Actually 60 minutes from rolling out of bed, to dressed for work.
I hate running. Even on an interesting parkway. Running in airport hotel parking lot is self inflicted torture. But exercise is a necessity. When I was travelling a lot and working too many hours a day to fit in a decent walk I had to make do.
I adapted a gymnastics warm up and cool down plus a bit of the RCAF 10 minute workout, added 23 minutes of high intensity Aerobics I learned as a part of a study run by the Physiology Prof and gymnastics coach at Stanford Wes Ruff.
The gym team among others were volunteers to determine the optimum level of aerobics to maintain peak Cardiovascular health. That study is the reason for the universal recommendation for 20 minutes of aerobics in any exercise program. We were divided into groups with varying levels of time and intensity and monitored monthly on a EKG bicycle with a breathing mask. (The worst part of the study.) Intensity mattered less in maintenance of existing levels of CVH, if you could do it at all 20 minutes kept you where you were and more didn't help at all. It didn't hurt of course, and strangely pushing the intensity didn't help either. You were stronger and had more endurance but the basic level of CVH didn't change (for the College Varsity level athletes in the study.)
In any event the workout:
Two minutes of limbering and stretching I use the usual six point strech, the first six limbering, the last full 30 second stretches.
Two minutes 4 position Yoga position bicepts work
Thirty second supine planche, feet on the floor now.
Thirty second seated toe touch stretch
One minute supine bicycle ab work
Fifteen seconds of push ups, as hard as you can make them Chest slaps originally, lucky to stay off knees now.
Back arches as needed for tone. Too many may overpower core and cause back issues.
Two minutes of back stretches (Pretzel) for back issues
One minute of crunches as hard as possible.
That should put you at about 9 minutes for a minute breather and drink and "Exercise pulse rate."
Twenty three minutes (nominal) run in place intervals. 18 sets of a minute run + 20 sec .Jumping Jacks or sprint as able. I know that is 24 minutes but you can run and jump faster than that can't you? If you get much below 23 jack up the intensity. I count steps and jumps rather than watch a clock.
The clock comes at the end of the 23 minutes. Hit the lap timer, find a Jugular pulse in ten seconds, and count 10 seconds X6 for your intense rate. That was the study protocol which I have stayed with all these years to track a reliable baseline. I assume modern gadgets are better but I can't be bothered.
Cooldown
30 Sec wide leg, straight foot wall stretch
One min. light exercise, I use a in place mogul run.
30 second each one leg stretch
30 sec each one leg knee bends, balance and mild exercise
30 sec wide leg, splay foot deep wall stretch to end.
Another pulse check, S.S.S. and 20 minutes later a recovery pulse check (optional it doesn't change much except when you slack off for a while.)
I was the "Businessman on a bicycle." in New York City in the '70s who used a full lane I memorized the Vehicle Code number from circa 1900 that established the bicycle as equivalent to a horse drawn carriage and horses, entitled to the use of a full traffic lane. I always used one. The law was for the occasional cop who shouted at me to move to the parking lane and I shouted back NYVC 10-25 or whatever it was. For cabs more aggressive measures were needed. I had a huge master lock on a fairly long hardened chain, which hung on the traffic side handlebar and occasionally slid off forcing me to catch it before it swung too close to an encroaching cab. Even cabs intent on forcing me into the parked cars got the message. I never had to make contact but the word spread rapidly and soon editorials began to appear that bike lanes on the Avenues were needed. I got some "help" from bike messengers in establishing the need for bike lanes South of Central Park. They not only used traffic lanes, but all available space on streets and sidewalks. Bike lanes came relatively quickly and established the unfortunate precedent of being located on the traffic side of the parking lane. Much better than none, but I still carried the lock when prudence dictated leaving the bike lane for the traffic lane.
An amusing aside, I was riding down 5th Ave. past Rockefeller Center spring break and a class of kids saw me about 51st and screamed Look a Businessman on a Bicycle which was picked up by class after class all the way to about 46th. I at least smiled and waved.
Most of my bike commuting was downwind and down hill going to work so a suit and tie was OK if I took it easy. Clean bike gear was in the saddlebags. Coming home involved a change at work, a long steep hill upwind, a shower in bike gear after the strength workout, and a cool dryer. Even strong tourers rode my wheel up Geneva in SF into a 40 mph wind after belittling my "easy commute of only 6 mi. My favorite however, was a 15 miler from Sunset over the Golden Gate Bridge through Sausalito to Mill valley. No sweat at all to work in the morning if I took it easy up a couple of hills and the bridge. Home was an easy warm up to the Bridgeway Hill where the tourists dropped out and the work out began for the rest of the way home.
When I moved to Silicon Valley a bicycle as transportation didn't provide efficient exercise, but I would occasionally ride up to the City to sneer at the van riders on Sunday's weekly closure of 4 miles of Cañada Road. A nice warm up, but why the van to get there?
Then there are the real bicycle pros. Nephew Nick missed the 7-11 team only by an admission to UCB. He lived in Carmichael east of Sacramento, rode to the Davis Double, rode the double and rode home. All in a day's work(out.)
Any serious cyclist needs to spend some time with the cones to learn where to look. Hint it isn't at the trouble, it is where you want to go. A bicycle is incredibly responsive. If you look at oncoming trouble you will hit it. This is how I got hit on a bike path. I was going where I needed to go and the other rider looked their bike right into my wheel.
There are at least two tribes of cyclists: those who cycle for transportation, and those who cycle for fun. There may be a third tribe, weekend warriors for serious fun cycling. Both and maybe all three have quite different priorities with respect to automobile traffic. Fun cyclists want bike lanes, cycling paths and closed roads. Transportation cyclists want shared lanes everywhere. Even shared transit lanes and shared breakdown lanes on freeways. They consider bike lanes, even protected bike lanes death traps. Turning drivers especially left turners don't even see bike lanes or cyclists. A left turner trying to beat oncoming traffic will be going fast enough to cause serious injury to a cyclist in the bike path. In rush hour traffic drivers aren't even aware of bike lanes. On weekends in light traffic they may be all right.
I don't care if the freeway breakdown lane stays open to cyclists or not. I'll pass. I trust cyclists more than motorists. A cyclist is naked on a 30 pound open frame. So am I. A motorist is surrounded by a ton of steel and unyielding plastic which will save herm butt no matter what hesh does or does not pay attention to.
