Fitness Blender’s 5x5x5 Pulse Workout is a wonderfully cruel and effective way to mix up your lower body workouts.

There are five exercises in this routine. All of them are fairly basic in nature, but we’ve added a twist in order to bump up the intensity and caloric burn.

For each exercise you will do five repetitions, followed by five pulses, and you will repeat this sequence a total of 5 times. This means that all together you are doing 50 repetitions of each exercise; 25 regular ones, and 25 pulse ones.

The pulsing repetitions take place in the most taxing range of motion for each of the exercises – the place where it will burn the most.

This is an awesome routine for the glutes and thighs. The movements target the glutes in multiple ranges of motion and these are very much butt lifting exercises – add this routine to your regimen a few times a week and you will without a doubt see a difference in your body in as little as 2 weeks.


Routine Structure
We start off with a very short, 2 minute cardio warm up. Because these exercises are going to thoroughly work over your muscles, it would not be a bad idea to do a bit of extra warm up cardio, prior to starting this video.

Once you’ve got your blood moving, we move right into the thigh toning, butt lifting 5x5x5 workout. There is a short cool down & stretch at the end.

The 5 Exercises
• Kneeling Rear Leg Raises – Both the regular reps and the pulses really zone right in on that gluteus maximus. This move also targets the hamstrings, and lower back. Be very conscious of squeezing the glutes at the top of that lifting motion. If you are brave, you can step up the challenge even more by doing this with ankle weights on.

• Squats – Quite possibly the best butt exercise around, we increased the effectiveness and the ouch factor by adding in those 5 pulses at the end of each round of 5 regular repetitions. To get the most from this exercise, remember to stick your butt out, keep your weight in your heels, and keep your back flat.

• Lunges – Glutes, hamstrings, quads, calves, ankle & knee complexes, inner & outer thigh, lower back and abs all have to work together for a lunge. Make sure to maintain proper form while you do the pulsing motions and do not bounce; instead use very smooth movements. These will have your legs shaking like crazy.

• Bridge – Each time you push your hips upward focus on squeezing that butt. As you go up for the pulses, stay right at the top of the bridge and keep squeezing. This will burn most intensely in your glutes and your hamstrings.

• Downward Dog + Leg Raises – Keep your back straight and your hips as level as possible as you do a reverse leg raise on each side of your body. Don’t let yourself use momentum at any point as it will only make the exercise easier (aka less effective).

Stretches
• Standing Hamstring Stretch
• Toe Touch Stretch
• Hip Flexor Stretch
Feel free to do a longer stretch and cool down session than is shown; only the most predominately used muscles are stretched in the video.

How many calories does this routine burn?
We estimate that this Fitness Blender workout burns between 7-12 calories a minute, or roughly 147-252 in 21 minutes. The wide range between top and bottom of these estimates is due to the many different variables that influence expenditure, for example if you weigh more than 190 or less than 130, you may end up with a higher or lower expenditure.

Is it okay to stop & take a rest?
If you need to stop and shake your legs out at any point during any set of this 5x5x5 workout, do so. Just get right back into it ASAP & aim to make it further without a rest the next time you do this routine.

How long until I see results?
Your body can start to firm up in as little as 2 weeks, but give it up to 4 weeks before you expect to see very significant changes. You will get the best results if you combine your exercise with healthy eating and regular cardio.

How many times a week should I do this workout?
3-4 Times a week would be sufficient, but we recommend that you choose other Fitness Blender lower body workouts in order to keep your muscles guessing – take advantage of all of our variety and mix it up!

Heads up! You will very likely be a bit sore for a couple of days after you do this workout.

Have you tried this workout? What did you think of it? Sign in & speak up below.