I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Holiday.  I've been spending it with my mother who flew down for 10 days to visit me.  The good thing is that my mother is into going to the gym, so I've been getting in most of my workouts, which I'm happy about. 

In my research the other day, I came across this article on High Intensity Interval Training, which I think a lot of you will learn from.


"Fall Of The Cardio Dynasty

The old-school approach to weight loss and physical fitness told us to hop onto a treadmill, find the pace that corresponded to our fat-burning “target heart rate,” and enjoy the monotony of the human hamster wheel for an hour. If only we’d remembered to consult our great reality check, human evolution, we might have realized that this approach produces meager results. We’re not hamsters; we’re primates who have progressed in ways that make our ability to lose weight dependent on many factors.

Out Of The Trees, On Our Two Feet.
About five million years ago, our primate ancestors descended from the trees and stood up. Over the next 4.95 million years, they also grew larger, requiring more food for survival. However, ground-dwelling primates had to range over increasingly large areas to meet their nutritional and energy needs. Through natural selection, the mechanics of an upright posture evolved to favor endurance over speed. Anthropologists maintain that early humans spent at least three hours walking 10–12 miles each day in order to procure adequate sustenance for survival. Therefore, our survival as a species came to rely on our genetic propensity for extraordinary endurance during low- to moderate-intensity activities like brisk walking or slow jogging.

Low-Intensity Cardio Is Counterproductive.
Activities that fall within the so-called “fat-burning zone” favor overall energy conservation, so if your goal is to shed unwanted body fat, the last thing you want to do is program your physiology to maximize energy conservation. Unless you are physically unable to engage in vigorous forms of exercise, old-school cardio is not only inefficient, but may actually be counterproductive to reaching your physique goals. Although low-intensity aerobic exercise burns some fat during the actual activity, it has only minimal impact on lean tissue development and overall metabolism.

And It’s Boring.
Don’t get me wrong: long, slow cardio is better than nothing. Previously sedentary individuals get results from cardio, at least for a little while. In the long run (excuse the pun), progress is limited. Studies have clearly demonstrated that, over time, conventional cardio compromises speed, coordination, strength and agility. Plus, to many, it’s boring.

Increase Your Metabolic Rate 24/7.
Exercise physiologists are now proving that the most efficient way to induce progressive (and permanent) fat loss is to elevate metabolic rate around the clock — an endeavor best accomplished through a combination of resistance training and intense, short-duration exercise. Weight training builds muscle, and a little muscle goes a long way toward increasing metabolic rate, caloric expenditure and fat burning. Likewise, brief intervals of intense exercise induce a hormonal response that raises resting metabolic rate and increases overall fat burning for up to two days!

Do High-Intensity Interval Training.
Modify your current cardio routine so that it’s working for, rather than against, your physique goals. Whereas long, slow cardio tends to devour most of the muscle you are trying to build, punctuating your aerobic workout with brief (30–60 seconds) all-out sprints every three to five minutes will accomplish the exact opposite. Often referred to as high-intensity interval training (HIIT), this regimen not only makes your workout more effective, it also makes it far more efficient so that you can literally cut your workout time in half and reap significantly greater benefits in terms of fat loss and peak performance."

-Peter Adonis

01/24/2009

Peter Adonis: James, no, you stay on the same machine whether it is a treadmill or an elliptical, and you establish 'strides per minute' or 'rpm' on that particular machine that corresponds to walking, jogging and sprinting. You just alter how fast you are going to achieve any of those 3. -Peter Adonis

01/23/2009

James: This article is not very specific. So we should get off the treadmill altogether and run some sprints every few minutes? For the duration of our workout?

12/28/2008

Adam: I love you! By reading this blog, I've been able to lose 10 lbs in the last 6 weeks, thank you!

12/24/2008

jesse: excellent article, keep em coming. happy holidays