10 Minute Fat-Burning Workouts at Home

Fat loss is one of the most common goals for most individuals that hit the gym, but what’s the best way to burn off that extra fat? Many people think that the best way to get rid of extra weight is to get on the treadmill for an hour or more, but the truth is, fat burning workouts don’t have to take long at all.

In fact, low-intensity exercise really isn’t the best option for fat burning. But, if you choose the right exercises, you can get a tough, effective, fat-cutting workout in just 10 minutes, and the best part is that you don’t even have to leave the comfort of your own home.

Why do Your Workouts at Home? The Real Question is Why Not

Contrary to popular opinion, the truth is that you don’t need a ton of fancy equipment in order to get a good workout. All you really need is a little bit of floor space and some motivation to get up and moving. Plus, getting out and hitting the gym can be quite a bit of work in itself. You need to get ready and make sure that you have everything you need, then drive all the way out to the gym, do your workout, and drive back home. Is all of that worth it when you can get in a full workout in just 10 minutes?

One of the best things about home workouts is that most of the exercises can be changed to make them more or less difficult, allowing you to tailor each workout to your skill level and abilities. There are also so many exercises available that you’ll be able to mix and match them so that you never get bored.

Types of Fat Burning

There are three main types of exercise that are used for fat burning: cardio training, strength endurance training, and high-intensity interval training (HIIT). One thing that is important to note is how the body burns calories during various types of exercise.

The body burns both fats and carbohydrates during exercise, and the proportion of each one changes as the intensity varies. It tends to primarily burn fat stores during low-intensity exercise and primarily burn carbohydrate stores during higher intensity exercise. During moderate-intensity exercise, the body burns about 50 percent carbohydrates and 50 percent fat.

Cardio Training

The most popular forms of cardio are walking, jogging, running, swimming, cycling, and rowing. These activities can vary from low to high intensity. Most people think that spending long periods of time walking or jogging are the best ways to burn fat.

However, what most people don’t know is that even though a higher percentage of the calories burned during cardio exercise are from fat, the total number of calories being burned during low-intensity exercise is significantly lower than during moderate- to high-intensity exercise. This means that even though the proportion of fat being burned is lower, the number of fat and total calories being burned in moderate- to high-intensity exercise is actually higher.

If you are looking to burn fat with cardio training, exercising at higher intensities is actually more beneficial, even if you can’t do it for quite as long. Examples of this would be sprinting, faster swims and cycling, or intense bouts of rowing.

However, we are definitely not discounting the value of all types of cardio. Although it may not be the most efficient way to burn calories, it does have many benefits. Cardio workouts can help to expand your lung capacity, strengthen your heart, and improve the rest of the cardiovascular system to increase blood flow throughout the body. Cardio can also reduce your risk for heart disease, decrease cholesterol and blood pressure levels, and lower the risk of diabetes.

Strength Endurance Training

Instead of focusing on maximizing the amount of weight you can lift at one time, strength endurance training (https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/strength-endurance-training-be-stronger-longer.html) attempts to increase your overall strength. This type of strength training generally has a variety of benefits, and it is used by athletes playing baseball, football, hockey, martial arts, and more.

Strength endurance training incorporates a balance of strength and cardio, but it doesn’t sacrifice muscle gains at the price of extra cardio. Instead, it still utilizes heavier weights like strength training, but reduces the amount of rest time, forcing your body to respond by continuing to produce maximal force despite not being fully rested.

This type of training also utilizes higher volume, helping to focus on endurance. All in all, strength endurance training forces your body to recover quickly, become stronger, and increase endurance.

High-Intensity Interval Training

HIIT takes advantage of the fact that the body burns more calories during high-intensity exercise, and HIIT workouts are based around this principle. They generally utilize a series of moderate to difficult exercises at high intensity in succession with minimal or active rest in between.

These routines keep your heartrate up and give your muscles minimal rest, forcing it to adapt and dig deep into its stores to ensure your body has enough energy. Some studies have even found that HIIT can burn five to six times more calories than running (https://fitbodybuzz.com/hiit-workouts-at-home/) and that it can also jumpstart your metabolism. A faster metabolism means that your body will be burning more calories all the time, even when you’re just resting.

HIIT also takes advantage of Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption (https://www.onnit.com/academy/boost-epoc-burn-calories-youre-done-working/), also known as EPOC. EPOC is the measurement of the extra oxygen that your body needs to consume after a workout in order to recover. This is very noticeable directly after hard workouts when you are breathing heavily. However, this period of recovery can last for up to 24 hours, and your body continues to burn calories throughout this time as it repairs muscle damage and restores function to all the cells. The harder your body works during a workout, the higher the calorie burning afterwards and the greater your weight loss will be.

The Workouts

There are tons of different fat burning workouts that you can do at home, and you can get a quality, effective workout in only 10 minutes a day. Below, we’ve provided three different home workout variations. If you find that any of the workouts are not challenging enough for you, feel free to switch up the exercise to make it a bit harder or change your rest time to an active rest, where you are jogging in place.

Routine 1 – Bodyweight Exercises

The first of these workouts is solely bodyweight oriented. This means that you can perform it anytime and anywhere. This exercise routine consists of 10 different exercises performed for 50 seconds at a time with 10 seconds of rest between exercises.

1. Jumping Jacks – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

Jumping jacks are a great cardio exercise to get your blood pumping through your whole body and get your heart rate up. Begin standing with your feet together and your arms down by your sides. Then, jump up and spread your legs to a little wider than shoulder-width apart. At the same time, bring your arms upwards out to the sides until they are above your head. Then, jump up again, returning to the starting position. Alternate positions with minimal time spent on the ground.

2. Squat Jumps – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

Begin by standing with your feet hip-width apart. Squat downwards, dropping your butt backwards so that your knees don’t go in front of your feet. Continue going down until your upper legs are parallel with the floor. Then, jump upwards into the air and land in the same squatting position. Be sure to keep your knees behind your toes and your chest and head up to prevent injury.

3. Side to Side Pushups – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

Drop down into a pushup position with your feet together, your hands shoulder-width apart, and your back and hips and ankles all in a straight line. Bend your elbows, bringing your chest towards the floor. At the bottom of the motion, shift your chest towards your left hand, then to the right, then back to the middle. Push your upper body back up to the starting position. Alternate which side you shift to first with every repetition.

4. Jumping Lunges – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

Begin with one leg a few feet in front of the other with both toes pointing forward and your back heel off the ground. Drop your hips down to the floor, bending both of your legs. Your front leg should be at a 90 degree angle, and your back knee should be just slightly above the floor. Jump upwards from this position, switching your legs in the air. Continue to alternate leg positions.

5. Burpees – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

Begin in a standing position. Jump slightly and drop your body directly downwards, landing in a pushup position. Then, jump your legs back in and stand back up as quickly as possible. To make it more challenging, add a pushup at the bottom of the movement.

6. Mountain Climbers – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

Begin in a pushup position, and bring one of your knees forwards up towards your front arm. Keeping your back in a flat position, alternate your leg positions and continue to do so as quickly as possible while maintaining good form.

7. Russian Twists – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

Sit on the floor with your legs extended out in front of you. Lean your upper body backwards and bring your feet off the floor a few inches. Then, rotate your upper body from side to side while contracting your abdominals.

8. Bodyweight Squats – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

Perform the same motion as in the squat jumps listed in the second exercise. However, instead of jumping up from the bottom position, simply extend your knees to stand up and return to the starting position.

9. High Knees – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

From a standing position, bring one knee up until your thigh is parallel with the floor. Then, bring your opposite knee up as you drop your raised foot back to the ground. Continue alternating your leg positions without pausing or having both feet on the ground at the same time.

10. Jumping Jacks – 50 seconds followed by 10 second rest

Finish the 10 minute routine with another set of jumping jacks.

Routine 2 – Exercises with Bodyweight or Minimal Equipment

This second routine is modeled after the Fat-Loss 4 Workout (https://www.t-nation.com/workouts/fat-loss-4-workout-protocol), which is made up of four exercises. Three of them are strength based, while the final exercise focuses on cardiovascular endurance. While we have provided a sample routine, you can substitute any of the exercises to fit your workout preferences.

The workout is structured with an upper body exercise, lower body exercise, core exercise, and finally an endurance exercise. However, feel free to challenge yourself with the equipment you have available or to switch up the routine if you are looking to target your upper or lower body specifically.

Because this workout is designed to be performed in three five-minute sets, we’ve modified the format slightly to better fit into our 10 minute fat burning routine. You will be performing this routine twice as one set of the routine takes five minutes to complete.

1. Pushup Variations – 45 seconds with 20 seconds rest

For the first exercise, you should perform any type of pushup that challenges your skillset. If you are more advanced, try clapping pushups, single-arm pushups, or other varieties. If you are still a beginner, regular or knee pushups are also great options. The important part of this exercise is to challenge yourself.

2. Jumping Dumbbell Squats or Jumping Bodyweight Squats – 45 seconds with 20 seconds rest

Squats are one of the most fundamental lower body exercises. Jumping squats add an extra challenge, and adding extra weight can further increase the difficulty. If you don’t have weights available, feel free to do this exercise with your bodyweight alone. The legs will definitely still be burning.

3. Ab Wheel Rollout or Jackknife Crunches – 45 seconds with 20 seconds rest

Using an ab wheel can be a great way to stimulate your core, but there are tons of bodyweight core variations as well. The jackknife crunch involves lying flat on the ground on your back with your arms extended up over your head. Bring both your legs and upper body off the ground simultaneously, keeping your legs straight. Continue to crunch up until you can touch your toes. Be sure to be controlled throughout the entire movement, especially as you lower your body back towards the ground.

4. Cardiovascular Exercise – 75 seconds (1 minute 15 seconds) with 30 seconds rest

Like we mentioned above, cardio exercises come in many forms. Two of the easiest exercises are jumping jacks and jump rope, and these exercises require little to no equipment. However, if you happen to have a treadmill, elliptical, or stationary bike, these can be great options as well. Whatever exercise you choose to do, make sure to choose an intensity and pace that is challenging enough to get you breathing hard and nearing exhaustion at the end of the time.

Routine 3 – Advanced Weighted Exercises

This third fat burning routine is designed for individuals who have some home gym equipment and who are more advanced in their training. This routine involves dumbbells, barbells, and a medicine ball. The barbell can be substituted with two dumbbells if needed as well.

This routine is designed in an AB-AB format, with a rest period in between groups. Two exercises will be performed back to back, and then you’ll get a rest period. The first exercise will focus on strength training, and the second will have a cardiovascular focus. This sequence lasts a total of five minutes, so you’ll need to perform it twice to reach the 10 minute threshold.

One of the most important things to keep in mind is the amount of weight you are using. For each weighted movement, the weight should be heavy enough to be challenging for the entire 30 seconds. You shouldn’t be able to make it through the whole time without taking a few short rest breaks.

1. Barbell or Dual-Dumbbell Row – 30 seconds

Grip either a barbell with a medium grip width or hold a dumbbell in each hand. Bend your knees slightly and bend at the hips so that your back is almost parallel with the ground. Be sure to keep your chest up and your back flat without bending it. Pull the bar or dumbbells towards your lower chest. After touching the weights to your body, slowly lower them back down until your arms are fully extended.

2. Mountain Climbers – 30 seconds

Begin in a pushup position, and bring one of your knees forwards up towards your front arm. Keeping your back in a flat position, alternate your leg positions and continue to do so as quickly as possible while maintaining good form.

Rest for 15 seconds

3. Weighted Lunge Jumps – 30 seconds

This exercise can be completed with either dumbbells in each hand or a barbell resting on your shoulders. If using dumbbells, you can either hold them down by your sides or up by your shoulders. Begin with one leg a few feet in front of the other with both toes pointing forward and your back heel off the ground. Drop your hips down to the floor, bending both of your legs. Your front leg should be at a 90 degree angle, and your back knee should be just slightly above the floor. Jump upwards from this position, switching your legs in the air. Continue to alternate leg positions.

4. Jumping Jacks – 30 seconds

Begin standing with your feet together and your arms down by your sides. Then, jump up and spread your legs to a little wider than shoulder-width apart. At the same time, bring your arms upwards out to the sides until they are above your head. Then, jump up again, returning to the starting position. Alternate positions with minimal time spent on the ground.

Rest for 15 seconds

5. Russian Twists with a Medicine Ball

Sit on the floor with your legs extended out in front of you. Grab a medicine ball of an appropriate weight. Lean your upper body backwards and bring your feet off the floor a few inches. Then, rotate your upper body from side to side while contracting your abdominals. The farther away from your body you hold the medicine ball, the harder the exercise will be. You can also tap the ball on each side of your body if you’d like.

6. Burpees – 30 seconds

Begin in a standing position. Jump slightly and drop your body directly downwards, landing in a pushup position. Then, jump your legs back in and stand back up as quickly as possible. To make it more challenging, add a pushup at the bottom of the movement.

Rest for 15 seconds

7. Bicep Curl to Shoulder Press with Dumbbells – 30 seconds

Begin by holding a dumbbell in each hand. Hold the dumbbells down by your sides, and start the exercise by performing a bicep curl. Then, at the top of the motion, instead of dropping the weights back down to your sides, rotate your hands so that your palms are facing your midline. Then, press the weights up above your head to perform a shoulder press. Lower the weights back down and then perform the lower portion of the bicep curl. Stay controlled throughout the entire motion.

8. High Knees – 30 seconds

From a standing position, bring one knee up until your thigh is parallel with the floor. Then, bring your opposite knee up as you drop your raised foot back to the ground. Continue alternating your leg positions without pausing or having both feet on the ground at the same time.

Rest for 15 seconds

Considerations

The Warm Up

Like with any workout routine, properly warming up is critical to keep your body healthy and prevent injuries. Warm ups are especially important if you are doing high-intensity workouts, in which your body is more prone to injuries. It is necessary to get all of your joints moving, including both your upper body and lower body.

This is especially important if you plan to exercise first thing in the morning. Joints tend to be much stiffer, so you should ensure all of your joints are warmed up effectively and that you are drinking plenty of fluids throughout the day to keep your body hydrated and joints healthy.

Time of Day

When it comes to an optimal time to train, there is a lot of debate. In all honesty, the perfect time mainly depends on your schedule and what works best for you. One study looked at the difference between working out in the morning and at night. Although their results were not statistically significant, they did notice slightly higher strength improvements in the group that exercised later in the day (https://www.t-nation.com/training/the-best-time-of-day-to-train).

Another advantage to working out in the afternoon is that it can be more beneficial for your spine. While you sleep, the discs between the vertebrae in the spine can become filled with excess fluid and are more prone to injury because they allow for less movement (https://www.t-nation.com/training/the-best-worst-times-of-day-to-work-out). By giving your spine time to naturally compress throughout the day, you can reduce the risk of spinal injury from twisting, turning, and bending movements.

Eating Habits

There is lots of information out there about what you should eat before a workout, how much you should eat, when you should eat, and more. One of the most popular ideas is that you should exercise on an empty stomach. The basis behind this is that the body would then have to dig into its current energy stores in order to generate energy for the workout. One well-known researcher noted that though this method does increase the percentage of fat burned, it actually may decrease the total number of calories burned during the exercise because you can’t exercise as hard due to depleted available energy (https://makeyourbodywork.com/eating-before-exercise/).

Instead, it is usually a good idea to eat a small meal before a workout. A large meal could leave your stomach feeling upset and could ruin your workout, but a small snack about 30 to 45 minutes before a workout can give your body a slight boost and ensure you have plenty of energy for your routine.

The composition of the food you are eating is also important. Of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins, fats are the slowest to be absorbed and digested, followed by proteins and then carbs. Because of this, your pre-workout meal should be low in fat to prevent excess fat from being stored after a workout. Healthy carbohydrates provide your body with faster energy, but eating too much of it can limit your weight loss. Some protein is also important to have in your pre-workout snack because this nutrient is used to produce new muscle tissue and begin the restoration and rebuilding process after you complete a workout.

Well, I think that’s about it. I hope you learned a little bit more about how the body burns fat and the different exercise programs that you can use to help you with your weight goals. The gist of it all is that it doesn’t take hours each day to make a difference in how your body looks and to meet your fitness goals. Keeping your heart rate up and making your muscles continue to work with minimal rest is one of the best ways to stimulate your metabolism, and get rid of the extra fat.