Short-Circuit

How the 30 Minute Workout Works: Short-Circuit Training tm By Chris McNeil

Feel too busy to exercise? You are not alone. Lack of time is the number one reason people state for not exercising. But, what if it took half the time you thought it would- or less? What if the results you got from it were noticeable so fast, it became naturally motivating to continue- a more than fair payback for your time invested? Everyone has their own "balance point" of the effort they are willing to expend for a fitness result. My experience is, if you lower the barrier of the time required, it is a better trade off and much easier to stick to. If you can get more results with less time and hassle, you will want to do it and continue doing it. And, therefore, continue getting the benefits.

A huge misconception is that exercise needs to be done in one hour chunks. Almost all aerobics classes, for instance, last 60 minutes. However, I have found much better results with 30 minute sessions when a program is structured around results. The FITT (Frequency, Intensity, Time, and Type) principle lays down the foundation of a minimum weekly schedule of exercise. Beyond that, exercising harder, longer, and more often does not produce much better progress, in spite of the human tendency to do more exercise more often when it isn't working. The real key is progressing your fitness level over a timeline and passing the baton to different phases of training as your fitness level evolves. This is what dramatically accelerates progress without working out harder or longer.

Getting results in 30 minutes requires a special program structure. The LifeStyle Dynamics Fitness Training Studios are designed specially to facilitate this training, as it won't normally work in a commercial fitness center. The technique- Short-Circuit Training- is incredibly time-efficient: it gives you muscle tone, aerobic fitness, and flexibility in only three 30 minute sessions per week. The program depends on several factors-

1- A strength-aerobic circuit format

2- A razor-sharp performance goal focus

3- Mastery of the biomechanics of exercise

4- Utilizing the principle of economy of effort

The strength-aerobic circuit format

When Nautilus machines were introduced to the public in the early 70's, one of the key principles the new Nautilus Centers utilized was the idea that you can get aerobic and strength benefits through circuit weight training. The machines were organized into 8-12 "stations", one per major muscle group. Supposedly, by moving from machine to machine with no rest, you kept your heart rate in it's "target zone" and therefore got aerobic benefits as well as strength benefits.

The Nautilus format has been copied by numerous health clubs and equipment manufacturers and is still widely used today. However, it has been debunked for two reasons:

1) Strength training, by itself, cannot produce much aerobic benefit. To get an improvement in aerobic condition, you have to teach your body to use more oxygen. When you are more aerobically fit, your body is a better oxygen pump. To consume a lot of oxygen you have to use your largest muscle groups (hips and thighs in particular) rhythmically. Pure strength training does not do this well on its own because a muscle cannot get the blood (which carries the oxygen) in and out well when it is contracting forcefully. Also, the smaller muscle groups, like shoulders and arms, just cannot use very much oxygen because they do not have the muscle volume of the larger lower body muscles groups.

2) Fixed movement machine are inferior to free weights in most cases. Free weights produce superior results to machines because they allow your body to move through the path of motion that is most natural to you (rather than having it imposed by a machine) and the neuromuscular coordination you build by balancing and controlling the weight is a major factor in your progress.

The LifeStyle Dynamics Short-Circuit program solves those two problems by involving aerobic stations (such as the elliptical machine, rower and recumbent bicycle) that involve a high level of oxygen consumption and by using free weights when possible for the improved strength progress they facilitate. This gives the optimum balance of strength and aerobic training in the minimum time. Where the Nautilus system has failed, our program delivers.

The Performance Goal Focus

Overload is the key thing most people miss in exercise. If you keep doing the same level of work, your body adapts to it and quits changing. To get the most out of a short workout, you have to use the principle of specific overload: progressively increasing the level of work on both your strength and aerobic exercises. Our trainers facilitate this special dimension in your workout. Every key exercise is guided upwards in level (either weight, repetitions, or level of work) over time as your fitness level progresses. By keeping records of your work level, and consistently guiding you to small performance increases, we get faster results in less time.

Mastery of the Biomechanics of Exercise

A lot of exercisers leave results on the table because their form is not correct. Often, a simple change in body position, motion path, or rhythm will make all the difference. In most commercial health clubs, people only get a very simple and basic familiarization with exercise form. Or, worse, they copy the form of others around them who never learned it properly in the first place!

In order to get the most out of an exercise, you must make second nature the correct body position, motion path, movement rhythm, and breathing pattern . . .so that you can focus on progression and performance increases. Having the one-on-one attention of our well credentialed trainers gives you the feedback necessary to optimize form.

The Principle of Economy of Effort

Ever try to pick your car up? Not easy, is it . . but, with the leverage a jack affords, you can do it. It is a matter of knowing where to apply leverage and with what tool.
It is very powerful to get more results with less time and effort- it makes it all seem more worthwhile. If you are putting in less time and less effort and getting a greater result, of course the process seems more worth continuing.
A correct state of mind accomplishes much more than rigid, disciplined work. In applying this principle to exercise, we find greater results coming from less work when:
1) redundant exercises are eliminated
2) The focus is on progression instead of volume so a few sets get the same result as many
3) Misconceptions that lead to wasted effort and understood and the wasted effort eliminated
4) Exercise is done for the minimum necessary frequency, intensity, and time (FIT).

It takes a special studio design and program flow to use the strength-aerobic circuit program that makes a half hour workout create benefits in strength, aerobic condition, and flexibility. The goal-focused coaching of the trainer makes for the intensity level and progression that nets the promised results.

If you have had trouble sticking with exercise programs in the past, the Short-Circuit program may be for you. Imagine 3 times the results with half the time!

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