Plan Your Cardio Workout


The key to fat burning is using interval workouts


















Plan Your Cardio Workout






Getting Up to Speed
They
say that slow and steady wins the race. But the cardiovascular key to
fat burning is using interval workouts - workouts that alternate
high-intensity levels with lower-intensity effort. As I mentioned
earlier, that formula keeps your body burning calories long after
you've stopped working out.



Interval workouts mimic sports - start-and-stop motions with periods
of sprinting or close-to-sprinting speeds followed by light jogging or
rest. You can use interval workouts any way you want - running,
cycling, swimming, on elliptical trainers, even walking if you
alternate a speed walk and slow walk.



You can also vary the intensity levels in different combinations. To
start, here are three options for setting your workout. (If you use
exercise machines, don't choose the interval workout; choose the manual
one, and create your own intensities by adjusting it yourself. It'll
give you greater control over the speeds and will help you burn fat
faster.) You'll derive benefits in as little as a 20-minute interval
workout. As you build up endurance and strength, you can add time to
your workout.















Interval Variation I: Standard
The
following is a typical interval workout. You alternate the same period
of low intensity with the same period of higher intensity.

1. 3 - 5 minutes warmup (light jog, low intensity, gradually increasing at the end of the warmup period)
   
2. 1 minute moderate or high intensity followed by 1 minute low intensity (repeat 6 - 8 times)
   
3. 3 - 5 minutes cooldown (light jog, low intensity, gradually decreasing by the end of the cooldown period)
   

Interval Variation II: Pyramid
This
pyramid structure allows you to start with short bursts of speed, and
then you'll peak at the longest surge of energy in the middle of your
workout before coming back down.

1. 3 - 5 minutes warmup
   
2. 30 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
   
3. 45 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
   
4. 60 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
   
5. 90 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
   
6. 60 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
   
7. 45 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity
   
8. 30 seconds high intensity
   
9. 3-5 minutes cooldown
   

Interval Variation III: Sports Conditioning
Sports
are unpredictable. This interval simulates some of that
unpredictability by having you doing different times and different
intensities. You can mix and match the orders and repetitions as much
as you want. Rest longer after the periods in which you use the most
energy.

1. 3 - 5 minutes warmup
   
2. 2 minutes moderate or high intensity followed by 2 minutes low intensity (repeat once
   
3. 30 seconds high intensity followed by 30 seconds low intensity (repeat four times)
   
4. 60-yard sprints (or 10 seconds if not running) followed by 90 seconds rest (repeat 6 - 10 times)
   
5. 3 - 5 minutes cooldown
   

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