Forego the long, mundane workout and get the same results in a much shorter time frame. The idea of the seven minute workout has been around for a while, but it didn’t really take off until the New York Times wrote a story titled “The Scientific 7-Minute Workout” in 2013.
Research by the American College of Sports Medicine found that high-intensity circuit training using just a person’s body weight can give maximum results. By training at your highest intensity, even just for a few minutes, your muscles will experience molecular changes similar to what happens when running or biking for several hours. With that in mind, the American College of Sports Medicine recommends a specific set of 12 high intensity bodyweight exercises performed for 30 seconds each, with 10 seconds of rest in-between each one.
There are a number of smartphone apps that will offer seven minute workout recommendations, but the 7 Minute Workout by Wahoo Fitness follows the same routine recommended by the American College of Sports Medicine.
Here’s how it works:
- Download the free app from the Apple Store and Google Play and sign up for an account
- The homepage of the app displays the exercises you’ll perform for 30 seconds each
- Not sure how to do the exercise? Tap the picture and a Youtube video will populate with directions
- When you’re ready to start your workout, press ‘Start Workout’
- The first exercise will be displayed on the screen and the timer will automatically start counting down from 30 seconds
- Once complete, the timer counts down your 10 second rest
- After the total 40 second interval, the app automatically moves to the next exercise
- If looking at your phone will distract you during your workout, the app has voice commands to instruct you on which exercise to perform and how much time is left
- And, if you get bored of this exercise sequence, you can purchase alternative seven minute workouts for 99 cents each and additional features such as a workout log, daily reminders, setting longer/shorter rest times for $1.99.
