The other day I was on the treadmill and I just couldn't muster up the energy to both workout and create my own routine. Paying attention to the numbers on the screen seemed overwhelming, but the television was on and I decided to use the TV programming to my advantage. I did a TV commercial interval workout and this little routine got the job done.
Here's how it works: Turn on a TV while doing cardio on a machine. During the programming go at a RPE (rate of perceived exertion with 1 being a super slow stroll and 10 being a full out sprint) of about 5-7, during commercials try and keep your RPE around 8-9. Since most commercial breaks are about 3.5 minutes long, this gives you a few good bursts of high intensity cardio every 10 minutes or so. This cardio variation is definitely not something I could (or would) do each time I'm on a cardio machine, but it was a nice change of pace (sorry for the pun) and nice to focus all my attention on timing my intervals. Plus, since I don't really care about the commercials, I was able to really focus on pushing through the 3.5 minutes of high intensity and I didn't miss a word Joey just said on that great rerun of Friends.
You can do this "commercial intervals" using any cardio machine really, so try it out and let me know what you think.
Quai D'Orsay
Butterfly
Dress for Less
This is a really good idea. I like the short, structured bursts concept. I can be motivated to do it for 3.5 minutes!
1I wouldn't wanna try that during American Idol X(
2I never thought about doing that. That's a really good idea!
3I love interval workouts like this! They're completely manageable and, I find, totally rewarding, both physically and emotionally.
4Too bad I don't have a cardio machine! lol
5Hahahaha I like this idea...
6that's exactly what i do on the elliptical when i go to the gym!
7When I moved into my first single apartment, I couldn't afford rent, because I was still in school, but there was NO WAY I was missing Project Runway, so I would go to the apartment complex's fitness room and get on the treadmill. I would briskly walk during the show, and run during the commercials!!
8Don't EVER do this during Oprah, cuz she has a commercial like every two minutes! lol.
9I like this idea! Much easier to follow that some of the more complex interval routines.
10What drives me crazy about this is that I have to turn up the tv super loud because I can't hear over my bike!
11Great idea! I sometimes do this when I get bored with my other elliptical machine routines. It really gets my heart rate up! And it IS really a toughie, so I'd recommend doing this only once or twice a week.
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