Burn More in Less Time: Rev Your Reps

By Jenna Autuori-Dedic

"It's not how long but how strong and intense you're making your workouts," says celebrity trainer Jackie Warner, the author of 10 Pounds in 10 Days. "The mistake a lot of people make is doing too much of the wrong kind of cardio." Want to burn more calories in half the time of your regular routine? Incorporate these speedy fat-melting strategies at your next sweat session.

Related: Jackie Warner's Crunch-Free Ab Exercises

The Plan
Get set to sweat and sculpt with Jackie Warner's 18-minute cardio acceleration session. Complete this routine three times and you're guaranteed to need a towel when you're done.

0 to 5 minutes

Do 15 reps of each of these moves:
15-pound-dumbbell squat: Hold a dumbbell in each hand with arms by sides and palms in, then squat.

10-pound-dumbbell lunge: Hold a dumbbell in each hand with arms by sides and palms in, then step right foot forward, bending right knee 90 degrees. Return to standing with feet together; repeat with left leg.

Push-ups

10-pound-dumbbell bent-over row
: Stand with feet slightly wider than hip-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand with arms by sides and palms in. Hinge forward so that your back is 90 degrees to floor; drive elbows behind you, bringing dumbbells by ribs.

Related:Get Stronger Arms Fast

10-pound-dumbbell military shoulder press: Stand with feet hip-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand. Bend elbows to bring dumbbells to shoulder height in goalpost position, palms out. Press dumbbells overhead, keeping arms slightly bent.

10-pound-dumbbell biceps curl
: Hold a dumbbell in each hand with arms by sides and palms up, then curl weights toward shoulders.

Triceps dips: Sit on bench, palms next to hips and fingers pointing forward. Extend legs forward, keeping heels on floor and back straight, and then bend elbows to lower your body; repeat.

5 to 6 minutes

Choose your cardio move: Jumping rope, jumping jacks, star jumps, or mountain climbers

For a longer workout, try a five-minute HIIT like the one mentioned below.

Related: Our 25 Best Cardio Workouts

Fat-Melting Strategies

Work the upper and lower body simultaneously.
Doing movements that hit multiple muscles -- like a squat with a shoulder press, or a lunge with a biceps curl -- will zap more calories than movements that isolate individual body parts. "During a short workout, this is the fastest way to bump up your heart rate and keep your body in a fat-burning zone," Warner says.

Rep, don't rest.
Group your exercises -- for instance, push-ups, squats, and lunges -- and perform them as a series without taking a break. "You'll maximize your calorie burn if you do more work and keep your downtime to a minimum," Warner notes. If you must take a breather, make it no longer than 15 seconds.

Take a HIIT after each circuit.
"Tackle all your strength moves first, then go all out on the treadmill for high-intensity interval training," Warner says. Try this: Start with a 12 percent incline and walk at a fast pace (3.8 miles per hour) for two minutes. Then decrease the incline to 0 percent and run hard (6.0 to 8.0 miles per hour) for another two minutes. Finish with a slow jog (3.5 to 4.0 miles per hour) for the final 60 seconds. "You're spiking your heart rate with these short spurts while toning your lower body on the inclines," Warner says.

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