That's Fit

Chris recently shared a few benefits of interval training, and now a new study says brief bursts of exercise are just as effective for heart health as dedicated endurance training. Considering interval workouts are shorter, you get the same bang for less time when it comes to the ticker.

Researchers had 20 healthy young men and women either ride stationary bikes 4-5 days a week for 40-60 minutes at a moderate-intensity or perform four to six sets of 30-second cycling sprints followed by 4.5 minutes of recovery time between sprints. The sprint group exercised for significantly less time, only 15-25 minutes per shot, three days a week. At the end of a six-week trial, sprint interval training improved arterial health just as much as endurance training.

You do not need to exercise like a hamster-on-a-wheel to improve heart health. If you're strapped for time, sprinkle in a few interval workouts. These powerful, short cardiovascular bursts are good for your heart. Personally, I wouldn't suddenly start interval training if I was out of shape. To reduce risk of injury, I'd slowly get back into shape first, then add intervals when my muscles and ligaments were ready for higher-stress training.

For quite some time, researchers believed that the tortoise approach of slow and stead truly won the fat-burning race. Working at 65-70 percent of your maximum heart rate (MHR) was typically what was considered to be the ideal "fat-burning zone" (as evidenced by the fact that this very information still appears on some pieces of cardio equipment).

However, this school of thought has been challenged by a number of newer studies, and a growing number of people now subscribe to the idea that shorter, high-intensity interval workouts are much more effective at stripping away fat.

Researchers from Cornell University found that high-intensity intervals burn 30-percent more calories per workout than longer, low- to moderate-intensity sessions. And, a separate study, appearing in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, revealed that men who completed 20 weeks of interval training lost nine times more fat than men who followed a more traditional endurance program.

The takeaway? Start ramping up your workout. Try running (or any other form of cardiovascular exercise) for short bursts at a very difficult pace, followed by a minute or two of low-intensity movement. Repeat this process several times for maximum results.

We are an easily bored species, one that needs almost constant change in some way, shape or form to keep our complex minds stimulated and interested. This is likely the reason why so many people prefer elaborate workouts to something as simple as placing one foot in front of the other for an extended period of time. To help remedy this situation, you may want to try some of the following tips to keep your walking routine from becoming, well, less routine:

Get Bookish. One of the best ways to pump-up a workout is to listen to music. Pop those earbuds into your ears and rock out to your guiltiest of pleasures. You may also find that listening to a book on tape is equally as stimulating. Some of your favorite titles are available for download through iTunes and Amazon.com.

Interval Training. Walking is a low-intensity cardio workout, but it doesn't always have to be. To burn extra calories, and to mix things up a bit over the course of your stroll, try picking up the pace for a minute or so every now and again. Doing so can help you burn an extra 100 calories or so over the course of a 30-minute workout.

Love getting that runner's high? If so, why not try a runner's low ... followed by a runner's high ... and then another runner's low, etc.? Alternating between bursts of high-intensity and low-intensity activity -- commonly known as interval training -- is a proven way to quickly shed body fat and improve cardiovascular function.

In fact, numerous studies have revealed that interval training is more effective than working out at a constant, moderate pace. Not only does it challenge your body to train at a higher level of intensity than it is used to, but it also allows short periods of recovery, thereby allowing you to muster up the energy to blast through your workout without faltering toward the end.

Interval training can be applied to just about any form of cardio workout. Runners can try a 30-second sprint for every 3 to 5 minutes of lower-intensity jogging. Swimmers can try something similar; for every one lap (or half lap, depending upon your fitness level) at high-intensity, complete a few laps at a more measured pace. Whatever your exercise of choice happens to be, you can modify it so that it incorporates intervals.

Life Fitness is a process of continuous growth: physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Need motivation
and guidance to facilitate positive changes in your life? Ask Life Fit Expert Laura

Dear Laura:

What do you think about fasting? I have been on all sorts of "diet" programs and really can't seem to lose weight. I am thinking about fasting...the kind where you don't eat at all for a few days. Or is there a better alternative?

Signed,

Debbie G., Atlanta, Ga.

Dear Debbie,

When many people think of fasting they might correlate it with not eating any food at all. When in reality there are all sorts of ways that people fast. Heck, I have even heard of the "air" diet. Um, something that I probably wouldn't want to do since I actually enjoy eating!

But here is what I know from personal experience having conducted many workshops on health, fitness and nutrition. People I met who have been on the "metabolic roller coaster" by going for hours without eating and then gorging themselves once a day, end up having slower metabolic rates. Why? Because your body is quite intelligent. If you deprive it of fuel, your body says "Hey...you know, if you are going to starve, I want to survive, so I will slow my metabolic rate down or the rate I burn calories. Cool? Oh, by the way, if you start eating normally again, I will still have a slower metabolism...and you will end up gaining back your weight and more!"

I do like the concept of fasting and "cleansing" or detoxing. But not for long periods of time. I would rather see you go on a "mono diet" for a day, such as eating watermelon all day, for one day only. Your kidneys will ultimately thank you for the cleanse! Oh, if you are diabetic and need to eat a well-balanced diet each and every day, eating watermelon is probably not the best thing to do! I do believe there is something to letting your internal organs rest, such as your liver, kidneys and bowels! They play an integral pary of your health. I usually encourage others, if they are on some sort of self-prescribed food program that they only really need to eat every four to six hours! In that time you may hear a rumbling stomach, but, you know...your stomach may get a chance to "wake up"!! And it will help you not to eat so much in the future if you actually deprive it of being full all the time! What a concept!

Here is what I propose overall. If you want to lose weight, you need to get serious. Serious about your workouts by doing interval training cardiovascularly, 4 to 5 times per week for 15 to 20 minutes at a time. Or by walking or running for at least thirty minutes. I personally love the Eliptical trainer and change up the levels from easy to very difficult like in interval training. Working out with weights three to five times per week will build your muscle, which in turn will crank up your metabolism. Next, eat three balanced meals per day that include lean protein, lots of steamed or fresh green veggies and a few fresh fruits, plus a good complex, nutritious carbohydrate such as lentils or black beans. Oh and let's not forget the "good fat!" Consume olive oil and either flax oil or fish oil/omega 3 fatty acids.They are so good for your overall health, assist in balancing hormones and reducing inflammation. Avoid refined products such as white bread, soft drinks, cookies, chips and more. Like I said previously, if you still have the "hankering" to fast, why not go on a "mono diet" of watermelon all day long? And if you really don't want to eat for an entire day, drink herbal teas with lemon or lime, rest, don't overexert yourself and take it easy!

Do I support starving yourself for days at a time? No. One or two days? Yes. But I really would prefer for you to just eat sensibly, drink plenty of water, throw olive oil on your salad at least once a day and work out! Hope this helps! Most importantly, check with your primary health care provider about not eating and how it might effect you!

Healthfully Yours!

Laura Lewis

Send your questions to me, Laura Lewis for this column! Life fit is all about fitness, nutrition as well as mental, emotional and spiritual issues! I would love to hear from you! LL

Whether you're making your foray into fitness sometime soon or if you've been working out for quite some time, I'm sure you have goals. You've set them in your mind; to look a certain way, to feel better, to build strength and endurance, etc. Some of your goals may even be more specific; to fit in a pair of jeans, to be able to bench press your bod weight, to be able to complete a 5k marathon, etc. Whatever your individual goals happen to be, now that they've been set, it's time to start achieving them.

If your goal is ...

To Be More Flexible ... Try stretching more often. A great stretch that incorporates most of the joints and muscles in your body is to lie face-up on the floor with your legs extended. Grab the back of your left knee with both hands and pull it close to your chest. Hold it there for 30 seconds. Then, do the same for the right knee, also holding it for thirty seconds. Next, cross your right knee over your left knee, as you would when you cross your legs while seated in a chair. Use both hands to pull the back of your left thigh toward you, which should bring your right knee toward your right shoulder. Hold for 30 seconds and then switch legs and do the same for that side.

To Be Stronger and More Toned ... Perform multi-joint exercises that burn more calories when performed. Examples include the squat, bench press, deadlift, push-ups, pull-ups, and military press. Incorporate resistance training movements of this kind to your workout at least two or three times a week for a minimum of twenty minutes.

To Be Less Winded ... Start interval training. Divide your regular cardio workout into segments of low-intensity and high-intensity. For example, try jogging lightly for two or three minutes and then all-out sprinting for 15 to 20 seconds. Repeat this cycle three or four times in total. As your stamina increases, you can adjust your effort accordingly.

As I mentioned in a recent post, there's exercising hard, and then there's exercising smart. It's not necessary to spend four hours in the gym every day to feel and see a marked improvement to your overall health. What is necessary, however, is to make sure that you are maximizing your time -- even if if is far less than four hours per day.

WebMD just listed the 7 Most Effective Exercises, along with descriptions and explanations of why each ranks so high.

7. Walking

6. Interval Training

5. Squats

4. Lunges

3. Push-ups

2. Abdominal Crunches

1. Bent-Over Row

Following most or all of these suggested exercises is a great way to ensure that you are making the most of your time spent in the gym.

I've got my treadmill workout down to a science. Hop on, warm-up, get up to speed, do a couple of hills, and....I'm done (after a cool down, of course). But falling into an exercise rut, like the one I seem to be stuck in, isn't the best way to build fitness. Your body can adapt to your regular exercise routine, causing you to plateau and make your workouts ineffective.

One way to make sure you're challenging yourself at the gym is to keep an eye on the display on your exercise machine. Whether you're on a bike, treadmill, or elliptical, you have your own little electronic personal trainer of sorts right in front of you. By making best use of the little device, you can tweak your workout to challenge you to do your best. Women's Health has broken the code of those little display boxes, and tell us here what to look for while we're working out.

If you could boil good fitness advice down to six essential tips, that would be a pretty handy thing to have, wouldn't it? The knowledgeable people over at eDiets have tried to do just that, coming up with the six top fitness tips. They include:

• Keep workouts intense, but under an hour (unless your a distance athlete).
• Challenge your body and avoid fitness plateaus by changing your workout every 4 to 6 weeks.
• Slow and steady wins the race. Gradually increase the duration and intensity of your workouts.
• Vary your strength training routine every 3 to 4 weeks.
• Consider interval training to burn fat.
• Don't neglect flexibility. Add Pilates, yoga, or stretching to your routine.

Now you tell us, That's Fit readers -- are these the top 6 fitness truths? Or do you have something different you'd put on this list?

Here's a tip for making the most out of your workouts that I learned from Fitsugar: Get your heart rate up with an 8-second interval of high-intensity, and follow it with 12 seconds of moderate intensity. Do this for 20 minutes and you'll burn more fat than you would working out as you normally would. This is basic interval training, but it's training in very short bursts, which is sure to keep you from getting bored.

Still skeptical as to how well this can work in burning fat? Read the studies that back this up.

What do you think of interval training? It's effective but I think it's hard to get used to if you're a runner who likes a steady speed.

Now that the weather's getting colder, many will be bringing their workouts indoors. Running mile after mile on a treadmill after a summer hitting the trails is an equivalent workout for your body, but what about your brain? If indoor cardio workouts bore you, don't let it interfere with your fitness routine. Instead, try one of these three boredom busters from eDiets:

• Switch it up. There's no rule that says you have to stay on one machine for your whole workout. Change machines every 15 minutes for some variety.
• Set up challenges for yourself. X amount of minutes of vigorous training followed by a more moderate pace until you catch your breath, then challenge yourself again for a different amount of time. Interval training is also a way to really boost your fitness level.
• Get off the machine. Try jumping rope, follow a DVD workout. The point is, your heart doesn't care what you're doing, just that you're doing it.

What about you? What keeps you moving when you get bored?

My typical cardio workout consists of a 30-45 minute moderate walk several times a week. It's a workout that fits my fitness level and lifestyle, but I've got a vacation coming up in about six weeks, and I wouldn't mind improving my fitness (and my look) just in time to hit the beach. So when I came across this article about sprinting, I was intrigued.

We've heard before that interval training is an excellent way to add intensity to your workout. Long, slow workouts have their place, but interval training has been shown to be particularly useful in blasting fat. Sprinting takes that interval training to a whole new level. At less than 10 minutes a piece, the sprinting workouts are quick, but powerful and promise to help your body burn calories for hours afterward. And though we typically think of sprinting as running, it can also be done on a stationary bike or with a jump rope.

I'm not sure if sprinting is for me or not, but it's definitely tempting. Has anyone tried this type of workout? What kind of results did you see?

.At the magazine rack, I'm bombarded with headlines screaming, 'Lose 10 pounds before summer!', 'take inches of your waist without dieting!', 'burn 1000 calories an hour with this workout!'. It's hard to sort through what info is legit and what's not.

I, like most people, want to blast fat. So what's the best way to do this? Is it cardio? weights? diet? According to this eDiet's article, it's a combination of all three, but the key to burning fat specifically lies especially in the cardio, particularly the type of cardio your doing. Interval training is the way to go, meaning that your best alternating between short bursts of intensity and periods of rest. This is better at targeting your fat than just hopping on the elliptical trainer and doing the same level of resistance for the duration of your workout. Interesting -- this certainly sounds more exciting than doing the same level or cardio the whole workout through.

What do you think -- quality advice or not?

In order to be really honestly "fit," your heart and your cardiovascular system have to be ready for anything. You might notice that if you workout exactly the same way every day, and then you suddenly try something new, you might suddenly feel really out of shape when you didn't before. But throwing sudden bursts of intense exercise into an otherwise "routine" routine can really improve your heart's ability to respond to sudden demands, which will improve your overall fitness and get you to the results you're looking for that much faster.

And did you know (this seems like an outrageously high percentage!) that high intensity interval exercise like this can reduce the risk of heart disease by as much as 100% compared to those who only work on endurance? Wow.

Spring is a time to fling open your windows and let the fresh air clean the stale winter air from your home. The same could be said for your tired old winter fitness routine. Here's an article that will help you clean the dust bunnies from your workout and spruce it up...just in time for spring.

Here's a tip for walkers and runners: Write the date of purchase on the tongue of your shoe and keep track of your average mileage. If you run 10 miles a week, your shoes should be good for about a year, but if you log more miles than that you may need to replace them sooner. And if you really want to add some flair (and fat blasting) to your walking or running workout, consider adding in some interval training. Rather than going one speed for the whole workout, try speed walking or sprinting for 30 seconds at two minute intervals. You'll fire up your calorie burning furnace and can shorten your workout by half.

There's lots more tips if you follow the link. Even the best routine needs a little freshening up now and then to keep your body challenged and on its toes!