The Quick & Dirty Circuit

Try the sample routine below. It will work your entire body. Remember, don’t rest in between exercises – once you’re done with one exercise, move right into the next exercise. Do as many reps as you can for each exericse.

1. Squats (without weight)
2. Pushups
3. Dumbbell shoulder press
4. Dumbbell bicep curls
5. Sit-ups

Once you’ve gone through the circuit, repeat it from the beginning. You can go through it three or four times to make the workout even longer.

It’s essential that you read the Nutrition Facts label of everything you eat. You might be surprised at how many calories you’re taking in.

Also pay attention to the Serving Size listed on the label. Sometimes it can be a little sneaky – for example, you may have a small bottle of soda, but the Serving Size may be only part of the bottle. Drinking the entire bottle may count as two or three servings, and you’ve just added extra calories without even realizing.

You’ll also want to watch the amount of fat and sodium you’re taking in. Generally speaking, the less fat and sodium you get in your diet, the better.

One good tip is to pick a normal day, and write down the caloric amounts of everything you eat during that day. You can also keep track of the fat and sodium in what you’re eating and drinking. This way you’ll know how much you’re taking in during an average day. From there, you can adjust your diet based on this information.

If you’re looking to lose weight, you should limit yourself to between 1,500 to 1,800 calories per day. This will let you lose weight at a safe rate, of about 1 pound per week, and still let you enjoy what you’re eating.

To do pull-ups, you need to be at a pull-up station or bar at the gym, or have a pull-up bar at home. Your local park might have exercise stations that allow you to do pull-ups on them. Some enterprising and fearless individuals have even used the horizontal bars on construction scaffolding and the handrails in subway cars to do pull-ups.

Start by grabbing the bar with your palms facing away from you, and then use your arms to pull yourself up so that your chin is at least level with the bar. Now lower yourself back down. You can lower yourself all the way down so that your arms are fully extended, or if you’re a beginner and don’t have that much strength, lower yourself halfway down and then come back up.

You can do pull-ups by gripping the bar with your palms facing towards you, which will work your biceps more (and are technically called chin-ups). Many people find this easier than doing a true pull-up, but you should practice both grips.

Do as many as you can per set. Never swing your legs or kick when doing a pull-up – that’d be cheating. Focus on good form, even if it means doing only one or two pull-ups. You will eventually get stronger.

If you’re really struggling with pull-ups, try placing one foot on a chair while doing them. This will lessen your bodyweight, allowing you do to the full range of motion. When you get stronger, ditch the chair and start doing real pull-ups without the assist.

Don’t beat yourself up if you can only do one or two pull-ups. Most people struggle with doing pull-ups. Just keep practicing them, and you’ll get better.

To properly do a lunge, start off with your feet shoulder-width apart, then step forward, heel first. Bend your leg until your knee is at a 90-degree angle and your thigh is parallel to the floor. Your back leg can be bent while in the lunge position, but do not let your knee touch the floor.

Now lunge with the opposite leg by standing up, returning to the starting position and extending that leg outward and repeating the steps above. You can perform “walking lunges” this way, if you have enough room.

To make lunges more difficult, you can add weight to the exercise by holding a dumbbell in each hand, or holding a barbell across your shoulders.

Switch it Up

If you train certain body parts on certain days, try switching up your routine. Do your upper body workout on Wednesday instead of Monday, and switch your leg routine to Friday instead of Wednesday. Just breaking out of the same routine can be a refreshing change of pace.

Take Up a Recreational Sport or Activity

Instead of doing an aerobics class, take up inline skating or ice skating.

If you do most of your cardio indoors on a treadmill, get a bike and go for a ride outdoors.

Join your company’s softball team, take tennis lessons, or organize a weekly basketball pickup game with some friends.

If you’re having fun with friends or participating in something exciting, you might even forget you’re doing it for the exercise.

Train for a Marathon or Triathlon

The training required for a marathon or triathlon is probably very different from what you’re doing right now. Putting aside your old regimen for a few weeks or months to get in shape to compete in these kinds of events will definitely give you a new challenge.

You might even look at your old routine with a certain fondness, longing to get back to it, after training for one of these intense athletic events.

Do Something You Said You’d Never Do

Many people shy away from yoga and just want to pump iron or do cardio instead, but taking a yoga class can be beneficial and keep your muscles learning.

Taking up an activity such as swing dancing or salsa dancing will also get your body moving in new ways, and you’ll meet new people in the process.

Rock climbing – indoors or outdoors – is very popular, and will encourage you to use your muscles in an exciting new capacity.

Even if you’re more of a lover than a fighter, a traditional martial art such as karate or judo can offer you the benefits of improved strength, reflexes, and balance.

Always Try New Things

Giving something that you’ve assumed you won’t like or be good at an honest try can open new doors for you in terms of fitness and other aspects of your life.

Many people do bench presses with a barbell, but you can effectively do the exercise with a pair of dumbbells.

To do bench presses with dumbbells, lie down on a bench with a dumbbell in each hand. Hold the dumbbells at chest level and then push them upward. Don’t let your arms lock.

Pause for a moment at the height of the motion, then slowly lower the weights back down to your chest. If you have lower back problems, you can keep your knees bent during the exercise, which will help you keep your back flush on the bench, as shown in the photo.

Try doing three sets of 8 to 12 reps with a reasonably heavy pair of dumbbells. As you get stronger, increase the weight you use.

When it comes to working out, you might start skipping a workout here and there, and before you know it, you haven’t worked out in a week. And one week turns into two weeks, then three weeks. We’ve all been there.

If you aren’t motivated in your dieting, you might start cheating by adding a snack here and there, or eating unhealthy foods, or telling yourself “hey, this bacon cheeseburger won’t hurt me, I’ll make up for it later,” until suddenly you are completely off your diet.

So how do you stay motivated? Ultimately, it’s up to you to stick with your diet or exercise program. But here are some tips that may help.

Remind Yourself Why You’re Doing This in the First Place

Re-focusing on your initial reason for starting to exercise or diet can be a powerful motivator. Remembering what originally gave you the motivation to make changes in your life can get you fired up all over again. Try to conjure up the thoughts and feelings you had before you started, and use that to carry you through on your way to success.

Use Another Person as Your Role Model

Maybe there’s a celebrity that has the type of body that you’d like to have. Perhaps you know someone personally who either lost a lot of weight, got in great shape, or completed their first marathon. Use them as your inspiration to keep yourself motivated. Remember, if one person can achieve something, so can you.

Use an Upcoming Event For Positive Pressure

You might have your 20th high school re-union coming up. Maybe you want to look good poolside or on the beach during next summer. Perhaps you’ve got a strip poker tournament in a few months. Whatever it is, keep in mind that you want to look as fit and sexy as possible for this particular event. Having this in mind every day can keep you on track.

Use Negative Comments From Others

Let’s face it, for some people, being told they can’t do something is reason enough to do it. You may have people in your life saying you can’t get stronger, you can’t get faster, you can’t achieve the body you want, you can’t compete in that triathlon. Turn their negative energy into a positive for yourself by using their comments to make you work even harder and achieve your goals.

However you do it, and whatever keeps you going, always stay motivated and always remember that with time, dedication, and effort, you can achieve your fitness goals.

Squats must be done carefully and with correct form as to not hurt your knees and lower back. People with knee injuries or back problems might want to avoid doing squats, or seek the advice of a medical professional or trainer.

To do squats safely, start out standing up with your feet shoulder-width apart. Slowly bend down at the knees until your thighs are parallel to the floor. Don’t lower yourself any further than that.

Now raise yourself up and return to the starting position. If at any point during the exercise you feel discomfort in your knees, try adjusting your stance by either slightly widening it or making the distance in between your feet a little smaller.

When you first start out and are getting the basic motion that works for you, you should do squats without any weight. As you progress, you can add weight to the exercise by holding a dumbbell in each hand as pictured above.

Squats should be done in long sets to failure. Try doing 20 reps per set.

Bicep curls using dumbbells are the best way to build this muscle. You can do curls standing or seated. Proper curls are done by holding the weights with your arms down below your waist and your palms facing away from your body.

From this position, raise the weight up to your shoulders, keeping your elbows close to the sides of your body. Do not swing the weights to complete the movement – if you can’t get the weight up, then it’s too heavy. You want good form for this exercise, and you want to remain in control at all times so that you isolate the biceps.

To build the muscle quickly, you should do curls with weights that are on the heavier side, and do 8 to 10 reps per set. Try starting out with 3 sets of bicep curls. As you get stronger, move to a slightly heavier weight, but keep doing 8 to 10 repetitions per set.

In addition, you don’t need to do as many sit ups as you would to get the same results from doing crunches. A few good sets of 15 to 20 sit ups can be far more effective than doing hundreds of crunches. You’ll get those six-pack abs in no time doing real, full sit ups.

To do a proper sit up, start by laying on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Put your hands behind your head and cradle it so that you don’t strain your neck. Carefully sit up until your upper body is upright and you are looking straight ahead over your knees.

Now, slowly lower your upper body back down to the starting position. During most of the movement, you should feel your abdominal muscles doing all of the work.

Some people have problems keeping their feet on the floor when doing sit ups. If you have an exercise partner, have them hold your feet down. You can also try slipping your feet underneath your couch, or putting heavy dumbbells on each foot to hold them down.