CHAPTER 88

The Corporate Quickie

“You can always find an excuse not to succeed. Instead you have to find a way to make sure you do succeed.”

– Editorial in MuscleMag International

If you’re like many people, time seems to be in short supply. There may be 24 hours in the day but there are weeks when 30-hour days wouldn’t cut it. Whether from school, work or family responsibilities, there will be times when your training will need to be put on hold. But does it really need to be put on hold? What if you could train the entire body in 20 minutes with just seven basic compound exercises? The beauty of compound exercises is that they work more than one muscle group. This is why beginning trainers are told to put most of their emphasis on compound movements rather than isolation exercises. By utilizing multiple muscles, compound exercises allow you to lift more weight and hence stimulate more muscle mass.

Compound exercises also save you time. For example, barbell bench presses – either flat or incline – will work the chest, front shoulders and triceps. Chin-ups or pulldowns – particularly the reverse narrow versions – will target the back, rear shoulders and biceps. These two exercises alone will work virtually all of the upper body. Add in a couple of sets of side raises and you’re done.

The same approach can be used with the lower body. Squats, lunges and leg presses work the thighs, hamstrings and glutes, all in one motion. Add in toe presses or calf raises and you’ve worked your entire lower body. To complete your workout, perform a little circuit of crunches and back extensions for the abdominals and lower-back muscles.

TONE UP WHILE AT WORK

Everywhere you go, opt for the stairs over taking the elevator. Stair-climbing burns 100 calories every 11 minutes (the same as jogging), as well as toning your hamstrings, quads and glutes. Why be limited to gym exercises to develop a great butt? Avoid calling or e-mailing co-workers when you can actually get out of your chair and walk around the office to speak to them in person. Every extra step throughout the day adds up to more calories burned.

The same workout using isolation movements would take you over an hour – perhaps two if you did three or four sets per exercise. But these seven movements can be performed in as little as 10 to 15 minutes if you do only one set of each, or 25 to 30 minutes if you have enough time to do three sets.

THE CORPORATE QUICKIE
EXERCISE	MUSCLES	SETS	REPS
Leg presses, lunges or squats	Quads/Hamstrings/Calves	2	10–12
Flat or incline barbell bench presses	Chest/Shoulders/Triceps	2	10–12
Narrow reverse-grip pulldowns or chin-ups	Back/Shoulders/Biceps	2	10–12
Dumbell or machine lateral raises	Shoulders	2	10–12
Crunches	Abdominals	2	15–20
Back extensions	Lower Back	2	15–20
Toe presses or calf raises	Calves	2	15–20
Pick compound exercises (to work more than one muscle group).
You can add a cardio component to the workout by reducing the weight and keeping between-set rest intervals to less than 20 seconds.