10-minute exercise routines: Quick ways to bust out of the January blues

If you are already losing motivation for your health and fitness resolutions, there is hope in the form of 10-minute wellbeing hacks that promise to keep you on track

Most of us can manage to dedicate 10 minutes of our time every day to looking and feeling better. 

Over-committing to the gym, mindfulness, or healthy eating plans is a sure route to falling short and losing the will to continue before we see the start of February. 

However, most of us can manage to dedicate 10 minutes of our time every day to looking and feeling better. 

Here’s how to do it:

10-minute circuit to boost strength and endurance

60 seconds of effort with any bodyweight exercises — lunges, squats, etc — followed by 60 seconds of recovery for 10 minutes will produce results. Pic: iStock

Actress Helen Mirren claims that a daily circuit lasting 11 minutes is key to staying in shape at 79.

For the past six decades, Mirren has followed the Canadian Royal Air Force 5BX plan of five basic exercises — a variety of toe touches, push-ups, running on the spot, sit-ups, and leg raises.

However, 60 seconds of effort with any bodyweight exercises — lunges, squats, etc — followed by 60 seconds of recovery for 10 minutes will produce results.

“Bodyweight exercises are fantastic for developing strength,” says Cork-based Ray Lally, aka the Happy Fitness Guy.

“Working the major muscles in the body, including the gluteal and leg muscles, will lead to rapid improvements and help you become leaner by raising your metabolic rate.”

A 2021 study in the International Journal of Exercise Science showed that an 11-minute circuit of simple bodyweight, or callisthenics exercises — in this case, modified burpees (minus the press-up), high knees, split squat jumps, high knees, squat jumps — boosted cardiorespiratory fitness by 7% in six weeks.

Ten-minute run for a healthier heart

Running for just five or 10 minutes a day and at slow speeds of less than 9.65km/h was associated with “markedly reduced risks of death from all causes and cardiovascular disease” Pic: iStock

You don’t need to run marathons for significant gains in cardiovascular fitness.

Running for just five or 10 minutes a day and at slow speeds of less than 9.65km/h was associated with “markedly reduced risks of death from all causes and cardiovascular disease” by the authors of a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. 

The researchers showed that even those who ran less than 9km a week, or for a total time of less than 51 minutes, or who ran on just one or two days a week, were found to be protected against a heart attack or stroke compared with non-runners.

Olympian Catherina McKiernan advises all levels of runners at runwithcatherina.ie.

“Start out with a one-minute run and a one-minute walk, and repeat this 10 times if you can,” says McKiernan. “Gradually build up the continual running until you can manage two five-minute runs with a short break at a pace that feels manageable to you and move on from there.”

Ten minutes of tai chi or yoga to boost your brain

Even gentle exercise has a profound and immediate impact on the brain, according to researchers from the University of California and the University of Tsukuba in Japan. Pic: iStock

Even gentle exercise has a profound and immediate impact on the brain, according to researchers from the University of California and the University of Tsukuba in Japan.

They discovered that 10 minutes of tai chi or yoga increases the connectivity between parts of the brain responsible for memory formation and, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggested that “the use of mild exercise might slow down or stave off cognitive decline”.

Ten minutes of meditation to reduce stress

Short 10-minute bursts of mindfulness and meditation can have dramatic effect on wellbeing, anxiety, and also inspire you to make healthier lifestyle choices. Pic: iStock

Short 10-minute bursts of mindfulness and meditation can have dramatic effect on wellbeing, anxiety, and also inspire you to make healthier lifestyle choices — including sticking to exercise plans — according to a recent study published in the British Journal of Health Psychology. 

A total of 1,247 participants from different countries took part in the study, with some following daily mindfulness sessions of relaxation exercises, meditation, body scans, breath-focused attention, and self-reflection. 

At the same time, a control group listened to an audiobook. A month later, the mindfulness group had significant improvement in their wellbeing, depression, and sleep quality.

“It’s exciting to see the benefits of mindfulness extending beyond depression, wellbeing, and anxiety, and into other health behaviours such as sleeping better and building stronger intentions to live a healthy lifestyle,” says psychologist Masha Remskar, an expert in behaviour change at the University of Bath and one of the authors.

“Mindfulness also builds the psychological skills you need to build healthy habits.”

Ten minutes of stair climbing

At-home stair climbing could increase cardiorespiratory fitness, linked to longevity, as effectively as workouts using gym equipment. Pic: iStock

Martin Gibala, a professor of kinesiology at McMaster University in Canada, tested the effect of ten-minute workouts (including warm up and cool down) — one involving three, 20-second bouts of a step climber machine, the other adopting the same 20-second “sprint” approach on an exercise bike. 

He then asked another group of volunteers to vigorously climb up and down a flight of stairs at home for 60 seconds and repeat this three times. Each group did their exercise session three times a week for six weeks.

Gibala found that the at-home stair climbing increased cardiorespiratory fitness, linked to longevity, as effectively as the workouts using gym equipment, offering “a convenient way to fit exercise into your life, rather than having to structure your life around exercise”.

Ten-minute brisk walk every day

“Walking is one of the best things you can do to improve your health,” says Niall Moyna, professor in the School of Health and Human Performance at Dublin City University. Pic: iStock

Researchers reporting in the Journal of Health and Sport Sciences found that adding the equivalent of a ten-minute brisk walk to the daily routine of over 72,000 inactive mid-lifers was associated with an increase in life expectancy. 

Make it 30 minutes, and it adds an extra 1.4 years to the lifespan of women and 2.5 years for men.

“Walking is one of the best things you can do to improve your health,” says Niall Moyna, professor in the School of Health and Human Performance at Dublin City University.

“Try to make at least some of your walking pace a brisk 100 steps per minute or a pace that raises your breathing rate so that you are breathing a bit harder, and it will gradually improve your fitness.”