People are always seeking new ways to motivate themselves to go to the gym for longer but boy, have I got some good news for those of you who prefer a shorter spell working out.
A set of twins from London known for their adventurous exploits have been putting their identical genes to the test by completing the same workout for three months with one slight difference.
Hugo and Ross Turner, 34, decided that they'd take on the same exercises in the gym for 12 weeks, but with Hugo doing just 20 minutes at a time compared to Ross's 40 minutes.
As much as fitness influencers on the internet might try and convince you that you need one of the world's most expensive gym memberships in order to get healthy, it seems as if the twins managed just fine and saw significant improvements in their muscle mass and cardiovascular fitness with a group of relatively simple exercises.
Advert
While Ross did double the work, he was also left doubly disappointed after realising that their results were very similar - although at least they weren't just working out one trap at a time like the lad from TikTok who has had some more damaging results.
In fact, Hugo saw a significantly better percentage increase when it came to the max number of push ups, while they matched each other in terms of pull ups and max dead weight.
However, after both cycled on a bike for 15 minutes and measured their heart rates, Ross's was lower - which is a better indication of cardiovascular health.
Ross told Business Insider: "The biggest finding was that we didn't really find a huge amount of performance difference between 20 or 40 minutes, if at all.
"I've put in double the work. I've lifted 16 hours extra over the 12 weeks. Am I seeing any results that I would say are worth doing? Not at all."
But he remained upbeat and suggested that people should always experiment with their gym workouts and find out what works best for each individual person.
You'll learn far more for the rest of your life and be far more informed than if you did five years of just doing a gym program because somebody told you to."
Michael Graham, a senior lecturer in sport and exercise science at Teesside University, suggested that the results should be taken with a pinch of salt.
He said: "We can't confidently assume any of the relationships or differences discussed between Hugo and Ross are anything to do with them as twins or simply typical variations and similarities we would see in any pair of individuals."
But he did stress that finding workouts that work for you is vital and also suggested that a short time in the gym can still come with major health benefits.
So, the next time you're in the gym, remember that staying for that extra half and hour might not even be worth it, as pushing yourself too hard can also lead to longer term health problems.
James Moorhouse