WORKOUT

Focus & Ben­e­fits: Short work inter­vals mean that we get to bump up our weight selec­tions! How­ev­er, even though the work inter­vals in this work­out are only 30 sec­onds long, the recov­ery between exer­cis­es is only 15 sec­onds; thus, the lack of rest and near­ly con­stant ham­mer­ing away at sim­i­lar mus­cle groups with­in a cir­cuit elic­its a hyper­trophic train­ing effect (mus­cle size increas­es) in addi­tion to the strength-build­ing objec­tive of the routine.

Equip­ment: For this work­out, you’ll need a range of medi­um to mod­er­ate­ly heavy weights (rel­a­tive to what chal­lenges your low­er body mus­cles). A mat could also be help­ful for the glute bridge moves in the last circuit.

Tips & Help­ful Infor­ma­tion: Use your heav­ier weight options (your ​“mod­er­ate­ly heavy” selec­tions) for the first exer­cise in each cir­cuit, aim­ing to com­plete at least 6 to 8 reps of these moves with­in the 30-sec­ond inter­val. For the sec­ond and third exer­cis­es, feel free to decrease your weight load to your ​“medi­um” weights and com­plete as many reps as pos­si­ble dur­ing these 30-sec­ond inter­vals. The the­o­ry behind this for­mat­ting is that the time under ten­sion tem­po work in exer­cise 2 and the uni­lat­er­al work in exer­cise 3 will both incre­men­tal­ly pre­pare you for an increas­ing weight load for exer­cise 1.

Think of your ​“mod­er­ate­ly heavy” weights as those that are a step or two below your heav­i­est weight selec­tions (those that you would use for a 3 to 4 max rep count). Your ​“medi­um” weights are those you would use for high­er rep counts (10 and above) and/​or for mul­ti­com­po­nent exercises.

Dif­fi­cul­ty & Mod­i­fi­ca­tions Explained: This work­out is rat­ed as a lev­el 4 due to the sug­gest­ed vari­a­tions of weights as well as the tem­po and uni­lat­er­al work dur­ing each cir­cuit. To decrease the over­all dif­fi­cul­ty of this rou­tine, opt for lighter weight selec­tions, decrease your rep count per 30-sec­ond inter­val, and/​or decrease exer­cise range of motion.

Clos­ing Notes: This rou­tine is also a great oppor­tu­ni­ty to work on your grip strength! You’re lift­ing rel­a­tive­ly heavy weights and hold­ing onto these weights for a long dura­tion (90 sec­onds with short 15-sec­ond breaks each round of a cir­cuit), thus slow­ly accli­mat­ing your hands, wrists, and fore­arms to hold­ing heav­ier weights for increas­ing­ly longer peri­ods of time.

Work­out
Mobil­i­ty Warm-Up: 45 sec per exer­cise, no rest between exer­cis­es (4:30)
−90÷90 For­ward Fold Hip Open­er – R
‑Seat­ed Fig­ure 4 Glute Stretch + Spinal Twist (attempt to drop to fore­arm) – R
−90÷90 For­ward Fold Hip Open­er – L
‑Seat­ed Fig­ure 4 Glute Stretch + Spinal Twist (attempt to drop to fore­arm) – L
‑Deep Squat + Tor­so Rotations
‑Alt. Kneel­ing Runner’s Lunges (from Deep Squat position)

***30 sec off***

My Weights (not a rec­om­men­da­tion, just a reference):
‑For Primer Cir­cuit – 1 Weight: 20 lbs. (9.1 kg)
‑For Main Cir­cuits – 2 Weights*:
‑Mod­er­ate­ly Heavy: 30 lbs. (13.6 kg) to 40 lbs. (~18 kg)
‑Medi­um: 20 lbs. (9.1 kg) to 25 lbs. (11.3 kg)
(*option to use 1 weight for Cir­cuit #4)

Primer Cir­cuit: 30 sec per exer­cise, no rest between exer­cis­es (4:00) – 1 Medi­um Weight
‑Gob­let Squat
Weight in L hand
‑SL Kick­stand Dead­lift – R
‑Reverse Lunge – R
‑Hip Flex­or Lift – L
Weight in R hand
‑SL Kick­stand Dead­lift – L
‑Reverse Lunge – L
‑Hip Flex­or Lift – R
‑Sumo Squat (weight between legs)

***30 sec off***

Cir­cuit For­mat: 30 sec on / 15 sec off / 3 rounds – 30 sec off between rounds. Aim to com­plete at least 6 to 8 reps of the first exer­cise of each cir­cuit dur­ing the 30-sec­ond work interval.

Cir­cuit #1: (7:00)
-(mod­er­ate­ly heavy) Nar­row squat
-(medi­um) Mid-Range Nar­row Squat
-(medi­um) Alt. Lat­er­al Sumo Squats (with option­al weight swing)

***30 sec off***

Cir­cuit #2: (7:00)
‑Racked Split Squat – split reps R / L
-(unracked-neu­tral hold) Mid-Range Split Squat – split reps R / L
‑Alt. Reverse Lunges

***Water Break***

Cir­cuit #3: (7:00)
‑Dead­lift (RDL)
‑Mid-Range Dead­lift (RDL)
‑Alt. SL Kick­stand Deadlifts

***30 sec off***

Cir­cuit #4: (7:00)
‑Glute Bridges
‑Mid-Range Glute Bridge
‑Alt. SL Glute Bridges

Cool-Down: approx. 30 sec per stretch (approx. 5:00)
On mat/​floor ‑Supine (lying face up)
‑Ham­strings Stretch (hold behind leg) – R
‑Fig­ure 4 Stretch – R
‑Ham­strings Stretch (hold behind leg) – L
‑Fig­ure 4 Stretch – L
Kneel­ing
‑Lizard Pose Stretch – R
‑Adduc­tor Rock – R
‑Lizard Pose Stretch – L
‑Adduc­tor Rock – L
‑Cat-Cow
‑Child’s Pose + Hip Shifts