At the end of a busy work day, working out may feel like the last thing you want to do. You’d rather put your feet up and binge on take-out and watch Netflix. Why? Because it’s convenient.
Well, the definition of convenient could change with the crew from The Tight Life knocking at your door.
With personal trainer Keighty Gallagher (Tight Club), nutritionist Carley Mendes (Keep it Real Food), and chef Christina Culver (Culver City Salads) by your side, it is now easy to get a workout in, and nourish your body afterwards with nutrient-dense food.
With Tight Club, Gallagher teaches mat-based movement classes, incorporating full-body movements and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) through body weight, strength, and plyometric training. The HIIT Mat workout can be done easily at home on a rainy day, or even at the office if you or your coworkers need a little energy boost.
This workout is, of course, time-efficient, convenient to maintain, and simple to assimilate into any lifestyle. All you need is a good pair of running shoes, comfortable clothes, a mat, and a stopwatch. Gallagher suggests using the timer app called Seconds Pro, which beeps at you when you need to stop and rest or start again.
These fast, short bursts of exercises have varying work-to-rest ratios. The most popular routine is the Tabata method, where you work twice as long as you rest. The Tabata sets are all about balancing the body, boosting your metabolism, strengthening your muscles, and stabilizing your joints.
To start, first get your heart rate up with plyometrics such as burpees, rocket jumps (aka squat jumps), jumping jacks, high knees on the spot, or skipping. Then, add some upper-body exercises like pushups and shoulder presses. For presses you could use dumbbells, sand bells, or even your baby! Throw in some lower body movements like squats or lunges, and then a core exercise like a plank or a sit-up and you’ve got yourself a complete Tabata set.
Anything that engages your transverse abdominals and rectus abdominals is beneficial not only for getting that toned stomach but also for strengthening your core for better balance and supporting your back. Try holding a plank for 30-60 seconds as well as doing the traditional sit-up, focusing on contracting your abs on the up phase.
If you want to intensify your workout, you can add in a skipping rope and some light to medium hand weights. It can take as little as four minutes to complete, as demonstrated with this sample circuit for you to do at home:
Choosing from the exercises above, do a high-intensity, upper body, lower body, and core exercise each for 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off, then repeat. If you can, use a mirror to keep your form. Build your workouts up slowly, as this is key to a sustainable change.
And when you’re ready to kick your fitness in to high gear, the three-week Tight Life challenge will get you on top of your fitness and nutrition game.
Learn more about the Tight Life challenge at TheTightLife.com.
