Without
question, High Intensity Interval Training is
one of the most effective means available for
rapidly losing bodyfat and improving your cardiovascular
conditioning. Not only do you burn many more
calories while you're performing the training,
you also stimulate your metabolism to a far
greater degree than with lower intensity training,
which is traditionally hailed for fat loss.
You're
going to learn exactly how to perform various
types of high intensity interval training to
maximize your results. For a full discussion
of the advantages of high intensity training
over low intensity training, read the following
article, which explains it detail:
What
Do You Mean Low-Intensity Training Isn't The
Best For Fat Burning?
http://www.fitstep.com/Misc/Newsletter-archives/issue7.htm
Even
though it's more challenging than low intensity
training, High Intensity Interval Training offers
tremendous benefits to you:
1.
It burns more calories than low intensity training,
meaning you can burn more fat in shorter workouts.
2.
Higher intensities stimulate your metabolism
far more AFTER the workouts than lower intensity
training. This means you continue to burn calories
and fat for long periods after you're done training.
Not so with low intensity training.
3.
Training at higher speeds, such as with high
intensity training can dramatically improve
sports performance. Football players can sprint
faster and recover more quickly between plays.
Tennis players can keep chasing down balls during
longer points. Even endurance athletes can benefit
by teaching their bodies to work at a faster
pace!
In general, interval training is best done 2
or 3 times per week. It is a challenging form
of cardio and requires recovery time in between
sessions. Interval sessions can last anywhere
between 5 to 30 minutes or more, depending on
the fitness level of the trainer and the style
of intervals being done.
How To Do It:
Interval
training is based on a very simple concept:
go fast then go slow. Repeat. It sounds easy,
but within this simple formula lies a tremendous
number of possible variations and strategies
you can employ to take full advantage of the
power available to you.
Interval
training can be performed on almost any cardiovascular
machine (including the treadmill, stair machine,
stationary bike, elliptical trainer, etc.) as
well as almost any type of cardiovascular exercise
(such as cycling, swimming, running, etc.).
Though
the examples I will go through below use time
as a measure for intervals, you can also very
easily use distance as your guide. For example,
you can sprint between two telephone poles then
walk to the next one. You can sprint the length
of a football field then walk the width. You
can even run up a flight of stairs then walk
back down. The variations you can do are truly
endless!
Here
are a number of different types of interval
training you can use:
1. Aerobic Interval Training
Aerobic
Interval Training is very beneficial for rapidly
improving your aerobic conditioning as well
as burning fat. It will even help you build
up your endurance faster than long-duration
cardio! It is also a very good introductory
format for starting interval training. If you
are new to interval training, I highly recommend
beginning with Aerobic Intervals.
This
type of interval training involves relatively
long work periods and shorter rest periods.
Work periods are generally 2 to 5 minutes long
in this type of training. The idea is not to
take it easy for that work time but to work
at a speed that challenges you to be able to
make it to the end of that work interval. Your
2 minute interval pace is, therefore, going
to be significantly faster than your 5 minute
interval pace.
The
rest interval for this type of training is between
30 seconds to a minute. Naturally, the shorter
the rest period, the tougher the training will
be. Too much rest will allow your body to recover
too much, lessening the overall training effect
of the exercise.
Here
are some examples of a number of different intervals
you can use in your training:
| Work |
Rest
|
| 2
min. |
30
sec. |
| 5
min. |
1
min. |
| 3
min. |
45
sec. |
| 2
min. |
1
min. |
| 5
min. |
30
sec. |
When
using these intervals, you can choose to stick
to the same time intervals (e.g. do 2 minutes
hard and 30 seconds slow for the duration
of the workout) or mix it up with different
time intervals as you go through your session.
This type of training can generally be done
for about 20 to 30 minutes.
2. Maximal High-Intensity Intervals
This
type of interval training is VERY high intensity
and is VERY effective for fat loss and cardio
training. You essentially push yourself to the
maximum on every single work interval you do!
This type of training is extremely effective
when training for sports that require all-out
repeated efforts, such as football, soccer,
hockey, etc. If you want to get faster and recover
faster, this is the type of training for you.
This
type of training sends very powerful signals
to the body and the metabolism. In addition
to dramatically ratcheting up the body's metabolism,
maximal-effort training also causes large amounts
of Growth Hormone, one of your body's primary
fat burning hormones (the Fountain of Youth
Hormone, as it's sometimes referred to) to be
released into the bloodstream. This two-pronged
effect is very powerful for fat-burning.
Maximal
Intervals are much shorter than Aerobic Intervals.
Generally, the longest you'll be able to perform
a maximal effort is around 30 seconds so all
the work intervals are 30 seconds or less.
Rest
periods can be short or long, depending how
good of shape a person is in and/or how much
they want to recover inbetween intervals. Shorter
rest periods make the work intervals more challenging
but the speed of the work will also drop quickly
after a few intervals. Longer rest periods will
allow the body to recover a little more, allowing
faster speeds on more intervals. Rest periods
should always be at least as long as the work
periods. This is to allow enough recovery to
be able to perform well on the next work period.
Here
are some examples of Maximal work and rest intervals
you can use in your training. As I mentioned
above, you can stick with one time period through
the whole session, or vary your intervals you
go through the workout.
| Work |
Rest
|
| 30
sec. |
30
sec. |
| 30
sec. |
1
min. |
| 20
sec. |
1
min. |
| 10
sec. |
30
sec. |
| 30
sec. |
2
min. |
Since
Maximal Intervals are so challenging, a person
should not expect or try to be able to jump
right in at a high level for a large number
of intervals. It is very important to build
yourself up gradually.
Start
by performing five Maximal Intervals the first
two sessions you do the training. The next two
sessions, do six Maximal Intervals. Continue
adding intervals in this step-up fashion until
you are doing intervals for a maximum of 15
minutes straight. The exact number of intervals
you do in a session will depend on the times
you're using in your work and rest intervals.
Because
Maximal Intervals are so challenging, you may
find yourself getting too fatigued to perform
at a fast pace as you get towards the end. When
this happens, try doing Reverse Pyramid intervals.
Instead of keeping your work interval the same,
reduce it by 5 seconds every couple of intervals.
Here's
a sample of how to do it:
Interval
1 - 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.
Interval 2 - 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.
Interval 3 - 25 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.
Interval 4 - 25 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.
Interval 5 - 20 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.
Interval 6 - 20 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.
Interval 7 - 15 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.
Interval 7 - 15 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.
3. Sub-Maximal High Intensity Intervals
Sub-Maximal
intervals are excellent for burning fat and
for building up your cardiovascular conditioning.
This type of training will do each of these
fat better than continuous-tempo, lower-intensity
training.
This
type of interval training is very similar in
concept and execution to the Maximal interval
style. The difference is, instead of pushing
yourself as hard as you can on each work interval,
you work at a pace that is somewhat below your
max. This allows you to do more total work intervals
during the session while still keeping your
intensity levels high.
Most
Interval programs on cardio machines follow
this principle. The resistance/speed is increased
to a higher level for a set period of time then
reduced for a set period of time. The level
is not so high that you must put your maximum
effort into each work interval, but it is at
a level you could not keep up for long periods.
This
type of training is also very effective for
fat loss and increasing the metabolism.
Intervals
in this style can be longer, since you're not
working at maximum speed, but not much longer.
Work periods of 30 seconds to a minute and rest
periods of 30 seconds to a minute work well
for it. Here are some sample intervals you can
use in your training:
| Work |
Rest
|
| 30
sec. |
30
sec. |
| 30
sec. |
1
min. |
| 1
min. |
1
min. |
| 1
min. |
30
sec. |
| 45
sec. |
45
sec. |
This
type of training can be done for about 15
to 30 minutes, depending on the intensity
level of the work.
4. Near-Maximal Aerobic Intervals
This
is a unique form of interval training that I've
been working with that basically combines Aerobic
Interval Training with Maximal Interval Training
to allow you to work at near-peak levels for
long periods of time. This has the benefit of
burning a tremendous amount of calories for
longer periods of work time than is possible
with normal intervals.
The
work intervals themselves are short but the
rest periods are much shorter! Instead of pushing
yourself to the max on every interval, you work
at a pace somewhat short of your max. This type
of training allows you to perform near your
max for longer periods of time. It is a very
challenging and unique form of interval training.
Here's
how it works:
Start
with a work interval of 20 seconds and a rest
interval of 5 seconds. Your pace should be one
that you would only be able to keep up steady
for about 1 to 2 minutes before having to stop.
Do that pace for 20 seconds then go very slow
for 5 seconds. Jump right back in and do that
same pace for another 20 seconds then very slow
for 5 seconds. Keep this cycle repeating for
a designated period of time, e.g. 5 minutes,
10 minutes or 15 minutes.
Here
are some sample intervals you can use with this
training style:
| Work |
Rest
|
| 20
sec. |
5
sec. |
| 25
sec. |
5
sec. |
| 30
sec. |
10
sec. |
| 15
sec. |
7
sec. |
| 40
sec. |
10
sec. |
This
type of training works very well with cardio
machines that allow you to switch resistance
instantly or very quickly (stationary bikes,
stair machines or elliptical trainers often
allow this). Machines that must cycle slowly
through their speeds as they change do not
work well for this (treadmills fall into this
category). It can also be done with running
then walking, cycling then pedalling slowly,
or even swimming hard then stroking lazily.
You'll find it very challenging to be having
to constantly restart your momentum from almost
scratch on every interval!
Please
note: it's very important that you don't stop
completely when you take your short rest period.
Keep yourself moving during this time even if
you're just moving very slowly!
5. Fartlek Training
No
discussion of Interval Training would be complete
with a reference to Fartlek Training. Translated
from Swedish, "Fartlek" literally
means "speed play." What is it? It's
simple - Fartlek training is every type of interval
rolled into one workout!
You
can start by jogging for 5 minutes then walk
for 30 seconds then sprint for 30 seconds then
walk again then run fast for 2 minutes and so
on. The idea is to train at a wide variety of
speeds, distances and times in order to hit
the widest variety of training parameters.
This
type of training is an excellent way to keep
your cardio interesting. You never have to do
the same thing twice! This workout can last
anywhere from 15 to 40 minutes, depending on
the intensity at which you are working.
---
In
conclusion, Interval Training is not a hard
concept to wrap your head around: go fast then
go slow! The various types of interval training
I've explained above will definitely help you
achieve your goals, whether they be rapid fat
loss, high-powered sports performance or amazing
cardiovascular capacity!
