An Extreme Fat Burning Approach
High-Intensity Interval Training is a short, very intense workout that requires the body to get into oxygen deficiency so that it shifts to anaerobic energy production. Without getting too technical, this anaerobic glycolysis is where the body breaks down carbohydrates without using oxygen.
HIIT exercises (also called Short Sprint Interval Training) can be done in many of your favorite activities including skating, jumping rope, calisthenics, spinning, biking and so on. After a few weeks, this program can be increased to 30-second bursts as your fitness improves. (It goes without saying that you should not try this unless you are already in good physical condition.)
How to Do HIIT
The training regime is simple. It consists of short bursts of intense exercise of 15 to 20 seconds reps, repeated 10 to 15 times, with a recovery period that is just long enough to permit the heart rate to return to 120 to 130 beats per minute. Then go all out again. The workout should become increasingly difficult toward the end of every burst; and you will become more fatigued with each rep.
A High Intensity Interval Training workout, done 4 to 6 times per week, will include:
A 5-minute warm-up
Duration: 10- to 15-second bursts, working up to 30 seconds
Reps: 10 bursts, working up to 15
Expect Faster Results
Researchers in Canada found that, while their test subjects did not burn an excessive amount of calories doing HIIT, they did lose up to nine times more subcutaneous fat than subjects who participated in a moderate-intensity endurance study who cycled 4 times a week for 30-45 minutes. (Metabolism, 1994, Volume 43, pp.814-818)
The study concluded that an HIIT session continues to burn calories and fat long after the workout, a result that many fitness pros call the “after burn.”
And there is one more added bonus: in addition to doing an elevated calorie burning activity, the appetite is often suppressed in most people following a session of intense interval training.