BY EBENEZER SAMUEL, C.S.C.S.
If you’re doing a workout purely to burn calories, you’re doing it wrong. Whether you’re trying to lose weight or you’re midway through a summer cut, your workouts should focus on building muscle and strength, not just moving to sweat.
But that doesn’t mean amp our training calories burned just a bit. Your key: Look for exercises that have you moving through vast ranges of motion or covering great distances. And look for moves that are novel; the more inefficiently your body moves, the more it’ll blast calories.
This three-move circuit has you covered. Do each move for 40 seconds, then rest for 20 seconds before moving to the next move. Get through at least 3 rounds or do as many as 7. Hit it 2-3 times per week.
DUMBBELL THRUSTER
Here, you’re covering a great vertical distance, moving from a very low squat to your tallest standing position. You’re also moving explosively, and building power is an underrated key for longevity. Keep the weight lighter than you think here, especially to start.
PENDULUM LUNGE
On the pendulum lunge, you’re covering massive horizontal distance, going from a reverse lunge right into a forward lunge. That’s terrific for calorie burn, and it works for another reason too: You can go heavy here. The larger the load you’re moving, the more work you’re pushing your body to do. Yup, that’s calorie burn. Alternate reps for your work interval on this one.
BEAR PLANK TO PLANK ROW
This multi-step exercise blasts your back and abs and it’ll challenge coordination, too. And because it’s not a move you’re doing consistently, you’ll struggle to be efficient. That’s (and the explosive leap from plank to bear plank) will push you to burn calories. A bonus: Combined with the exercises above, we’ve challenged almost every muscle in your body with this session. Get after it!