Gym guilt can really ruin your day, especially when you've been onto a good routine for some time.
The thing is though, life happens. And sometimes that means at the expense of your regular workout. The good news is that a fast yet effective routine exists (and you don't even have to leave your bedroom to make it count).
"No matter which way you look at it, 10 to 15 minutes of high intensity exercise is going to be a lot better than zero minutes," Dylan Rivier, personal trainer and founder of Built by Dylan told The Huffington Post Australia.
Rivier explains while 45 minutes of exercise is obviously more preferable, working long hours or travelling overseas can often mean our routines are irregular.
"In this case, it's about maximising the time you have by training in high intensity intervals," Rivier said.
The number one thing to remember with this type of training? Keep it simple.
"Forget about equipment and use your body weight instead. Look for both lower and upper body movements as well as the types of things you did in primary school that we often forget about like star jumps, running on the spot and burpees," Rivier said.
Other exercises Rivier recommends to incorporate into your session include pushups, step ups, mountain climbers, plank, squats and lunges.
To make it harder, make these movements plyometric by adding a jump so it becomes a jump squat or a jump lunge.
"These dynamic movements are going to get you working up a sweat and leave you fairly breathless, which is a good indicator of whether you're working at a high intensity. They also add the opportunity for you to progress," Rivier said.
The good thing about Tabata is that most personal training apps will have a built in timer setting which will alert you when to work and when to rest.
As far as interval timing goes, Rivier recommends Tabata training -- 20 seconds of work with 10 seconds rest.
"The good thing about Tabata is that most personal training apps will have a built-in timer setting which will alert you when to work and when to rest," Rivier said.
Another option popular with Rivier's clients is choosing one lower-body exercise, and one upper-body exercise, and doing each for 30 seconds for a three-minute round before taking a rest.
"For instance, push ups and squats. This type of approach works both your chest and arms as well as your legs while offering an active recovery between each exercise," Rivier said.