Body weight circuits take just 15-20 minutes to perform, require no equipment, are extremely versatile and will get you burning fat faster than you ever thought possible.
Even better, you can put one together in minutes using your favourite exercises and just a few simple rules.
Follow the 20 PACES principle to create a perfect fat loss body weight circuit that you can perform anywhere.
Quick Overview of 20 PACES Principle
The 20 PACES principle stands for:
- 20 minutes max
- P – decide on time or rep protocol
- A – alternate upper and lower body exercises
- CE – choose compound exercises
- S – short rest periods
20 PACES principle in detail
1) Keep your sessions between fifteen and TWENTY minutes long. This is long enough to reap the benefits and short enough for you to keep the intensity high throughout. This is enough time to perform about 3 circuits of 6 exercises.
2) Decide on time or rep PROTOCOL. You can either do a set number of reps per exercise each circuit (for example 10 squats), or you can perform each exercise for a set time period (for example as many squats as possible in 20 seconds). Personally I prefer setting the number of reps so I don’t constantly have to keep looking at my watch.
3) ALTERNATE between upper and lower body exercises. Make sure you include an equal number of each so that you remain balanced. This will also give your muscles a chance to recover between sets.
4) Pick COMPOUND EXERCISES. Get the most bang for your buck by selecting exercises that stimulate as many muscle groups as possible. Don’t just go for the exercises you like. Doing 6 bicep exercises won’t get you anywhere. The harder the exercise, the more you will stimulate your metabolism and burn fat.
5) Keep rest periods SHORT. Don’t let yourself fully recover between circuits. This is meant to be a tough few minutes. Reducing your recover time increases the overall intensity of the workout.
Example Circuits
Circuit A – Rep protocol
10 x press-ups
10 x burpees
10 x crunches
1 x 100m sprint
10 x pull-ups
10 x bodyweight squats
Total time per circuit: 4-5 minutes
Rest 60s between circuits
Perform 3 circuits in total
Circuit B – Time protocol
30s press-ups
30s burpees
30s crunches
30s bodyweight squats
30s pull-ups
60s sprint
30s mountain climbers
Total time per circuit: 4 minutes
Rest 60s between circuits
Perform 3 circuits in total
Summary
Body weight circuits are a fun and fast way to strip the fat from your body. They require little to no equipment, only take 20 minutes, and will give boost your metabolism for up to 24 hours which results in significant calories burned. If you are serious about losing weight, aim to complete 1-3 of these high intensity sessions per week.
About Ryan
Good post dude!
Thanks Mark.