Some of the many benefits of getting regular exercise include burning fat, weight loss, weight management, stress management, and better sleep. Did you know that regular exercise also helps us learn? According to John J Rately, MD, in his book “Spike”, exercise cues the building blocks of learning in the brain, and the real reason we feel so good when we get our blood pumping from exercise is that it makes our brain function at its best. In 2000, Scientists at Duke University Medical Center showed that exercise is as good as Zoloft for treating depression and exercise is better than Zoloft at keeping symptoms from returning after the depression is gone.
Interval training is a great way to exercise that packs many benefits into a shorter workout. I’m referring to workouts in which you alternate bursts of intense, high-intensity exercise with low-intensity recovery periods. Interval training has been shown to improve cardiovascular fitness and burn more fat and calories over a short period of time than steady-state cardio exercises, even with low- or moderate-intensity interval workouts. You will derive benefits in as little as a 20-minute interval workout and your body will keep burning calories long after the workout. As you build up endurance and strength, you can add time to your workout.
According to Peter Jaret in a New York Times article, the high-intensity interval phase is typically 1-4 minutes of exercise at 80-85% of your maximum heart rate and should be long and strenuous enough that you are out of breath. Recovery periods should last long enough for your pulse to come down, but not long enough for your pulse to return to its resting rate. This is consistent with how I was taught to do interval training by a personal trainer. You want to remember to adequately warm up before the first interval, and you can use interval training workouts any way you want - running, cycling, swimming, on elliptical trainers, even walking if you alternate a speed walk and slow walk. Joggers can alternate walking and sprints. Swimmers can complete a couple of fast laps, then four more slowly. Many coaches recommend varying the duration of activity and rest. Be sure to include a cool down period after the last high-intensity interval, typically 3-5 minutes of a low-intensity jog or walk.
Coaches advise that, ideally, people should not do interval work on consecutive days. More than 24 hours between such taxing sessions will allow the body to recover and help them avoid burnout. Anyone in good health may consider doing interval training once or twice a week.
For anyone with heart disease or high blood pressure — or who has joint problems such as arthritis or is older than 60 — experts say to consult a doctor before starting interval training.
I do interval training several times each week, first thing in the morning. I warm up by walking to a park that’s about a mile from my house. When I get to the park, I run intervals with my dogs, so it’s a fun workout for all of us. By the time I start working I’m energized and can think clearly!
According to Peter Jaret in a New York Times article, the high-intensity interval phase is typically 1-4 minutes of exercise at 80-85% of your maximum heart rate and should be long and strenuous enough that you are out of breath. Recovery periods should last long enough for your pulse to come down, but not long enough for your pulse to return to its resting rate. This is consistent with how I was taught to do interval training by a personal trainer. You want to remember to adequately warm up before the first interval, and you can use interval training workouts any way you want - running, cycling, swimming, on elliptical trainers, even walking if you alternate a speed walk and slow walk. Joggers can alternate walking and sprints. Swimmers can complete a couple of fast laps, then four more slowly. Many coaches recommend varying the duration of activity and rest. Be sure to include a cool down period after the last high-intensity interval, typically 3-5 minutes of a low-intensity jog or walk.
Coaches advise that, ideally, people should not do interval work on consecutive days. More than 24 hours between such taxing sessions will allow the body to recover and help them avoid burnout. Anyone in good health may consider doing interval training once or twice a week.
For anyone with heart disease or high blood pressure — or who has joint problems such as arthritis or is older than 60 — experts say to consult a doctor before starting interval training.
I do interval training several times each week, first thing in the morning. I warm up by walking to a park that’s about a mile from my house. When I get to the park, I run intervals with my dogs, so it’s a fun workout for all of us. By the time I start working I’m energized and can think clearly!