It’s possible that you tend to avoid fitness exercise routines because you don’t have the time to take an hour or two out of your day for it. Gyms and health clubs today are trying to tap into a large and neglected market to help spread their business. They call their new service their “express programs”, and they position themselves squarely at saving you your valuable time. The moment you walk in the gym, they aim to take over the 15 minutes you let them have, and to give you a precisely tailored fitness exercise routine that will whip you into shape in as little time as that.

The rush workout exercise program was mostly invented by the Curves International chain of women’s health clubs. It involved a 30 minute rush program; you came in and fled from one exercise device to the next in record time, to give yourself a well-rounded workout in no time at all. Pretty soon everyone else caught on; the national fitness chains 24 Hour Fitness, Xpress Zone, and Town Sports International, a regional chain, whipped up the express 22 minute workout exercise regimes, and pretty much everyone else followed suit. The idea has been so successful that even the traditionally slow wellness concepts of yoga and spinning have caught on with 30 minute sessions. If they feel that they can’t give you your money’s worth in an all-around program in the time, they often offer you short sessions that focus on certain parts of the body that you need to train, your tummy, your legs and so on.