There are plenty of free workouts that can help men increase muscle mass, aerobic capacity and help them lose weight. Finding 30 to 60 minutes each day to set aside for exercise can improve your overall health and help you maintain a healthy body weight. Make sure to consult your doctor before trying any new exercise regimen to be sure that it's right for you.
Circuit Training
Circuit training combines resistance training and an aerobic workout in one. These workouts don't require hours in the gym, so it's an ideal routine for men with busy schedules. Ex-Navy Seal, Stew Smith, recommends an intense 20-minute circuit training workout for building muscle and burning fat. The key to maximizing the benefits of a circuit training workout is to take little or no rest in between each exercise -- move from one to the next as quickly as possible to maximize the aerobic benefit.
Stew Smith's recommended workout -- posted at Military.com -- uses 14 different upper body, lower body and aerobic exercises to target every part of the body, including the cardiovascular system. Instead of counting repetitions for each exercise, Smith recommends setting a time limit -- such as one or two minutes -- for each exercise. That way you can focus more on good form instead of trying to maximize the number of reps. The 14 exercises Smith suggests are in this order: bench press, squats, pull-ups, bike/jog, military press, lunges, bicep curls, bike/jog, tricep extensions, leg extensions, leg curls, sit-ups, crunches and stretching. You can design your own circuit training workout as well using five to 10 of your favorite full-body exercises.
High Intensity Interval Training
High Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT, can help men burn more calories than a moderately-intense workout, improve your aerobic capacity, and you don't need any special equipment to do it, according to the Mayo Clinic. This vigorous workout is idea for men who have 30 minutes or less per day for a workout. HIIT works by using a "rest" followed by a "work" interval. For instance, you jog for 30 seconds, and then sprint for another 30 seconds. The cycle would then repeat for a total of up to 10 times. The key to this workout is not resting at all in between each interval. In all, this workout only takes 20 to 30 minutes, including the time it takes to stretch, warm-up and cool-down.
Inclined Treadmill Workouts
If you have access to a treadmill, stairs or live near a hilly landscape, you can take advantage of the increased calorie burn that inclined workouts provide. Treadmills work best because you can track your incline angle, calories burned, speed and distance traveled. Adding a slight incline to your jogging or walking exercise regimen can add up to a significant boost in calories burned. For instance, a 180-lb. man taking a brisk walk can burn about 311 calories per hour while the same man can burn 490 calories walking the same speed but uphill, according to the fitness experts at NutriStrategy. For an even greater workout, NutriStrategy points out that the same man could burn 613 calories per hour climbing hills with a 10 to 20-lb. backpack or any other kind of additional weight added.
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