How to Stack Your Perfect Workout
With busy schedules and a limited amount of time in our day, we want our workouts to work hard for us like we do for them. Enter stackable workouts — short online classes that can be mixed and matched together to create a fitness routine that suits your current mood and goals.
Gone are the days where two-hour workout sessions are the norm. Having stackable workouts ranging from five to 20 minutes means that you can fit movement anywhere in your day. Maybe that looks like a five-minute stretch after waking up, or perhaps it’s a 15-minute yoga flow to cap off a busy day. Or if you’re lacking some workout inspiration but feeling an arms-and-abs vibe, you could easily stack classes together to get your fill of fitness.
While the benefits of short workouts have been scientifically shown in recent years, it’s easy to feel them after just one session — and the benefits are for everyone. If you’re someone that’s not typically a fan of traditional fitness or exercise, this allows you to work in movement in small doses without making it seem like a long or boring chore. For those with on-the-go lifestyles or jam-packed schedules, it’s the perfect way to customize your workout based on the time you have each day. And if you do like spending a decent amount of time on the mat or in the gym, having a wide selection of short workouts to choose from means that you won’t grow bored with the typical routine.
3 Tips for Creating Your Perfect Workout Stack
Figure out how much time you have.
This will determine how many classes you can stack. Our Alo In the Wild series — shot in beautiful locations around the globe (hello, virtual vacation!) — has 5-, 10-, 15-, and 20-minute classes. You can also take a look at your schedule and see where it could make sense to fit in a workout. Consider the time you have after waking up, waiting for food to cook, or between meetings as fair game.Determine which body areas you want to work.
If you have an existing workout schedule already (Monday is arms, Tuesday is legs, etc.), you can choose classes that go along with your plans. If you don’t have one, this might be the time to create one. Do some research to figure out what schedule works best for you, or take the full-body training approach and aim to hit every muscle group each time. Alo In the Wild features full-body workouts, but you can also group together upper- and lower-body-focused classes to create your own total-body routine.
Find a style (or three!) that you’re into.
With a short time commitment, it’s easy to test out a variety of fitness styles that you might not be familiar with. Alo In the Wild has something for everyone — power yoga, boxing, slow flows, ab circuits, EMOM workouts, bodyweight strength...the list goes on. Once you’ve got an idea of how much time you want to spend working out and the body areas you want to work, it’s easy to find a class to fit your needs. And if you like one style, there’s more where that came from. Check out Alo In the Wild: Hawaii, Alo In the Wild: Joshua Tree, and Alo In the Wild: Red Rocks for some instant inspo for your next workout.
Curious about how short workouts stack up? Here are a few of our favorite workout stacks.
For fans of power yoga:
20-Minute Power Flow + 5-Minute Ab Fire
Climb the mountain with this powerful, heated yoga flow followed by a short ab burnout to finish off strong.
For work-from-home tension:
5-Minute Neck Therapy + 5-Minute Shoulder Opener + 15-Minute Lower Back Slow Flow
Spent all day sitting? This stack targets all the hot spots and is perfect for desk dwellers that need a little extra tension relief.
For a well-rounded workout:
15-Minute Mobility + 20-Minute Total Body Blast
This feel-good mobility sequence will warm up your muscles and prime your whole body for an amazing top-to-toe workout.
For leg day:
5-Minute Quick Stretch + 20-Minute Lower Body Crush + 5-Minute Booty Blaster + 5-Minute Pigeon Pose Breakdown
This is the ultimate stack for the legs and booty. You’ll warm up and activate your lower body, then finish off with some quick glute work and a well-deserved Pigeon Pose stretch. Trust us — it’s the best Pigeon Pose you’ll ever experience.
Practice these classes and more for free with a 14-day trial to Alo Moves.