Fitness

The 20-Minute Total-Body Workout

A tome-efficient plan for a longer, healther, stronger life

By: Michael Mejia, C.S.C.S.
Published: September 2005   [ Updated: Dec 18, 2008 - 2:37:08 PM ]

Let's get something straight: You're not lifting for the beach or to try to intimidate your daughter's dates. Your goal is efficiency, so you need to focus on exercises that work the most muscle in the least time, says Michael Mejia, C.S.C.S., a trainer and the author of Scrawny to Brawny. As a rule, Mejia recommends only multijoint movements, which force you to bend at more than one joint. Plan your workout around these six basic movements, and you'll train every muscle in your body in less than 20 minutes per session. "It only takes two sets of each movement, done twice a week, to get most of the health benefits of lifting, including maintenance of your muscle and strength," says Mejia. Choose one exercise from each movement category below, and then create your own workout regimen by using the Rules of Repetition, which follow below.

Movement 1
Squat
How to do it:
Hold a barbell with an overhand grip so that it rests comfortably on your upper back. Set your feet shoulder-width apart, and keep your knees slightly bent, back straight, and eyes focused straight ahead. Slowly lower your body as if you were sitting back into a chair, keeping your back in its natural alignment and your lower legs nearly perpendicular to the floor. When your thighs are parallel to the floor, pause, then return to the starting position.
Perfect it:
Arch your lower back and push your knees outward as you lower your body. "This keeps the stress off your knees and lower back, providing you with the safest way to perform the move," says Dave Tate, C.S.C.S., a powerlifting champion from Columbus, Ohio.
Super substitutions:
Lunge, split squat, and overhead squat.

Movement 2
Hip-dominant
Any lower-body exercise in which your hamstrings and glutes work the hardest. For any standing exercise, your torso will be bent forward more than 45 degrees as you perform the move.
The main move:
High step-up
How to do it:
Use a step or bench that's 18 inches off the ground. Place your left foot on the step so that your knee is bent at 90 degrees. Your knee should not advance past the toes of your left foot. Push off with your left foot, and bring your right foot onto the step, keeping your back straight. Now step down with the left foot, followed by the right. Alternate the leading foot, or do all of the repetitions leading with one foot and then alternating. Once you're comfortable, add dumbbells.
Perfect it:
Use a knee-high step or box, and hold a heavy dumbbell in the hand on the same side as your working leg, instead of two lighter dumbbells in each hand. "That ensures that the weight is focused directly on the target leg," says Cameron McGarr, C.S.C.S. Using the combination of a knee-high box and heavy dumbbell will force your torso to bend forward, focusing the stress on your hips, hams, and glutes.
Super substitutions:
Deadlift, Romanian deadlift, and back extension

Movement 3
Horizontal press
Any upper-body exercise in which you push the weight out and away from your body.
The main move: Barbell bench press
How to do it:
Lie on your back on a flat bench with your feet on the floor. Grab the barbell with an overhand grip, your hands just beyond shoulder-width apart. Lift the barbell, and hold at arm's length over your chest. Slowly lower it to your chest. Pause, then push back to the starting position.
Perfect it:
Try it with dumbbells. Start by holding the dumbbells next to your chest so that your palms face each other. As you push the weight up,
rotate the dumbbells outward, so that your palms are facing forward. "This works your pectorals the way they're designed to function, giving you better results," says McGarr.
Super substitutions:
Pushup, dip, and close- or wide-grip versions of the barbell bench press

Movement 4
Horizontal pull
Any upper-body exercise in which you pull the weight in to your torso.
The main move: Barbell row
How to do it Grab a barbell with an overhand grip, and stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your knees slightly bent. Let the barbell hang at arm's length on top of your thighs, thumbs pointed toward each other. Bending your elbows, lift your upper arms straight out to the sides, and pull the barbell straight up until your upper arms are parallel to the floor and the bar is just below chin level. Pause, then return to the starting position.
Perfect it:
Use a grip that's twice shoulder width and squeeze your shoulder blades together as you pull the weight to your chest. "You'll better work the muscles of your rear shoulders and upper back, which when weak, cause men to slump and leads to the rounded-shoulder look," says Mejia.
Super substitutions:
Dumbbell row, inverted row, and seated row

Movement 5
Vertical press
Any upper-body exercise in which you press the weight upward.
The main move:
Barbell shoulder press
How to do it:
Sitting on an exercise bench, hold barbell at shoulder height with your hands shoulder-width apart. Press the weight straight overhead so that your arms are almost fully extended, hold for a count of one, then bring it down to the front of your shoulders. Repeat.
Perfect it:
Hold the barbell with an "offset" grip, so that your thumbs are against the inside heads of the dumbbells. "This creates an imbalance in the distribution of the weight, forcing your shoulder muscles to work twice as hard," says Mejia.
Super substitutions Dumbbell shoulder press and pike pushup

Movement 6
Vertical pull
Any upper-body exercise in which you pull the weight downward.
The main move:
Lat pulldown
How to do it:
Grab a lat-pulldown bar with a "false" overhand grip that's just beyond shoulder width. A false grip means you place your thumb on top of the bar, alongside your index finger, rather than wrap it around the bar. Pull the bar down to your chest. Pause, and slowly return to the starting position.
Perfect it:
Perform the movement while on your knees, instead of sitting on the bench. "It aligns your lats and your glutes, which naturally work together, allowing you to use more weight," says McGarr.
Super substitutions:
Chinup and pullup