The One Minute Workout

Welcome to afitnewyou!  Today I would like to talk to you about the One Minute Workout.  Well, ok, it’s not actually a one minute workout, but it’s all you have to anticipate doing prior to actually completing a workout.  Going in with the mindset that you only have to work for one minute will get you on the machine or in the gym.  But once there, you will complete a longer workout because you are there already.  The hardest part for many people to getting a workout in, is finding the time to get started.  Don’t be overwhelmed by feeling you have to do an hour long workout, or run six miles on a treadmill.  Just tell yourself to get started by doing just one minute.  You’ll quickly see that you are there working for longer!

This workout was inspired by a client I had a few years ago who had a hard time fitting in workouts into his very busy schedule.  Between working a job with a very demanding schedule, and being a dad and husband, he had a hard time finding the time to squeeze workouts in…even though he had a treadmill in his home.  Part of his problem was he had the “all or none” mentality where he wouldn’t workout at all if he couldn’t fit in a full hour or even a half hour workout in.  I kept trying to tell him, he could break up his “cardio” routines into pieces, into shorter intervals.  But, he still couldn’t find the time.  Eventually, I said to him “Look, just go on the treadmill for one minute!”  Its not that I wanted him to workout for only a minute, but I knew once he was on the treadmill, he would stay on it for more than that minute.  And this will be the case for anyone, with any workout.

When I have clients come to train with me at the gym, I often hear them say after the hello is “I wouldn’t have come in on my own except I had my appointment with you.”  Now, while there may be a financial consequence to missing the appointment at the last minute, it was more the idea that they had to get in, that ultimately gets the client in the gym.  And usually after their appointment, they will leave and get back to doing whatever it was they had to attend to in life.  I think a big reason why people like this will come up with an excuse to not get into a workout is because they feel “I don’t have the time” right now.  This is where the One Minute Workout comes into play.

Let’s say you’ve got a lot going on and you’re debating whether or not you should go to the gym, or hop on the treadmill at home, or go for a run, or whatever workout you typically would do, and the biggest hindrance is the idea that you don’t have the time to fit it in.  Just tell yourself, all I have to do is workout for one minute.  That’s it; just anticipate one minute.  Then, go do your workout.  What you will find, is once you start 99.99% of the time, you will wind up working out for longer than that one minute.  It’s pretty safe to say that most people will need more than a minute just to get their sneakers and gear on.  Once you start working out, you will say to yourself “Well, I already started, so I might as well do…one more minute, one more set, one more exercise…”  Like I said before, sometimes the hardest thing to do is to “get in the door” of the gym.  Well, if you made it all the way there, between getting ready and getting there, you probably won’t leave after only a minute’s time.  Even if you stayed at home, and you’re home on your own treadmill, by the time that first minute is up, you may say, “alright, I can do another minute or two.”  Heck, even going outside for a run, if you say I’m just going to go out for a block, by the time you get to the corner, you will think, “Ah, I can do more!”

The One Minute Workout isn’t an actual one minute workout.  But, it’s the push in the right direction you need to start doing something.  And, even if you get all the way to the gym and you decide to leave after that one minute, at least you did that…better than sitting on your bum.  But 99.99% of the time, that one minute workout will turn into a much more fulfilling workout.  Getting started is often the hardest part.  Not feeling overwhelmed and starting small is a great way to achieve a fit new you!