With summer just around the corner, it’s the perfect time to start a metabolic-boosting workout. If you want to shed a few stubborn lbs. and tone up fast, it’s not enough to simply pick a workout from a magazine and do it over and over. You need the targeted science of metabolic conditioning. This transformative method of training has been designed to retrain your metabolism for a higher caloric output not just during workouts, but long after you’ve completed your time in the gym. The goal isn’t to exhaust yourself as you train, rather to focus on increasing the after-burn effect. Here’s how:

 

Follow a Compressed Workout Method

Ditch the treadmill and get ready to merge strength conditioning with cardio. Most of my signature workouts merge the benefits of cardiovascular exercise and calorie burn with toning your muscles. The goal is to challenge your cardio in short explosive intervals throughout your workout so that you are getting a high caloric output while strengthening your muscles. Move quickly one exercise to the next, with only short rest intervals in between.

This all-in-one, highly effective method also delivers an “after-burn effect.” By doing strength and cardio at the same time, you maximize your metabolism and continue to burn more calories after you finish exercising.

Why?

 

Your body uses up extra energy (calories) after certain workouts to help you recover, cool down and deal with the hormonal changes that the exercise produced. The scientific name for this process is excess post-exercise oxygen consumption. Studies show that resistance exercise, combined with body-weight cardio, results in greater post-exercise oxygen consumption compared to steady-state endurance exercise. So while you might burn a few more calories during an hour-long jog than a half hour of intense cardio and weights, the later will give you better results because it increases the after burn effect so you turn more total calories.

 

The Metabolic-Boosting Workout

 

Yes, 20 minutes is all it takes – think quality over quantity. Grab a timer and set it to 20 minutes. You will perform each exercise for 30 seconds each, with minimal rest in between. Superset upper and lower body exercises so that you can move directly from one to another and give specific muscle groups a bit of a break. Go at your own pace, but push yourself – you should feel like you are working!

The exercises should target the same muscles multiple times for even more dramatic results.

 

Here is a kick-start plan to get started!

 

Superset 1:

Mountain climber sprints

Explosive jacks

 

Superset 2:

Push-ups claps modified or advanced

High-knee sprints

 

Superset 3:

Walking planks

Double knee tucks

 

Super set 4:

Box or Bench step-ups

Squat jack jumps

 

 

 

Rest one to two minutes and hydrate between each round – repeat for 5 rounds, for a total of 20 minutes. Incorporate lightweights into your leg exercises to intensify and tone. Remember, take it at your own pace and gradually progress. Do the workout three or four times a week for optimal results; taking a day off in between workouts to let your muscles rest and recover.

 

Post-workout Nutrition

 

What you eat after a workout is essential to getting results. The right food will help speed recovery and build muscle. Ideal nutrition includes both protein and phytonutrients. In fact, the later will give you the greatest benefit.

 

Phytonutrients are amazing in their ability to fight exercise-induced inflammation. Since the nature of training is to tear muscle down and rebuild it, keeping inflammation in check is essential.

 

I love the convenience and benefits of drinking a cold-press juice after a workout to infuse the body with organic fruits and vegetables – both high in phytonutrients. My HIIT signature juice line at Natures Emporium https://www.naturesemporium.com/lifestyle-detox-cold-pressed-juice-program/] is my go to post-workout drink. I especially love the added benefits of activated charcoal for releasing toxins.