This 12-station, 200-rep program burns fat and builds muscle -- in about 60 minutes a week
Directions: Do this workout 3 times a week -- Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, for example. Perform the exercises as a circuit, doing 1 set of each movement for the prescribed number of repetitions. Complete them in the order shown, without resting between exercises. Too easy? Rest 1 minute and repeat the circuit.
The Workout
1. Prisoner squats (30 reps)
2. Pushups (30 reps)
3. Jumps (10 reps)
4. Swiss-ball leg curls (10 reps)
5. Swiss-ball pikes (10 reps)
6. Stepups (20 reps)
7. Pullups or chinups (5 reps)
8. Forward lunges (30 reps)
9. Tucked-elbow pushups (20 reps)
10. Inverted rows (15 reps)
11. Prisoner squats (15 reps)
12. Chinups (5 reps)
Prisoner Squat
Stand with your hands behind your head, chest out, and elbows back [A]. Sit back at your hips and bend your knees to lower your body as far as you can without losing the natural arch of your spine [B]. Squeeze your glutes and push yourself back to the starting position.
Your toes should be angled slightly outward. Don't raise your heels as you drop into a squat.
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Pushup
Assume a classic pushup position, with your back and legs straight and your hands beneath your shoulders [A]. Brace your abs and keep your body rigid. Now lower yourself until your chest almost touches the floor [B]. Then push yourself up until your arms are extended.
Keep your back flat and lower your body until you're about an inch off the floor.
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Now dip down at your hips and knees [A] and explode up [B], jumping as high as you can. Land as softly as you can, and then lower yourself and repeat.
Drop your hips back to generate power, and land on your toes before sinking into your heels.
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Jump
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Now dip down at your hips and knees [A] and explode up [B], jumping as high as you can. Land as softly as you can, and then lower yourself and repeat.
Drop your hips back to generate power, and land on your toes before sinking into your heels.
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Swiss-Ball Leg Curl
Lie on the floor with your calves resting on a Swiss ball and your arms outstretched. Squeeze your glutes to raise your hips off the floor until your body is in a straight line from your shoulders to your ankles [A]. Pause for a second, and then bend your legs to roll the ball toward your butt [B]. Straighten your legs to roll the ball away from you, and then lower your body to the floor.
Drive your heels into the ball to lift your body and activate your hamstrings.
Swiss-Ball Pike
Assume a pushup position with your feet resting on a Swiss ball, your body in a straight line from toes to shoulders [A]. Keep your back straight as you contract your abs, raise your hips as high as you can, and roll the ball toward you [B]. For an easier version, pull your knees up to your chest without raising your hips.
Your toes should be on the top-center of the ball to help maintain your balance.
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Stepup
Holding your arms straight out in front of you, place one foot on a step or bench that's about 2 feet off the floor [A]. Push down through your heel to lift your other leg [B], and then return to the starting position. Complete all your reps with one leg before switching legs and repeating the movement.
Your entire foot should be on the bench, with your toes pointed forward.
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Pullup/Chinup
Hang from the bar with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart [A]. (Use an overhand grip for the pullup and an underhand grip for the chinup.) Pull your chin up past the bar [B], and then lower your body back down. If that's too hard, do negative chinups: Use a sturdy box or bench to boost your chin over the bar. Then lower your body as slowly as you can.
Focus on pulling your body up by squeezing your shoulders to use the muscles in your back.
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Forward Lunge
From a standing position [A], take a large step forward with one leg. When your front thigh is parallel to the floor and your back knee is off the floor [B], hold for 1 second. Then return to the starting position and repeat with your other leg. Make it harder by holding the lowered position for 5 seconds.
Make it harder by holding the lowered position for 5 seconds.
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Tucked-Elbow Pushup
Assume a standard pushup position [A], but keep your elbows tucked in against your sides as you lower yourself until your chest is about an inch off the floor [B] and then push yourself up. To aid your form, place your hands closer than shoulder width, about 6 inches apart.
To aid your form, place your hands closer than shoulder width, about 6 inches apart.
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Inverted Row
Set a chinup bar at hip height inside a door frame. Lie underneath the bar with your heels on the floor and grab the bar, your hands 1 or 2 inches beyond shoulder-width apart [A]. Keeping your body in a straight line, pull your chest up to the bar using your back muscles [B]. Slowly lower yourself until your arms are straight.
Keep your upper arms close to your body and don't let your hips sag.
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