20 Minute Calorie Torching At-Home Workouts

Just because you don’t belong to a gym or you aren’t able to get to yours does not mean that you still can’t get a great workout. In fact, some of the hardest workouts are those that use only bodyweight and nothing else. And if you take these exercises and create your own circuit program, you will be sweating as much (or more) as if you were at the gym.
Here are some great bodyweight circuits (some inspired by CrossFit) that you can do anywhere at any time:

Round-Based Workouts
Complete 10 rounds of 10 burpees and 10 V sit–ups (pictured above)making sure to touch your toes and keeping your legs as straight as possible when you come up. This one is simple, fast and effective.
For 7 rounds, complete 7 reps of the following seven exercises: push-ups, jumping lunges (7 per leg), full-body sit-ups, squats (or squat jumps), mountain climbers (7 per side), lunges (7 per leg) and high-knee runs (7 per side).

Do 5 rounds of the following exercises: 10 push-ups, 20 squats, 30 burpees, 40 forward lunges (20 per leg) and 50 mountain climbers (50 per side for a total of 100). If you still have energy, add a few more rounds.

Ladder Workouts
Start out by doing 1 push-up, 2 burpees (pictured above) and 3 squats. On the next round, increase each set by one rep so you would do 2 push-ups, 3 burpees and 4 squats. Keep going until you reach 10 push-ups, 20 burpees and 30 squats. If you have time (or want more), go back down the ladder until you are back to 1 push-up, 2 burpees and 3 squats.
Begin by doing 1 rep of the following exercises: push-ups, burpees and a V sit-up. Now go up to 2 reps per exercise. Continue until you hit 10 reps, and then go back down until you are back to 1 rep.

Timed Workouts
For 20 continuous minutes, do the following circuit (resting only when you need to and keeping it to a minimum): 5 push-ups (pictured above), 10 tuck jumps, 5 burpees and 10 squats.
For 15 continuous minutes, complete the following circuit (again, resting only when you need to and keeping it brief): 20 mountain climbers (per side), 20 side lunges (ten per leg), 15 push-ups and 15 squat or tuck jumps.

Quick Cardio Workouts
Run (do not walk) up and down a long flight of stairs for 1 minute straight. Stop for 30 seconds and then go again. Continue this for a total of 10 rounds of stair running. This will take all of 15 minutes, but you can add more rounds if you have the motivation and the energy.
Do each of the following exercises for 1 minute with a 15 second break in between each exercise: squats, burpees, walking lunges, Spiderman push-ups (alternate bringing your knees around to your elbows when you go down on the push-up), tuck jumps, mountain climbers, V sit-ups, tricep dips, alternating curtsy lunges and lateral hops (jumping side to side with both legs together and facing front). This should take you roughly 13 minutes if you go through it once. You can always add on another 1 or 2 rounds if you have time.

Alternatives to the Exercises
These workouts assume you do not have much in the way of equipment, but if you do, you can always swap out some of the exercises for weighted ones like doing squats with shoulder presses instead of regular squats, box jumps instead of squat jumps, or kettlebell or dumbbell swings instead of sit-ups. You can also add to these workouts with more exercises, more time or more rounds. The possibilities are endless.

If you like to run, you can always add some running to these workouts. For example, begin one of the round-based workouts with a quarter-mile or half-mile run and then add it at the end of each completed round. Or you can include it as part of the rounds, doing it either at the beginning of the round or at the end.

The bottom line is that you can still get a great workout without a gym or equipment. Even better is the fact that these workouts do not take up much time so you get it done quickly and effectively without taking away too much time from whatever it is you need to do that day. Feel free to get as creative as you want with any of these workouts. Create your own program designed around your goals, but make sure you are challenging yourself and not slacking. Just because there is no one around watching you or telling you what to do does not mean you should skimp on intensity. After all, it is only twenty minutes (or less) of your day. You can certainly handle that. You’re a mom after all; you can do just about anything!