In Less Time

- written by Coach Will Safford

We would all love to get more done in less time. The time it takes to get to the gym, warm up, workout, cool down and get home eats up our valuable time.

Do you really need to be spending an hour or more in the gym to reach your fitness goals?

The answer is no.

Research supports that short, intense workouts are the best way to burn fat and make physiological changes to the body, with improvements to cardiovascular fitness, metabolic conditioning, and heart health.

So how do we get everything we need done in a short amount of time without sacrificing the effectiveness of the workout?

The answer is in the following four fitness workout hacks that will get more done in less time.

Workout Hack #1: Build Your Warmup Into Your Workout

The warmup is an essential part of any exercise session.

It primes the body for movement, reduces the risk of injury, and engages the systems of the body for better performance. However, as vital as it is, the warmup doesn’t need to eat up your valuable time.

Instead, build your warmup into your workout.

Let’s say you have four sets of 8 kettlebell squats, 8 barbell bench press, and 8 bent over rows scheduled for your day’s workout.

Do bodyweight versions of each movement in a slower and controlled circuit to prime the muscles and joints with low impact on the system.

So, do 15 bodyweight air squats, 15 pushups, and 15 inverted rows for two sets before your working sets with weight, which will reduce your risk of injury while also burning fat and building strength in the process.

Use minimal rest between sets and rounds of the circuit to elevate the heart rate and warm the lungs, muscles, and joints.

Workout Hack #2: Use exercises that mobilize and strengthen at the same time.

My favorite way to improve mobility and flexibility, which helps reduce injuries, is to warmup with movements that improve those qualities while building strength and endurance.

These movements improve multiple fitness qualities at once and that can be used in a dynamic warmup, or as a workout themselves.

Examples of the movements would be Cossack Squats, Dive Bomb Push Ups, Table Makers, Bear Squats, Crawls, and the following exercises using light weights;

Kettlebell Deadlifts/Swings, Prying Goblet Squats, Turkish Get Ups, Halos, Heavy Club Shield Cast, Clubbell Pullovers.

Add these to your your routine to better multiple things at once.

Workout Hack #3: Start light and add weight to each working set.

Let’s say you want to work with heavier weights today and you aren’t comfortable going from bodyweight straight to 85% of your max, which isn’t a smart idea anyway.

An efficient way to progress safely while saving time is to add weight each set.

Using the same example above (squats, bench press, bent over row) hit a quick bodyweight warmup, then do something like the following.

Rest 15s between exercises and 2 mins between sets. This workouts should take you about 20 minutes.

Set 1

8 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 35lb

8 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 135lb

8 reps Bent Over Row @ 50lb

Set 2

8 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 45lb

8 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 155lb

8 reps Bent Over Row @ 60lb

Set 3

8 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 53lb

8 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 175lb

8 reps Bent Over Row @ 75lb

Set 4

8 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 72lb

8 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 185lb

8 reps Bent Over Row @ 95lb

Set 5

8 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 88lb

8 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 205lb

8 reps Bent Over Row @ 135lb

Set 6

8 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 88lb

8 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 205lb

8 reps Bent Over Row @ 135lb

Done.

Workout Hack #4: Start low and add reps to each set.

Similar to adding weight each set you can add reps to each set while keeping the weight the same. This is one of my favorite ways to warmup and get work done in a time efficient way.

For example, do a quick 5 minute bodyweight warmup like the one above, then do the following workout with as little rest as possible between exercises and rounds.

As you progress through the workout you will need more rest between rounds. You can probably get all this work done in less than 15 minutes.

Set 1

2 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 53lb

2 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 155lb

2 reps Bent Over Row @ 95lb

Set 2

4 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 53lb

4 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 155lb

4 reps Bent Over Row @ 95lb

Set 3

6 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 53lb

6 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 155lb

6 reps Bent Over Row @ 95lb

Set 4

8 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 53lb

8 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 155lb

8 reps Bent Over Row @ 95lb

Set 5

10 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 53lb

10 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 155lb

10 reps Bent Over Row @ 95lb

Set 6

10 reps KB Goblet Squat @ 53lb

10 reps Barbell Bench Press @ 155lb

10 reps Bent Over Row @ 95lb

Done.

In Summary

Hack #1: Build Your Warmup Into Your Workout

Hack #2: Use exercises that mobilize and strengthen at the same time.

Hack #3: Start light and add weight to each working set.

Hack #4: Start low and add reps to each set.

Use these fitness hacks to get more done in less time without sacrificing quality or neglecting aspects of your workout.

When used in combination these hacks are even more effective and time-saving, and will allow you to be a healthy, functional human with extra time to do what you love.