How to get in that workday workout

Welcome to Healthy Living Week at OnMilwaukee.com! The resolutions are made, now the real work begins. But we're here to help get you – and keep you – on track with stories about medicine, diet, exercise, spiritual and emotional health, and more. Healthy Living Week is brought to you by Pairdd: easy gluten-free cooking at your fingertips.

I want to work out, but who has the time?

I’ve got to pick up my kids right after work, then make dinner – who has time for exercise?

There’s no way I can get up hours before work, get in a workout and then clean up – there’s no time for that!

We’ll come up with any reason, really, to avoid the process of getting in a workout. It takes time, no matter what. Perhaps a commute and changing and showering on site have to be factored in, too.

This is understandable. Unfortunately, daily exercise is something we need to live healthier lives.

As Gold’s Gym assistant general manager Matt Mulloy often says, "Those you don’t find time for exercise must find time for illness."

"People want to lose weight overnight, but that’s not going to happen," Mulloy added. "The biggest thing now is people eat worse, they sleep less and they work more. The gym is the only way to combat that."

Most of us can stand to lose a few pounds, and outside of changing your diet (always a good idea) you should try to get in some daily exercise. But, how to do that?

Well, it is possible to get in that weekday workout – something you can do for 30 to 35 minutes on your lunch hour that can get you in and out of the gym and back to work and feeling good about yourself.

Downtown Milwaukee has plenty of options for those working in the area, like the five-level Gold’s Gym, or the YMCA, Planet Fitness and Wisconsin Athletic Club.

Mulloy says a person can burn 250 calories in a half-hour doing very little work, which extrapolated over just three workouts a week is 750 calories. Over a year, that comes out to 39,000 calories, or 11 pounds.

Imagine what you could lose by really maximizing your effort in three to five weekday workouts?

But the key is to do the right things in that half-hour. Most people feel they need to hit the treadmill or elliptical for that time, but you’ll actually burn more calories if you lift heavy weights.

"I would definitely lift if your main goal is fat loss," Mulloy said. "I see people pedal away, but if you’re looking at calorie loss, I’d definitely lift. Absolutely. That’s a pretty common myth, that you burn more calories doing cardiovascular (work)."

Editor’s note: No matter what gym you attend, schedule a consultation with a personal trainer. Find out what you can and can’t do, and learn proper form for weight lifting. Nothing can hinder your workouts more than injury and doing things incorrectly.

If you’re really averse to meeting with a trainer, or using one over a period of time, Mulloy said that going back to exercise regimens that produced results for you in the past is a good starting point. When you only have 30-35 minutes to really burn the calories, simple is better – save the new exercises and equipment for when you do have more time.

"People try to complicate exercise way too much," Mulloy said. "They want to toss in all these balls and bands – if it worked before, it’ll probably work again. Definitely do what worked previously."

At the very least, lift heavy and hit the big muscle groups with squats, dead lifts, military presses and bench presses to maximize that workday workout.

Go on to the next page to print out a five-day calendar of workouts designed by Gold’s Gym personal trainer Dave Myers.

To give you some guidance Gold’s Gym personal trainer Dave Myers helps out by giving you "Five workouts to do on your lunch break" to get you fit and feeling better. (You can schedule a session with Myers by emailing him at Stepabove.dave86@gmail.com or calling the gym at 414-312-7582).

You may not be able to get to all of these drills, and some of these moves may be unfamiliar, but it’s a start and pick and choose what works for you.

Trainer’s note: Remember when training, the effort you put in you will get out! Rest periods between sets should be between 30 and 45 seconds.

Day 1
Upper Body (Sets x Reps)
• Cable Chops (hi-lo, lo-hi, midline) 2 x 12
• Bench (warmup 12 reps) 3 x 10
• Dumbbell Bench (1 and a halves) 2 x 10
• Bench Rows 2 x 12
• YTW’s (incline bench) 2 x 8
• Face Pull 2 x 12
• Curl to overhead press 2x 10
• Wall Supported Front Raise 2 x 10

Core
• Mountain Climbers 2 x 30
• Deadbug (20 reps) into a Prayer Sit up 2 x 12
• Nascars into a Passover Crunch 2 x 10
• Russian Twists into Hot Feet 2 x 20

Day 2
Lower Body
• Goodmorning 2 x 12
• Deep sit 2 x 8
• Goblet Squat/ Back Squat 3 x 10 (55%)
• Back Extension/ Glute Extension (plate) 2 x 10
• Prisoner Lunge 2 x 6 each leg
• Leg Curls (ball) 2 x 12

Core (Farmer’s Walk performed after each exercise 4 x 20)
• Side bridge Hip-up/ side bridge Leg raise 1 x15 each side
• Plank knee ups 1 x 10 each knee
• Glute Extension walkouts 1 x 6
• Leg raise Flutters 1 x 30
• Finish: Hand Puffers 1 x 50

Day 3
Full body
• Padloff Press 2 x 15
• Dumbbell Push up Walkout 2 x 6
• Sumo Deadlift/ Military Press 3 x 12
• Chest Row 2 x 10
• Split Squat 1 x 8
• Kneeling Press 1 x 10
• Skullcrushers 2 x 12
• Zottman (12)/ 21’s Curls 2 sets

Conditioning
• Burpies (8)/ Pushups 2 sets
• Spread leg sit up(10)into V-ups/ leg raises (10) 2 sets
• Side Bridge Twists(12) into Plank Shoulder Touches(20)2 sets

Day 4
Circuit (15 seconds max effort with a 20 second rest period)
• Wall Quick feet
• Side Bridge Leg raise
•Pushup row (about 10 lbs dumbbells)
• Wheel Drill
•YTW raises (ball)
• Standing Med. ball Chops
• Leg Curls (ball)
• Leg Raises
• Mountain Climbers
• Single Leg Reach (15 seconds per side)
• Pushup Walk (about 10 lbs dumbbells)
• Split Jumps
• Russian Twists
• Single Leg Glute extension ( 15 seconds per side)
• 6-inch leg raise hold (15seconds / raise to 45 degrees back to 15 second hold)
• Burpies/ squat thrusts
• Hot feet
• Walkover Pushups (with medicine ball)
• Squat Sit Hold
• Bent over Raises
• Nascars (ball)
(REST) WATER BREAK
• Side Bridge Twists (15 seconds each side)
• V-ups / Prayer sit ups

Day 5
Conditioning / Toning
• Med. Ball swing and raise 1 x 20
• Med. Ball Overhead Wall Squat 2 x 10
• Lateral Step Squat 2 x 8 each
• Plyo Box Step ups 2 x 10
• Plyo box Single leg Squats 2 x 8 each leg
• Dumbbell Shrugs 2 x 15
• Bent over Lateral Raises 2 x 10
• Push up Rows 2 x 10
• Glute Ext. Walkouts 1 x 4

Core
• Sprinters Crunch into Side Bridge Leg Raise
• Wall Sit (1 minute hold) into Monster Walk (20 feet forward and back)
• Scissors into Bicycle Crunch