First thing's first: The entire workout takes just 7 minutes, and it looks super simple. Initially, I was skeptical I could accomplish this much in such a narrow time frame.
The workout consists of 12 standard exercises like jumping jacks, sit-ups, and push-ups. Ten of them require nothing but your own body (you'll need a chair that can support your weight for the others). The New York Times' version of the app shows proper positioning for each, which you do for 30 seconds:
To do my workout, all I used was a yoga mat, the hardwood floor of my office, a wall, and a stool.
The first four exercises — 30 seconds each of jumping jacks, a wall sit, push-ups, and crunches, with 10 seconds of rest in between — were easy-peasy. I started to think the workout was all hype.
But by the time I got to exercise No. 8 — plank — I was starting to feel a bit winded. At this point, I'd also finished the step-ups onto a chair, the squats, and the triceps dips. Still four exercises to go.
Next, it was on to running in place with my knees as high as I could get them, lunging, doing alternating push-ups and rotations (raising one arm high into the air while balancing on the other), and side planks, where you align your body sideways and balance on one hand and the side of one foot.
Full set of 12 exercises complete!
In the end, the workout was actually, well, a workout. Still, I wasn't totally wiped and I felt as if I could do a bit more. So I did a second set.
The idea of a workout you can do in minutes was originally envisioned by personal trainer Brett Klika and exercise physiologist Chris Jordan of the Johnson & Johnson Human Performance Institute in Orlando, Florida. Here's Klika demonstrating one of his workouts:
The concept behind the workout is interval training — short, intense periods of exercise broken up by brief periods of rest. It's less time consuming than a traditional workout, but studies suggest it may actually be more beneficial.
Several studies back high-intensity interval training for both building muscle and helping to protect the heart. But since this specific workout is still pretty new, we don't have long-term studies comparing it to traditional workouts yet.
I'm satisfied overall with the 7-minute workout, and I've been doing it every so often ever since I first tried it out as an addition to my regular yoga routine. But don't take my word for it — try it for yourself!
