One of the biggest excuses people have not for working out is that they don’t have enough time.

They don’t have time to spend countless hours at the gym. They don’t have time to run mile after mile. They barely have time to get to the gym when they can. After all, in today’s fast-paced society, the last thing anyone has is extra time, let alone extra time they want to spend doing long, grueling workouts.

Guess what! You don’t have to!

Introducing, surge training! Surge training is a high intensity workout that only takes 12 minutes a day.

You read that right…12 minutes a day!

It’s basically a ramped up version of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). The idea is that you complete a handful of exercises as quickly as you can, working at your maximum effort (80-100% effort) for short bursts and then you’re done.

I was first introduced to surge training when I worked for a Maximized Living chiropractor in Virginia. We incorporated the exercises in the clinic and offered classes to our patients. They loved it! We had so many patients see great results. And the results they saw went beyond just losing weight.

Benefits of Surge Training

Surge Training:

• Increases your metabolism and helps you burn more calories even after you’re done working out
• Improves your energy
• Dramatically and quickly increases your endurance and stamina
• Increases muscle strength
• Increases HDL (good) cholesterol and reduces LDL (bad) cholesterol
• Stabilizes your blood pressure 
• Trains your body to be stronger with every day movements
• Dramatically increases endorphins (feel good hormone)

Surge Training Is For Anyone

Another major benefit of surge training is that anyone can do it. Literally, anyone! It doesn’t matter if you’re a young, fit college athlete, or wheelchair-bound senior, you can do your own customized surge training workout. And because you can do it any fitness level, you can start anywhere and improve your physical fitness in no time. Start with low-impact workouts and progress from there. You can go at your own pace and create individual workouts that work best for you. The key is to use your maximum effort, and that’s why it works for everyone.

With Surge Training, You Never Get Bored

Another major benefit of surge training is that the workouts are so versatile that you can virtually use any exercise move and to make up your workouts. Just follow the formula and you never have to do the same workout if you don’t want to. Plus, you’re working so many different muscle groups that you can get a great total body workout every day in the same 12 minutes of effort. There are also a few different formulas you can use for surge training that prevent you from getting bored with the layout of your workouts. With so many options, you can do tons of different workouts and target new muscles every day.

So, How Does It Work?

Ok, so let’s get down to it and learn how to actually do surge training. There are two basic formulas or formats for the workouts, the 4×3 formula and the 6×2 formula.

4×3 Formula

The idea behind this workout is that you choose 4 different exercise moves and complete each one of them for 1 minute each, and repeat the workout 3 times. You can use any moves you want to for these workouts. If you want to focus on one body part, like your legs and glutes, you can use the following exercises:

• Squats (1 min.) – 15 second break
• Lunges (1 min.) – 15 second break
• Jump Squats (1 min.) – 15 second break
• Calf Raises (1 min.) – 15 second break
• REPEAT 2X

To complete this workout, you would do as many squats as you could in one minute and then take a 15 second break. Then, you would do as many lunges as you can in one minute and then take another 15 second break. Repeat this process for all four moves and then repeat the entire workout 2 more times.

What I like to do is to make them into total body workouts, which might look like this:

• Squats (1 min.) – 15 second break
• Bicep Curls (1 min.) – 15 second break
• Bent Over Rows (1 min.) – 15 second break
• Ab Plank (1 min.) – 15 second break
• REPEAT 2X

That way, you’re getting the most bang for your buck when you only have 15-20 minutes to workout. It’s also very important to both warm up at the beginning and cool down at the end of your workouts.

For those who are wondering how wheelchair-bound individuals could do this type of workout, try these exercises instead:

• Seated Punches (1 min.) – 15 second break
• Seated Leg Lifts (1 min.) – 15 second break
• Seated Lateral Shoulder Raise (1 min.) – 15 second break
• Seated Oblique Twist (1 min.) – 15 second break
• REPEAT 2X

These exercises are very doable for those who have to modify their workouts. The point is to work at maximum effort and then break. This pattern is what works, no matter what exercises you use.

6X2 Formula

The 6X2 formula is the other option you can use for surge training. In this format, you would pick 2-4 exercises to complete and you would complete a specified number of repetitions of each of them and repeat them as many times as you can for 6 minutes. Then, you would take a 1 minute break and repeat the entire routine. A perfect example of this format would look like this:

• Squats (20 reps.)
• Bicep Curls (20 reps.)
• Bent Over Rows (20 reps.)
• Ab Plank (30 seconds)
• REPEAT FOR 6 MINUTES
• BREAK FOR 1 MINUTE
• Squats (20 reps.)
• Bicep Curls (20 reps.)
• Bent Over Rows (20 reps.)
• Ab Plank (30 seconds)
• REPEAT FOR 6 MINUTES

This format is a little more advanced because it requires more endurance than the 4X3 formula, so if you’re new to surge training, the 4X3 formula is a good place to start. But like I said earlier, either method can be used at any fitness level, so try them both and see what works for you.

How Surge Training Has Worked For Me

I’ve said before in other articles that I have a love/hate relationship with high intensity interval training. On one hand, I love how effective it is and how quickly you can be done with your workouts (especially if you have little ones to run around after), but I’m not as much of a fan of feeling my heart beat uncontrollably. Admittedly, I love the feeling after my heart rate calms back down and the endorphin rush you get, but it’s not typically something I use every day.

I usually use surge training for a quick workout when I don’t have a lot of time. I love that you can do the exercises anywhere because you can choose exercises like squats, push-ups, tricep dips and planks that don’t require any equipment and require very little space. This also makes it great for traveling because it can be done in a hotel room and you don’t have to lug around heavy equipment.

If I have a particularly busy day coming up, I like to do a quick surge workout first thing in the morning before I shower and get ready for the day, and then at least I know that I’ve gotten some sort of workout in. Then, if I have time later in the day to go for a walk or something less intense, then I get a bonus workout in and benefit from the endorphin rush all day.

Want to get in shape in just 12 minutes of exercise a day? Take 15-20 minutes out of your routine to complete an intense workout that will make you feel great all day! Try surge training for yourself and let me know how you like it!

If you want to try surge training by following a video, you can purchase the original workout series called MaxT3 from Maximized Living.