How to Make a 10-Minute Workout Feel Like a 20-Minute One

We’re all strapped for time. Life is busy, and we’d all rather spend time hanging out with friends than alone lifting weights at the gym. Here’s Lifesum’s guide to making your workouts more effective:

1. Eat this
You need to feel energized before working out so that you can perform well. You need carbohydrates for energy, and protein for muscle. A lot of people buy shakes that combine these, but if you’re not a shake person, eat a small bowl of greek yogurt with a medium banana.

2. Keep your heart rate up
Workouts such as OrangeTheory’s Orange 60 are all about making sure you’re working out at your maximum. Try wearing a heart rate monitor when you’re working out and keep an eye on it – maintaining a high heart rate throughout your workout will lead to better post-workout calorie burn.

3. Go heavy
If you’re lifting weights, try lifting a heavier weight. It might require you to do fewer reps, but you’ll soon work up to more. It’s all about making your muscles do more.

4. Two birds one stone
The great thing with a lot of the functional movements you find in CrossFit and Tabata is that they work more than one muscle group at once. Try combining exercises, for example,holding a kettlebell and doing a step up at the same time.

5. Switch it up
Our muscles easily get used to the same repetitive movements and stop working as hard. Throw in some variation to make sure your muscles are still working hard.

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