According to the American College of Sports Medicine, circuit training is an effective way to combine resistance training and cardio exercise into one fat-burning workout. You perform exercises in quick succession with little or no rest in between. Circuit is time efficient as workouts tend to last around 20 to 30 minutes in total. "Men's Health" magazine has published a number of body weight circuit workouts designed to promote fat loss, improve muscle tone and endurance which can be performed with little or no exercise equipment.
The Body Weight 100 Circuit
The Body Weight 100 circuit is an introductory workout in which you perform a total of 100 reps. Designed to get you used to performing this kind of exercise routine, this workout consists of six exercises performed in a back-to-back style with little or no rest in between. To do the Body Weight 100 circuit, perform 20 body squats, 20 push-ups, 20 vertical jumps, five chin-ups, 20 alternating lunges and 15 narrow grip push-ups. As you become more fit, try to perform the circuit more quickly or for multiple laps.
The Body Weight 200
Consisting of 12 exercises and 200 repetitions, the Body Weight 200 is an intermediate workout that uses predominately body weight exercises plus a couple of stability ball exercises for variation. To complete the Body Weight 200 workout, perform 30 squats, 30 push-ups, 10 vertical jumps, 10 stability ball leg curls, 10 stability ball jack knives, 20 alternating step-ups, five pull-ups, 20 alternating lunges, 20 narrow grip push-ups, 15 inverted rows, 15 squats and five chin-ups. Perform this workout against the clock and try to beat your best time each time you work out.
The Body Weight 350
The penultimate "Men's Health" circuit is called the Body Weight 350 and includes 12 exercises performed for a total of 350 repetitions. This workout is challenging but should be within your capabilities if you have spent a few weeks working out using the Body Weight 100 and 200 circuits. The Body Weight 350 consists of 45 squats, 40 push-ups, 20 vertical jumps, 20 stability ball leg curls, 20 stability ball jack knifes, 40 alternating step-ups, 10 pull-ups, 40 alternating lunges, 40 narrow grip push-ups, 20 inverted rows, 40 squats and 15 chin-ups. As with previous workouts, you should perform this workout against the clock and rest as little as possible between exercises.
The Body Weight 500
The Body Weight 500 is the most advanced workout in the series. Using similar exercises to the Body Weight 100, 200 and 350 but utilizing a higher repetition volume, the Body Weight 500 should challenge the more fit exerciser. To perform the Body Weight 500, complete 50 squats, 50 push-ups, 25 jumps, 50 stability ball jack knifes, 25 stability ball leg curls, 50 alternating step-ups, 25 pull-ups, 50 alternating lunges, 50 narrow grip push-ups, 50 inverted rows, 50 squats and 25 chin-ups. Storm though the entire list against the clock and rest as little as possible between exercises.
References
- "ACSM's Resources for the Personal Trainer"; American College of Sports Medicine; 2009
- "The Belly Off! Diet: Attack the Fat That Matters Most"; Jeff Csatari; 2009
Member Comments