The Power of Interval Training

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Looking to get in peak condition... Fast? Looking to melt away slabs of adipose tissue? (Fat). Are you still doing steady state aerobics? If so, then it's time to get with the program... Another type of program. An interval program.

It's not uncommon for me to be bombarded with the same questions day in and day out about weight loss. Questions such as: "What's the fastest way to shed weight?" (Why does everyone always want everything fast?), "Hey John, I've been doing this program for some time now, and I'm just not getting any results. What am I doing wrong?" Or if an athlete does have an optimal program, they'll still ask from time to time... you've guessed it. Where's the hour cardio?

To be honest, I feel like a tape recorder playing the same message over and over again (sigh). But I'll keep hitting rewind until the message hits home.

Let's face it, it's as if the general public is brainwashed. Living in the matrix! It's now time to wake up!

Why do people in this day and age think that this training method (steady state aerobics) is so effective for achieving lean body mass and improving athletic performance? When it comes to team conditioning some coaches only use aerobic training. I even know some boxing coaches that still have their guys running 10 to 12 kilometers on a regular basis! We all know that boxing is anything but long and tedious.

In fact, aerobic and anaerobic training are important for athletes. But most team sports aren't characterized by slow movement, and the key to superior performance in over 90% of all sports is anaerobic training. It goes to show that many people still have that 70's mentality when it comes to conditioning.

Thanks Dr. Ken Copper (the father of aerobics). His intentions were good, and besides, I'm not really sure that even he expected things to get so far out of hand! It's almost cult-like. The general public (media), what's taught in schools, whatever, wherever. It seems as if just about everyone lives, and literally dies by aerobic exercise as being the foundation for their basic conditioning. Please don't get me wrong. I'm not here to bash anyone, and aerobics is not the enemy, by any means. It's just been misused. It has its benefits, as well as its time and place in everyone's training program just so long as it's done in moderation.

If your only goal is changing body composition, then there's a ton of evidence that proves that aerobic exercise is the "last" thing you should be doing to slim down. Why? The body adapts to what you do to it by literally responding in an opposite manner. So if you use mega calories during an aerobic session, your body reacts by slowing down its metabolism, making fat cells insulin sensitive. Actually making it easier to store fat.

Thus making you fatter! (And by the way, if you think that thin people can't possibly have 30% body fat, think again! I've seen it!). Another example of this is with water. If you don't drink, your body will actually try to retain water. I believe it's a built-in survival mechanism. So while you're pacing along on that treadmill at 65% to 70% of your so-called "maximum heart rate", losing all that "weight", you're also losing the tissue that matters most, the tissue that is responsible for your metabolism in the first place, and that my friends is lean muscle mass.

Oh- but your cardiovascular condition will be great, you say. What a bunch of crap. In my opinion, not a good trade off. Aerobics is overrated and played out as far as I'm concerned. It hasn't lived up to its fat-burning rep. You use less calories per session and literally blow up in the process (be prepared to watch your body fat% go up), Not to mention become slower, if you're an athlete, which I think that you are if you're reading this newsletter. Who in gods name wants that?! Hey that's no problem if that's your goal. But if your goal is to favorably change your body composition while enhancing performance, then drop the 1 to 2 hour "cardio" sessions.

The body adapts quickly to physical exertion, and if you rely solely on slow to moderate pace, long distance exercise. Then that's all you'll get, moderate results. Don't worry. There's a better, more efficient way to get the job done.

Thank God for Interval Training
Interval training is the manipulation of exercise intensity; Mixing bouts of aerobic exercise (low intensity) with anaerobic exercise (high intensity) to get fit. To improve performance of any kind, intervals can't be beat.

Interval training has several benefits. One of the benefits is that you'll use more calories and get more done in a shorter time period. The others I'll cover as we go along. Why is interval training so effective in the first place? I'll break it down without getting to technical.

The body deals the stress of high intensity exercise by releasing hormones such as human growth hormone. This makes adipose tissue (fat) available for fuel, as well as building muscle. Intervals also release cortisol and other hormones responsible for using fat cells for energy. Interval training also kicks starts your metabolism. All muscle fibers brought into play (small and large) during the aerobic and anaerobic phases of the interval. Nothing gets ignored, get weak, or wastes away from lack of work.

After an intense session, metabolism is increased because the muscle needs and uses extra calories to repair itself and maintain its daily metabolic functions. This takes awhile. It could very well take up to 24 hours after the workout is completed! Imagine that.

This doesn't happen with steady state aerobics alone.

Training duration, intensity and frequency? Two sessions a week should be enough in most cases for general fitness and health, but all variables are really determined by factors such as your present level of fitness, goals, sport or training event. Begin always with a warm-up of about 4 minutes. Then kick it up a few notches and maintain this tempo for 1 min or less (about a level 7 or 8 on the perceived exertion scale, level 10 is max effort) and 2 to 3 min. tone it down, use a moderate tempo (L5 or 6)... Again it depends.

In any case, safety should always be your number one priority. Remember, train, don't strain, because if you get hurt, you can't train. If you can't train, then you won't be able to reach your performance goals.

I hope this article has been helpful in explaining the benefits of interval training, and how it can aid you in you quest for athletic excellence.

Train intelligently, and think always outside of the box.

Article by John Grady. John is the owner of Training-for-Athletes.com. A company based in Europe (the Netherlands) that specializes in Sport-specific training and athletic development. John is certified by ACE and the ISSA and has more than 15 years of training experience. He regularly trains and advises many amateur and professional athletes in the areas of athletic development.

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