Other 30 Minute Circuit Training Workouts

Last Updated on May 4, 2011 by Jimson Lee

If I was a comic book hero, I would call myself Lactic Man. To train for the 400m, one has to tolerate huge amounts of lactic acid.

Earlier, I posted a 30 minute workout. 31.5 minutes to be exact. Here is the other workout.

It comprises of 9 continuous exercises (3 non-stop sets of alternating legs-upper body-abs) that take about 15-20 seconds per exercise, every 5 minutes. Since the routine will take anywhere from 2:15 sec – 3:00 min, the recovery is about half the time. The faster you do it, the more recovery. Initial goal is 4 sets, and ultimately 6 sets (exactly 30 min).

This one requires some gym equipment, but you could modify it if you were in a hotel room.

Trust me, you’ll be huffing and puffing at the end of the 2-3 minute routine, but will catch your breath and ready to go again at the “bell”.

You may think 9 continuous exercises is tough, but keep in mind you are alternating body parts every third set.

How does it work?

You need a coach with a “bell” or a watch with a 1 minute timer. Every minute, the watch “beeps”.

You can do this is a group of 5, and each athlete starts at 1 minute intervals, so by the 6th minute, the first athlete starts the 2nd set of the circuit. The 2nd athlete starts again on the 7th minute. This way you share the facilities and not have everyone doing chin-ups at the same time, for example.

Once you are done, it is important to do an effective “cool down”, either outside jogging, indoor treadmill, or stationary bike. The fastest way to clear lactic acid is light aerobic activity. The next time you have two 400 rounds scheduled on the same day, you’ll be glad you did this workout!

Here are the 9 exercises, starting with legs, then upper body, core, then back to legs, and so on. You can modify it with your favorite exercises.

Circuit Weight Training