OyChicago blog

I’m not selling a fitness DVD or my training services – this is free advice to get in shape in less time. Who doesn’t want that?

Having a 3-year-old and a one-month-old, my workout time has shrunk. I have to squeeze in fitness into 20-30 minute increments. How can you do that and stay in shape? Depth training is the answer.

Depth training is basically doing many different exercises in whatever time you have with little rest. It’s similar to circuit training, for those of you familiar with that term. The goal is to fatigue your muscles quickly.

A depth training workout involves doing several exercises, such as pushups, lunges, jumping jacks, rows, squats, and planks – until failure. Repeat the list of exercises until you have to get back to work, child-rearing, your friend, your spouse – of course you will probably want to shower afterwards.

I like to select exercises that hit more than one muscle, such as pull-ups, squats and pushups. What’s great about those exercises is I do not need a lot of equipment to do them, and since I’m using multiple muscles, I burn a lot more calories. I also love to do a workout with a mini exercise band in between my knees.  This way I can blast my legs quickly with squats, and quickly mix in jumping jacks, shuffling, and mountain climbers with the band adding resistance. Stay tuned for a future video blog with exercises.

To form your own depth workout, use a balanced approach by working opposing muscle groups, such as:

- Chest and Back
- Quadriceps (muscles on the front of knee) and Hamstrings (muscles on the back of the knee)
- Biceps and Triceps
- Abdominals and Lower Back

If your goal is to gain muscle, you might want to pick only one group of opposing muscles and train another group during your next workout. If you are just trying to stay in shape or shed a few pounds, I recommend working the entire body at once.

For a personalized depth workout, email me at rkrit@fitwithkrit.com