Everybody gets pressed for time every now and then (some more than others), and all too often when something’s got to give, it’s the gym. Let’s face it, you don’t want to skip work or a hot date, so, unfortunately, the gym’d the first thing on the hit list.

The answer, then, is a short workout, right? Something that takes, say, 20 minutes tops. You’ll usually be able to squeeze that in between punching out at work and getting ready for your evening activities. But here’s the rub: It may only take you 20 minutes to train, but it takes 10-15 minutes (at least) to drive to the gym, five minutes or so to get in and out of the locker room, then 10-15 minutes to drive back home. You’re talking at least 45 minutes for the whole deal, but probably more like an hour-plus.

Now for the real solution: a 20-minute workout you can do at home. No commute to the health club, no traffic, no packing the gym bag, no waiting for the power rack to open up. Below is a great, quick workout you can do at home (or in a hotel room if you’re on the road) that focuses on the legs, chest and abs. It requires no equipment and, if done with purpose, is intense enough to give you a great pump and shock your system something fierce. Give it a try next time you’re trapped at home and have the training itch.

Short Circuit

Perform the following exercises as a circuit, doing one set of each with minimal rest between exercises.

If you’re unable to reach the prescribed number of reps in a given set, rest-pause until you reach the rep count. (Rest-pause is where, when reaching failure during a given set, you rest anywhere from 10-30 seconds and continue repping out.)

After each circuit, rest 2 minutes. Repeat the circuit 3-4 times, or however many times you can in 20 minutes.

Muscle Group Exercise Reps Legs Bodyweight Squat 20 Chest/Delts Incline Push-Up* 20 Abs Hip Thrust 20 Legs Walking Lunge 20 total (10 per leg) Chest/Delts Standard Push-Up 20 Abs Crunch 25

*Feet up on a chair or couch.