The fun and efficiency of workout mashups

The fun and efficiency of workout mashups

I have been doing various forms of cross training and core work into my routine over the past few years. I like to experiment with different variants to keep it interesting.  It’s a form of play that gets me to the gym – but it also often produces some useful workout mutations that I then add to my collection.

One of my challenges, and I’m sure one of yours, is being efficient with my workout time.  When I’m busy at work or on the road I may not have the time, or energy, to do some long involved structured workout.  I have found some variants that work almost anywhere and allow you to get a decent workout in whether you have 30 minutes or an hour.

An excellent way to create new workouts is to mash together two or three other workouts.

This works particularly well when those other workouts are getting stale or were not compelling to begin with.  For instance; using the elliptical or riding the stationary bike in the gym…Fairly boring and non-engaging.

Another way this works well is with workouts that require a ‘rest period’ between reps.  Like Steve Speir’s 100 pushup program and all its variants.  These programs recommend a rest period of a minimum of 90 seconds between sets.  To me this seems like an opportunity to throw some other activity into the empty space and optimize the routine.

Mashing up workouts allows you to practice the ever popular ‘confusion’ theory too.  You can mix a core workout like pushups or crunches with an aerobic workout like spinning.  Furthermore since you’ll be breaking up the aerobic part of the workout as well you can ratchet up the intensity there too.

In addition, if you have one of those things you don’t enjoy, like stretching, you can make it part of a mashup workout and get it done proscriptively.  This makes stretching easy to swallow because it is just another ‘activity block’ in the workout and you get to do it on muscles that are already warmed up.

What’s an example?

Yesterday I wanted to do Day 8 of the 100 pushups program and the 200 crunches program.  I also wanted to work in some deep stretching and I needed to do something aerobic as well and I didn’t have much time in my schedule for the workout.

I mashed up the three workouts into a great 38 minute routine that covered all the bases.

The 100 pushups day 8 schedule is six sets of pushups, 20, 25, 15, 15, 30.  Day 8 of the 200 crunches is six sets of crunches, 30, 38, 23, 23, 40.  In between these you need at least a 90 second separation.

The stretching I wanted to do was 1 minute each of calves, anterior Achilles and hurdler stretch.  I decided to mash in 3 sets of these.

I had biked on the previous day so I decided to use the elliptical as my aerobic filler mechanism.

Here’s how it goes:

Start

Set of Stretches

2 minutes on the elliptical at 90 rpm. (very high cadence to get the HR up)

Jump off and do 20 pushups and 30 crunches

2 minutes on the elliptical at 90 rpm.

Jump off and do 25 pushups and 38 crunches

2 minutes on the elliptical at 90 rpm.

Jump off and do a set of stretches

2 minutes on the elliptical at 90 rpm.

Jump off and do 15 pushups and 23 crunches

2 minutes on the elliptical at 90 rpm.

Jump off and do 15 pushups and 23 crunches

2 minutes on the elliptical at 90 rpm.

Jump off and do 40 pushups and 30 crunches

2 minutes on the elliptical at 90 rpm.

Set of stretches

End

The key is to push yourself to keep moving and not be lazy about the transistors.  You should be working up a good sweat and have your heart pumping hard.

The 2 minutes is entirely arbitrary as is everything else in this mashup.  This workout ended up being around 38 minutes with 14 minutes of aerobic activity.  If you want more you could do 3 or 5 minutes before switching.  It’s entirely up to you and the size of the time envelope you have.

The key here is that mashups allow you to win.  I was able to get a core workout an aerobic workout and a stretching routine done in under an hour.  I feel pretty good about that!  Who knows what I would have gotten done if I had scheduled my workouts serially like normal?

It keeps it fun and it is infinitely flexible.  Only have 20 minutes? Youcan mashup a 20 minute workout.  Stuck in a hotel without a gym? You can mashup up a workout from jumping jacks and squat thrusts.  It’s really a blank canvas for you to splatter your workout paint, or sweat on and be creative.

Mash it up and have fun.

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