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We can get so stuck in our ways and become completely blind to how easy it can be to make positive, lasting changes in our lives. I’ve personally been a very slow learner to this sort of thing, and I’m excited to share some of what I’ve learned in this week’s Corbin Codex. Today, I’ll be honing in on achieving the benefits of exercise with minimal time investment and effort. This advice isn’t one-size-fits-all, but I think that it does better than simply “putting you on the right path.” Instead, I’ll be focusing entirely on advice that is actionable.
I will talk a bit about my own journey and thought process along the way, and perhaps you’ll see some of yourself in much of what I have to say.
(🍌 I was insistent on using some type of a “vapor” soundtrack for this article, but I wanted something more upbeat. “Future Funk” tends to fit that description quite well so, enjoy the Super Funky Ball tunes!)
🧍 Literally just stand up and run in place 🧍
Alright, alright; this piece of advice is a little facetious.
I’ve always been a smaller guy and I’m certain that many people in my life would still describe me this way, but I’ve noticed myself becoming more “round” as I age. I also used to bike or walk to work, and spend most of the workday on my feet.
But like a lot of us nowadays, I’m sitting. I’m sitting a lot. And this is just who I am now, someone who is getting a little more “round” each year, and someone who sits most of the time and overall has less energy.
Let’s just say what it is: I’m out of shape.
I feel like there’s a common misconception that “working out” or “getting in shape” is for those types of people; or, in other words, people who aren’t you or I. But I hit a breaking point and had an epiphany (ok I’m definitely stretching the definition of epiphany here): I don’t need to buy workout equipment or a gym membership, or even leave my home office to get in shape. And, one night while I was doing my nightly routine of accomplishing nothing and binge-watching YouTube videos, I stood up and just started running in place.
This certainly wasn’t the best workout, but it was a workout nonetheless; it got my heart rate up and my blood pumping! Maybe it’s obvious but I didn’t want to just stand in front of my desk and jog all day, so I was off on my journey to reap the rewards of exercise with minimal effort. I’ll be sharing all of the stuff I learned along the way.
(here’s a completely unrelated commercial of AOL’s Running Man logo apparently having a one night stand with Sharon Stone)
👟 Getting started 🏋️
🧹 Clean up your space, like right now
Seriously, it makes all the difference. I ended up rearranging my home office a bit so I always had a wide open spot in the center to do different workouts. I’ve lived in places with a much smaller office, or no office at all, or even places where I’d get home when others are sleeping and doing a “traditional” workout would disrupt them.
Fear not! We’ll knock these barriers down (and more!) one-by-one, starting with your space. I’m a pretty short guy, so I work with a roughly 6 foot by 3 foot space. And guess what? You only need this space for short windows of time. Before I rearranged the space that I’m in, I would move a piece of furniture back and forth – a bench that I had in the center of my office for playing old video games on my CRT.
It isn’t ideal to move furniture whenever you’re looking to exercise, and of course it’s preferable to keep the space open; we want to do whatever we can to remove these barriers today so they can’t be used as excuses tomorrow. You could use the middle of your kitchen if you don’t have an island (or relocate the island!), or you could move a coffee table or couch in your living room; sometimes you just need to shift things by a few feet. Or, you could finally clean up the space around your computer like you’ve been meaning to for months :) (I might be talking to myself in the past with that statement).
🛒 Buy an inexpensive yoga mat
Start small. There are a million different workout routines that involve loads of different equipment, but none of those matter right now. You’re simply trying to build the habit of showing up every day, not collect a bunch of workout equipment that you’re tricking yourself with; you’ll say “I’d work out more if only I had X equipment.” I know these excuses so well because I’ve tried using them myself!
I think my yoga mat is the Amazon brand and is about a half-inch thick. My space is carpeted, but having the yoga mat seriously helps; even doing 15 push-ups with/without the yoga mat showcases a clear difference in what my hands and wrists feel like afterwards. You’re trying to “feel the burn,” to an extent, but you’re not trying to cause needless discomfort that makes you never want to “show up” in the first place.
⏲️ 9 minutes is all you need
This particular routine is billed as the “7-minute scientific workout.” The premise is that it hits all of the important parts of your body in a curated, backed-by-science order, within a short window of time. The video that I use is actually 9 minutes long, but it’s the same workout. You’ll need a clear space like I described, ideally with a yoga mat, but you should still give it a go whether or not you have one today. You’ll need a small section of wall to lean on momentarily, and you’ll want something like a wooden or folding chair that is sturdy enough to hold your weight and won’t slip around; I use an ottoman that stores my video game controllers, for example.
This short workout stems from a routine first made popular by the New York Times a decade ago, citing an article in the American College of Sports Medicine’s Health & Fitness Journal. It’s what’s known as an HICT workout, or “High-Intensity Circuit Training,” that aims to be extremely time efficient. According to the linked article in the Health & Fitness Journal, HICT “can be a fast and efficient way to lose excess body weight and body fat,” and “may be an extremely effective and efficient means by which to increase an individual’s V˙O2max1.” The implication seems to be that HICT can improve an individual’s aerobic fitness, cardiovascular health, and overall endurance.
Additionally, the same article goes on to state that HICT “can be an efficient approach to decreasing insulin resistance” and that there are measurable improvements after “as little as 8 minutes per week when executed at an intensity more than 100% V˙O2max.” Although we’re unlikely to be exerting ourselves at that high of an intensity, it really speaks volumes that a mere 8 minutes per week (that’s not even 7 hours a year!) can have such a profound effect.
(As an alternative to the video I linked, the New York Times webapp can be found here)
😬 but I…
No problem! Whatever your gripe is, there are plenty of resources that take these sorts of considerations into account. Are you looking for a routine with no jumping? A routine that’s easier on the knees? Maybe you’re not able to do a single push-up yet?
Try searching YouTube for something like “apartment friendly hiit” or “knee friendly workout.” I’ll also give a special shout-out to these two no-jumping, 20-minute, apartment-and-knee-friendly HIIT routines, here and here. They were some of the earliest routines I found and I always break a sweat within the first 5 minutes or so.
Additionally, if there’s a specific exercise in any routine that you have trouble with, a quick internet search for something like “[exercise name] alternative” typically yields plenty of results.
💪 right here, right now 🤝
You need to decide for yourself, right here and right now, if you are the type of person who exercises and stays in shape. Now that you know how effortless it is to get started, how brief the time commitment is, how minimal the equipment requirements are, and how straightforward it is to overcome any roadblocks in your path… Can you find those 9 minutes a day?
I have a really good feeling that you can, but I can’t make that decision for you; you must make it for yourself.
When you’ve made up your mind, I suggest adding a daily reminder to your phone or calendar or producivity app to complete your 9-minute workout. Seriously, it’s 9 minutes!
🛣️ Going forward 👉
🔃 Consistency is key ✅
Life does sometimes get in the way and cause us to miss a day once in a while, but the most important thing to keep in mind when this happens is: never miss two days in a row. I personally learned this piece of wisdom from Atomic Habits, but here (scroll down) is a good and free article that discusses this rule inside and out; it’s a valuable resource for all, but becomes indispensable if you’re the type of person who misses a day and spirals.
🎯 Looking for a larger challenge? 🏆
Perhaps you find the 7/9-minute too easy, or you’ve been doing it a while and are looking to ramp things up, or maybe you just have a lot of extra time in your day and you’re looking for a healthier way to spend it. First and foremost, I want to insist that you simply start small and show up every day instead of overloading yourself and potentially giving up before you’ve built the habit; but, as long as you’re maintaining at least the 9-minute each day, then there shouldn’t be a problem with attempting to push yourself a little further.
Here are some ideas for taking things a step further:
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Do multiple 9-minute routines back-to-back
An obvious advantage to this is that the workout requires so little and can be done virtually anywhere, so simply doubling or tripling up to reap additional benefits is trivial.
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Check out the “Advanced 7-Minute Workout”
This routine requires dumbbells, but otherwise is nearly as flexible as the original 7-Minute Workout. There are plenty of YouTube videos for this workout, and it’s also available on the NYT webapp.
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Move onto a longer, dumbbell-focused routine
Trying to build additional strength, but you’d still rather exercise at home with minimal equipment? I find this 12-week routine (and its associated PDF) to be a great place to start. Its only downside is that if you’re like me, and you don’t know how to do these exercises, you’ll need to look up a litany of videos to learn proper form2. Additionally, because of the variety of exercises, you’ll want to have an assortment of dumbbells available.
⭐ You’ve come a long way, baby! ⭐
Gold stars all around!
I wish you the best on your journey to get and stay in shape. My parting piece of advice is to keep things simple. It’s easy to go down a 3-hour fitness-related rabbithole and come out the other side feeling burnt out. It’s also possible to spend more time consuming “fitness influencer” content than the time you actually spend exercising, for example. I think it’s best to avoid these distractions entirely and focus solely on putting in the work; luckily for us, “the work” is a mere 9 minutes a day!
This concludes the 2nd issue of The Corbin Codex – yeah, that’s right; I decided on a name.
Thank you for taking the time!
c.zip