Quick workout routines: 10-minute workout ideas from Girls Gone Sporty Ambassadors

The holiday season has arrived, but that's no excuse for slacking on your workouts! Even if you just have 10 minutes to spare, that's plenty of time to fit in a quick bout of exercise. Not sure how to make it work? Check out these great tips for quick workout routines supplied by Girls Gone Sporty Ambassadors.

The principles behind 10-minute routines

Based on ambassador responses, it's clear that most quick workout routines hold true to the principles voiced by Dana Bratti of LilBeastyMomAdventures:

1. Focus on large movements that target multiple muscle groups simultaneously
2. Perform multiple exercises in a row (circuit-style)
3. Perform reps to exhaustion with minimal rest between sets
4. Pay attention to your heart rate to gauge how hard you're working (wearing a HR monitor is beneficial)

When quick workouts adhere to these principles, you raise your heart rate, keeping it pumping throughout the routine, ensuring that you challenge your cardiovascular and muscular endurance as well as your muscular strength to help you power through the exercise. Also, by working at a high intensity level, your body will continue burning calories at an accelerated rate for hours post-workout in order to repair and recover. This means that if you spare just 10 minutes for high-intensity exercise, it can keep paying off all day!

Quick and dirty workout ideas

When asked, "If you only have 10 minutes, what's your go-to workout plan or routine?" these are the answers we received: 

• "Tabata - all the way!" -Tracey English, Aspire Fitness
• "Plank and burpees." -Darlena Kolpak, Run Find Your Happy Pace
• "Skinny Bitch Boot Camp 5 minute workouts - choose two and get to it!" - Lindsay Ingalls, RunningWithTongs
• "The VS Fat Blasting 10-Minute Solution." -Erin Jimenez, AStorybookLife
• "There's always time for planks and stretching." -Jill Conyers, Fitness, Healthy and Happiness
• "Lunges, dips and situps!" -Lisa Holdener, JustTriYourBest
• "Squat jumps, lunges, plank and pushups." -Lina Hansson-Noe, MomsButtisonFire
• "Plank, #WickedWallies and pushups." -Kim Prytherch, Barking Mad About Running
• "Lots of situps and a plank." -Heather, RunStylish
• "Ab work: planks, V-situps, etc." -Danielle Brown, ItsAHarleyyyLife
• "Planks in all directions, triceps dips, pushups, crunches, lunges and squats." -Nikki Golio, MyLifeMyWay
• "10 minute HIIT (high intensity interval training) on the Arc Trainer or elliptical." -Glenneth Reed, Lets Talk and Walk
• "I run fast and furious!" -Erica Gorman, LifeAsARunningMom
• "Burpees! Definitely a HIIT workout! I do as many burpees in the HIIT as humanly possible. There is a reason we hate burpees - they work!" -Mindy Artze, Mindy's Fitness Journey
• "I usually try to get in a few pushups and a nice long plank. I've been trying to work on my upper body and core strength, so I love that I can get it in and not let time be an excuse." -Becki Ledford, FightingForWellness
• "Burpees, squats, lunges, plank, pushups... works every time!" -Mindy Bobe, RoadRunnerGirl
• "If I only have 10 minutes I'll typically do intervals of jump rope, burpees and renegade pushups until I run out of time. I may even throw a plank in there!" -Joanna Broadbent, SportsBrasandSippyCups.com
• "When I have 10 minutes I do strength work and stretching. Front and side planks, pushups, walk-outs, triceps pushups, squats and some hamstring and glute stretches... 10 minutes is so unfulfilling, though!" -Kate Edney, Run With Kate
• "Having just 10 minutes to get in a sweat isn't uncommon in my crazy world. With this time, I'll go for a run and have a race of sorts with myself, seeing how fast and far I can comfortably go in that time. I also love doing Flip-Flops. It's a Tabata-style circuit of pushups, planks and abdominal work, "flip-flopping" in between to keep your heart rate up. I'll start with two minutes of jump rope or burpees to get my blood flowing. It's challenging and versatile!" -Jennifer Palilla, FitAppetit
• "If I only have 10 minutes, it really depends on where I am, what clothes I am in, etc. Wall sits, planks, pushups and lunges are all easy to do. Throughout the workday I love following @diebold on Twitter, as she gives great 30 second to one-minute exercises that get you up out of your chair!" -Crystal, CrystalFun2Race
• "My quick go-to activity when I am limited on time is just to walk a quick mile. I don't have to have anything with me or be prepared at all. Considering that I don't really dress up each day, I can really walk no matter what." -Shannon Clark, I Run and Teach

Getting specific: 10-minute workouts

Need something more specific? Follow one of these Ambassador-tested workouts.

Workout #1:

"These exercises are performed right after each other to exhaustion with 30 seconds rest between each full circuit. I adore TRX, so I have it with me all the time!" -Dana Bratti, LilBeastyMomAdventures

• Jump squat lunges
• Pushups
• TRX upright row
• Mountain climbers

Workout #2:

"I have a short workout taken from the New Rules of Lifting for Women book that is a great (and horribly painful!) way to get your heart rate up and your muscles burning! It's 24 squats, 24 lunges, 12 jumping lunges (each leg), then 24 jump squats! Complete, rest, then repeat!" -Jennifer Hudy, Wine to Weightlifting

Workout #3:

"My quick 10-minute workout would be something to get my heart pumping. Since I'm a CrossFit addict, I like to take bits from my workouts there! A 10-minute AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) of 10 situps, 10 pushups and 10 air squats! This hits the whole body and since it's completed as quickly as possible, I'm sure to break a sweat!" -Karli Blanarik, Keep Going!

Workout #4:

Amanda Medau from Mommy Go Run suggests following this 10-minute time-crunch workout, completing as many rounds as possible (AMRAP):

• 10 overhand pullups (can be completed as inverted rows, with a lower bar and your feet on the floor)
• 10 underhand pullups (can also be completed as inverted rows)
• 30 second plank
• 10 pushups (can be modified with knees on the floor)
• 5 stair sprints (sprinting up a flight of stairs five times)

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