Quick Workouts

Between your demanding nine to fiver, driving the kids to and from camp, all your meetings, appointments, walking the dog, and errands to run, it's amazing if you ever have time to fit in exercise. On those days when you only have time to squeeze in 20 minutes, you can still get in a decent workout. Here are some ideas.

• Run two miles at a pace of 10 minutes per mile. You'll end up getting your heart rate up while burning 197 calories.
• Have a mini '80s dance party in your backyard and get down to "Footloose," "Holiday," "Love Shack," "Walk Like an Egyptian," and "Mickey."
• Take a 20-minute barefoot stroll along the beach. The sand offers amazing resistance and really works your calves.
• Take a brisk walk with your dog once, twice, or three times around the block, depending on how long the loop is.
• Hop on your bike and ride for 10 minutes, and then turn around and go home.
• Throw a Frisbee with some friends, play some beach volleyball, or hit some golf balls for 20 minutes.
• Roll out your yoga mat on your deck and do five Sun Salutation As and five Sun Salutation Bs.
• Depending on how fast you are, swim 18 to 25 laps.
• If it's raining outside, do a cardio and strength training circuit, including one minute of running up and down stairs, one minute of jumping rope, one minute of plank jumping jacks, one minute of squats, and one minute of crunches on the ball. Repeat four times.
• Too hot to exercise outside? Pop in your favorite workout DVD and follow along for 20 minutes.

Chances are, if you have time to sneak in a workout over the holidays, you'll have a small window of time in which to do it. So save time by going big — big muscles, that is.

One way to make the most of quick holiday workouts is by focusing on the big muscle groups, including your chest, back, glutes, and quads. The bigger the muscle, the more muscle fibers activated, which means you're burning more calories and boosting your metabolism.

Try doing squats, such as these dumbbell squats (above), which work the quads, hamstrings, glutes, and lower back. Other big muscle moves include chest presses, lunges, back exercises, and planks. Do you focus on large muscle groups for short workouts?