This 5-Minute Spartan Race-Inspired Workout Will Spike Your Heart Rate

SPARTAN RACES PUSH fitness fans out of their comfort zones with a challenging mashup of running and obstacle navigation, taking even the most in-shape participants to their limits. Recreating that environment in an enclosed gym space might sound impossible—but the company’s indoor racing program, Spartan DEKA, does just that. Now, this super intense five-minute workout designed by Spartan DEKA co-creator/Senior Director Yancy Culp aims compress that intensity into an even shorter period.

The session is purpose-built to put your whole body through the wringer, hitting multiple muscle groups while also challenging you to move through more movement patterns than are often included in workouts five times as long. You’ll squat, jump, lunge, press, and move laterally, honing your athleticism while raising your heart rate, too.

All you need for the routine is a set of light dumbbells. Err even lighter than you might expect—15 pounds will even be challenging for experienced trainees. You most important point of focus: keep your form at a high level. “Before the movement standard falls apart, what we want is to lower the pace,” Culp says.