I find it painful to go to the gym. Not so much because I don’t like cardio equipment, fans and TVs, but because its extremely difficult to watch people essentially wasting time by unknowingly performing ineffective, or worse yet potentially harmful, exercises without offering up some assistance. Especially as I am an extroverted Fitness Yackadactyl (creature defined by a well defined and constantly moving set of jaw muscles, or in this blogger’s case, fingers).

I was reminded of this the other day while driving to work and listening to CBC. I heard about something called ROWE, or Results Only Work Environment.  The tagline, ‘where people are paid for productivity and not time spent,’ expresses the underlying premise of getting the job done, rather than putting in a prerequisite number of hours.

So, how does this apply to fitness you ask? We can increase productivity and decrease time at the gym by applying ROWE to exercise. The key is to select exercises and activities that give you the most bang for your time-spent buck. Here are some tips for constructing your Results Only Workout. 

Build your fitness program around 4 key cornerstones: Cardiovascular, Strength, Flexibility and Nourishment

Cardiovascular – In order to achieve results you must elevate your heart rate to 70 – 85% of your HR MAX. I can explain this at length if you are interested, or you can aim to work at an intensity where your heart and breathing rates are high enough you are able to carry on a conversation, but JUST barely. Never mind all the Fat Burning Zone, jargon, which warrants a post of its own. Just get your heart rate up and keep it up everyday for 30 – 50 minutes, remembering you can do this in intermittent bouts. Heart Rate Monitors are fabulous for helping with this, but if you don’t want to spend $100 ask me about taking your own pulse manually. Its free.

Strength – If you want maximum benefit for minimum time, perform one set of 12 reps of these four exercises: Chest Press or Push Up, Mid or Bent Over Row, Squat or Lunge and Dead Bug.  You will hit all the major muscle groups in the body with these four exercises.  Also, note the single set training has proven to be effectiveprovided your one set is a good one.  Remember, you MUST lift to momentary muscle fatigue in 12 or less reps.  This means you are not able to complete another rep while maintaining perfect form. If you are curling A two LB dumbbell 40 times, its much too light and you’re wearing out your joints, and not making a good use of your time.

NB – Generally weight exercises that involve bouncing, momentum, twisting of the spine, or bending over while hanging on to weights are NOT a good idea.

Flexibility - Stretch each major muscle group in the body and hold for 15 – 30 seconds without bouncing. Emphasize areas that are typically tight – hamstrings, hipflexors, calves, pecs and back of the neck. Yoga Sun Salutations are also a complete practice, so performing four Sun Series A and Sun Series B is a great way to target key tight spots.

NB – Generally, stretches that involve bouncing or wincing are not a good idea. You should never feel pain in a joint, only gentle tension in a muscle.

Nourishment – When it comes to eating focus your efforts on what you need to do, rather than obsessing about what you don’t. Eat more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Take time to slowly chew your food and pay attention to how what you are eating makes you feel.

And don’t forget to breathe!