Burn more with less time with this 10-minute density workout you can do at home

Photos by Nicco Santos

Whether a professional athlete or a regular individual, we all need some form of fitness. We should always find time to exercise or engage in sports or challenging physical activities. And time is always an issue so we’ve designed a 10-minute workout you can do at home or just about anywhere really.

This is a density workout, a circuit training method, and a complete hybrid of metabolic and strength training. Density workouts help you complete more work in lesser time while having the benefits of both strength and endurance. It’s also effective for fat loss. But this isn’t your regular gym workout where you do sets and reps, then rest long enough to check your smartphones. You will only need full effort throughout the 10 to 15 minutes (including your warm-up exercises) of workout.

Burpees (5 reps)

Start with your hands at your hips, squat down to place your hands on the floor, and kick out your legs until you are in a push-up position. Immediately jump your feet back underneath you and then jump out of this deep squat position back to your feet.

Push-ups (10 reps)

From a high plank push-up position, lower your chest until it’s within an inch of the floor. Push back up to starting position. You can use a box, table, chair or any type of elevation to make this easier.

Squat to press with a bag (10 reps)

Grab a bag and hold it close to your chest. Descend into a squat then forcefully drive upward. Press the bag overhead as you are coming up, using the momentum of the squat to assist in the press.

Bent-over row (10 reps per arm)

Grab a bag with one hand. Begin in a bent-over row position with a flat back, hips back, and knees slightly bent. Pull the weight straight up to the side of your abdomen. Lower it to starting position; finish all your reps on one arm, then repeat with the other arm.

Reverse lunges (10 reps per side)

Stand tall with feet together, reach back with one leg as far as possible as you bend the front leg while keeping your torso tall. Push back up to starting position, and then repeat on the other leg. One repetition is both right and left legs.

Mountain climbers (10 reps, 10 pairs)

From a push-up position, take one knee and pull it into your chest and then back down. As soon as that foot touches the floor, raise the opposite knee.

The goal is to finish as many rounds as you can in 10 minutes. Set the timer to 10 minutes and follow the sequence of the exercises with the prescribed number of repetitions. Until 10 minutes isn’t done, you must try to finish more rounds. You are allowed to rest anytime during the workout but try to limit it.

Try to maintain full effort and see how your heart rate goes up and your muscles fatigue while challenging yourself with some basic exercises. Make sure to include some type of warm-up and cool-down exercises to prevent injury risks. For those who are new to exercise, you can aim to finish at least two rounds and if you really are up for the challenge, try five rounds or more.

All the muscles and movements trained in this workout are used in endurance sports. So whether you’re in your off-season or you just don’t have time to work out this season, feel free to do this program whenever and wherever you get the chance.

 Source: “Cardio Strength Training” by Robert dos Remedios, CSCS