10 More Minutes to a Better Body

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Usually, "10 more minutes" is the cry of the habitual snoozer, thinking somehow those extra few minutes will make all the difference, but they don't. In fact, 10 minutes is such a worthless little chunk of time that very little can be accomplished in such a short period, right?

Well, that's what you tell yourself, anyway. But it's just an excuse, and we know what excuses are like, right? Stop wasting time and make "10 more minutes" mean something.

Now, "10 more minutes" is the battle cry of the fitness few who are ready to take their exercise routine to the next level. If you already have an exercise program that has you sweating 20-40 minutes, a few days a week, but you feel you've hit a plateau, it may be time to add a few more minutes.

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It seems that 10 more minutes wouldn't make much difference. But if you consider the cumulative effect of 10 minutes a day over a whole year, a little time can make a large difference, according to eDiets Chief Fitness Pro Raphael Calzadilla.

"Even if you only add a moderately intense jog for 10 minutes at the end of your workout you can burn an extra 80 calories (based on a 150-pound person)," Raphael explains. "Doing this only three times a week burns an extra 960 calories per month. That's going to supply some substantial fat loss at the end of the year."

Raphael also recommends easing into the extra time over a few weeks. He gives this example: "If you're jumping rope for 20 minutes, but your goal is 30, then add three intense minutes to the end of a session each week. So in week two you're at 23 minutes, week three at 26 minutes and by week four you're be churning out a tough 32 minutes. Short goals work great."

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