The workout below is for Day 6 of the Just Enough Workout, a four-week workout plan. Today’s routine is pretty great on its own, but you can also check out the full program right here or browse the calendar here. If you’d like to sign up to receive daily emails featuring these workouts, you can do that here.
You’ve reached your last workout day of Week 1, and we’re ready to close it out with a cardio bang—if that’s what you’re looking for, of course!
Today’s cardio routine is going to operate a bit differently than your first on Day 2 because we’ll be playing with efforts and intensity. Unlike in a steady-state cardio routine, you’ll alternate between pushes and recoveries. So there will be times in this routine where you’ll be working harder than you did in Day 2, and also times where you’ll be taking it easier.
As with all the routines in our Just Enough Workout, you also have the option of making this a quicker, lighter, move-your-body day rather than a workout. If that’s what you’re looking for, try Just Enough Movement. You’ll work with music today, so you don’t have to watch the clock. Instead, you’ll choose three of your favorite get-moving songs and vary your intensity from easy to brisk during your approximate 10-minute duration. Again, how you choose to do your cardio is up to you—you can walk, cycle, row, or hop on an elliptical…whatever appeals to you at the moment.
Just a Little More Movement will challenge you with two-minute, moderate-to-hard intervals followed by three-minute periods of lower-effort, moderate recovery. How many intervals you choose is completely up to you, and it’ll all add up to a 20- to 30-minute workout.
Remember, we’ll be working with ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) here. To increase your RPE during the work period of your intervals, you can increase your pace, speed, incline, or resistance—basically, whatever will have you working harder. If you’re choosing Just a Little More Movement, you’ll be maxing out at a six today. Check out what that should feel like on the scale below, which is based on one from the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM).
- RPE: 0 – At rest.
- RPE: 1 – Very light effort. You can easily hold a conversation.
- RPE: 2–3 – Your warm-ups, cooldowns, and recovery intervals. You can speak comfortably in full sentences.
- RPE: 4–5 – Moderate effort. Talking in more than a sentence or two at a time is difficult.
- RPE: 6–7 – High, vigorous effort. You can only speak a few words or phrases at a time—not full sentences.
- RPE: 8–9 – Very hard effort. Talking is almost impossible. Maybe you can muster a breathless “yes” or “no.”
- RPE: 10 – All-out, maximum effort. Talking is out of the question.
Ready to get started? Crank up your tunes and get ready to move your body!
Just Enough Movement Directions:
- Song 1: Easy effort (RPE: 2–3)
- Song 2: Slight pick-up (RPE: 4–5)
- Song 3: Easy effort (RPE: 2–3)
Total time: about 10 minutes
Just a Little More Movement Directions:
- 5 minute warm-up (RPE: 2–3)
Circuit 1
- 2 minutes moderate to hard effort (RPE: 5–6)
- 3 minutes moderate effort (RPE: 3–4)
- Repeat 2–4 times total
- 5 minute cooldown (RPE: 2–3)
Total time: 20–30 minutes
Photographer: Katie Thompson. Wardrobe styling: Rika Watanabe. Makeup: Monica Alvarez at See Management. Hair: Erin Piper Hershleb at L’Atelier. Creative director: Amber Venerable.
Jamie Song wears: Top: Athleta, similar styles. Bottoms: Lululemon Align High Rise Crop 23”, $88. Shoes: Reebok Nano X2 Women’s Training Shoes, $90.