No time or desire to exercise? No problem! Working out less may be the best workout for you. Here’s why the mini workout trend is the answer whether you’re short on minutes or motivation.
When time is of the essence, the mini workout is a much-needed gift to people’s health and sanity. Though the concept of a mini workout first emerged in 2013, stemming from research about the effectiveness of high-intensity circuit-style training, a mini workout’s timesaving appeal plus the convenience of not requiring a gym or fitness equipment has made it a post-pandemic staple for many.
The Health Benefits of Mini Workouts
Mini workouts are, as the name states, short workout sessions — such as 10 minutes on the treadmill or dancing around to three of your favorite high-intensity songs — that you can squeeze into your busy day to get you (briefly) moving. A mini workout can be tailored to each individual’s fitness level, says Tom Holland, exercise physiologist and author of numerous books including The Micro-Workout Plan: Get the Body You Want without the Gym in 15 Minutes or Less a Day. So anything from a 3-minute core routine to a fun walk with your dog, a 10-minute arm workout with dumbbells, a 15-minute bodyweight cardio circuit, or a combination of cardio and strength routines all fit the bill.
But are mini workouts effective? Amazingly so! Thanks to research that short bursts of exercise (20 minutes or less) have similar health benefits to hour-plus gym sessions, fitness experts are championing the benefits of mini workouts. One 2016 study showed how 1 minute of sprinting within a 10-minute exercise routine had similar health benefits to 50 minutes of continuous exercise. Another study, in 2013, reported that people who engaged in mini workouts multiple times a day had similar results in “key measures of health" to those who put in longer workouts.
“The pandemic taught people that they didn’t have to go to the gym and didn’t have to do an hour of exercise to feel good and see results,” Holland says. “When the No. 1 reason people cite for lack of exercise is time, performing shorter workouts with similar and even increased results makes complete sense.”
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HIIT Helped Put Mini Workouts on the Map
A factor driving the popularity of mini workouts, Holland tells DailyOM, is growing research in high-intensity interval training, also known as HIIT workouts. These mini workouts involve short bursts of vigorous exercise that elevate the heart rate followed by brief rest periods. Research has shown that HIIT workouts are just as effective as longer, more sustained periods of exercise.
According to the World Journal of Cardiology, HIIT exercise can be effective when adapted to an individual’s level of fitness, meaning that even total beginners will experience better oxygen consumption, a higher metabolism, improved cardiovascular health, and lower inflammation in the body, among other health benefits from mini HIIT workouts.
Mini Workouts May Get You Moving More
When it comes to working out, what matters most is to get moving and then build on “excessive moderation,” a phrase Holland coined to encourage a little exercise done frequently throughout the week rather than a big workout session followed by nothing for days or weeks.
Martha Munroe, a well-being coach with a master's of science in positive psychology and coaching psychology who focuses on building positive relationships with exercise, echoes this ancillary benefit of mini workouts as a way to build consistency with exercise over time.
“The idea that exercise needs to be really hard, be high intensity, and last for an hour in order to 'count' is just not the case. Low- to moderate-intensity workouts have tremendous benefits for both well-being and physical health and tend to be a lot more enjoyable and require less motivation. Mini workouts help to overcome the two most limiting factors when it comes to getting active: lack of time and staying motivated,” the expert tells DailyOM.
The Department of Health and Human Services and the American Heart Association recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week, or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise per week, with two days being devoted to strength exercises (defined as activities that make muscles work harder than usual).
“Mini workouts help to overcome the two most limiting factors when it comes to getting active: lack of time and staying motivated.”
Moderate activity will cause the heart rate to increase and breathing to be heavier than normal, but talking during this exercise is still possible. Some examples that could be incorporated into mini workouts include brisk walking, dancing, climbing stairs, or even a short yoga routine to start your day.
Meanwhile, vigorous exercise will result in sweating and being out of breath to the point where talking is difficult. A more intense mini workout routine could include hiking uphill with a weighted backpack, running, jumping rope, or cycling.
A Little Adds Up
Even though 150 minutes per week of activity is the target, there is no rule that says it needs to be done in a specific way.
“It’s not the duration of the workout session itself but the cumulative amount of exercise that matters,” says Holland. “In other words, three 10-minute bouts of exercise have the same relative benefits as one continuous 30-minute session.”
An important component with any workout — mini or otherwise — is finding activities that are enjoyable so that a fitness routine will be easier to sustain. Holland advises alternating between cardio and strength exercises, depending on personal preferences, time available, and a person’s mood that day.
“The more variation in your workouts, the less likely you are to hit the dreaded ‘exercise plateau’ and the more likely you are to be consistent over time,” Holland says. For example, a mini workout challenge that Holland recommends is 1 minute of a cardio exercise followed by 1 minute of a strength exercise, done five times through to make a 10-minute mini workout.
Don’t Let Perfection Slow You Down
Above all, don’t let perfection get in your way. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only 23 percent of American adults meet the cardio plus strength exercise recommendations each week, making mini workouts all the better to incorporate. Even if you don’t reach that 150 cumulative minutes each week, something is always better than nothing.
“Being active isn’t about being perfect. It’s about staying moving and feeling good in your body and mind,” says Bryan Osuna, a personal trainer, strength-conditioning specialist, and owner of the fitness company Committed HP. Osuna, with whom DailyOM spoke for this story, says, “One reason mini workouts are noteworthy is that they are simply way better than not working out at all, which is what many people choose when short on time or energy … The truth is, people who just commit to moving more in general tend to be healthier and more fit.”
While mini workouts throughout the day can help with overall fitness and give you a quick mood and energy lift, if you have an ambitious fitness goal, that will still require rigorous training. Mini workouts may not be enough to get someone in shape to run an ultramarathon, for example. But a mini workout’s ability to establish lifelong healthy habits makes it incredibly worthwhile, not just physically but mentally as well.
“[Mini workouts] will train your brain to see more opportunities to move and create a new identity as someone who moves, so you dramatically increase your opportunity to succeed,” says Osuna. “Commitment to movement is the most important aspect of obtaining the many short- and long-term benefits of moving your body every day. You don't need to join a gym to win.”
So if a gym isn’t serving you, give yourself permission to forgo it for something different. Go for a brisk walk instead, look for some stairs to climb, or simply have some fun trying out new exercises at a minute apiece. When in doubt, just start moving. As well-being coach Munroe reminds us: “The best workout is the workout you actually do.”
