Some days, it’s a struggle to carve out 30 minutes for exercise. An hour? Forget it. If I’m not rushing to my son’s basketball game, I’m in a work meeting that’s running late, or I’m trying to squeeze in a date night with my husband.
How many times have you skipped your workout because you didn’t have enough time? Studies show that a lack of time is one of the top reasons why people don’t exercise. Even though I’m the founder of barre3, I too was part of the I’m-too-crunched-for-time statistic years ago. What ultimately saved me and got me back on track were 10-minute barre3 online workouts on days I couldn’t make it to a live studio class.
What if I told you that you could get a toned, lean body and a balanced, happier mindset by moving throughout the whole day in 10-minute blocks? You can. Here’s how moving 10 minutes at a time can help you reach your fitness goals, build strength, and shed weight:
10 minutes is convenient and doable, which means you’re more likely to stick with it.
Regardless of how jam-packed your schedule is, I bet you have 10 minutes to spare. Can you squeeze in a workout before your kids wake up? Or during lunch hour? How about before dinner, while soup is simmering on the stove?
10-minute workouts boost your metabolic rate for hours after you finish exercising.
Have you heard of the after-burn? During exercise, your metabolism increases, burning more fat and calories as your heart rate elevates and your muscles work. Your metabolism stays elevated for hours after you finish exercising. You burn the same amount of calories doing four 10-minute workouts as you do in a 40-minute workout, but if you do 10-minute workouts throughout the day you get the benefits of that after-burn all day long.
10-minute workouts help you focus and reduce your stress levels.
Studies show that the increased blood flow to the brain that occurs during exercise can improve your ability to concentrate and calm your mind. While we might be tempted to skip a workout when we’re stressed, that’s actually when we can benefit from exercise the most. During my busiest and most stressful days, I depend on my short workouts to settle my nerves and stay focused. So, the next time you get a call or email that causes you to momentarily stop breathing, get up and move instead of having a meltdown. The time you spend exercising is an amazing way to get some space and perspective so that you can work towards a solution.
