FitSugar

A Reader Shares Her Tabata Workout Video

Fit Community — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 13:09:21 PST

Reader FitFabCities loves intervals, and wants to get you in on the fun, too! She shared her own Tabata workout in our Community.

I love workouts that get you in and out of the gym quickly and this high intensity training (HIIT) Tabata workout does just that. So here is how it works: Tabata protocol has you do 20 seconds of high intensity work followed by 10 seconds of rest and you can do any kind of intense interval from sprints to burpees to pushups. You complete that pattern back and forth for a full four minute block, take a much needed break then put those four minute blocks together to make up an 8, 12, 16 or 20 minute workout.

Another great thing: Tabata protocol has been scientifically proven to be the workout that burns the most calories in the least amount of time and high intensity interval training is one of the best ways to flatten your abs and reshape your body. (I'm not kidding, click here and check out the benefits section.) The whole workout is complete in 16-24 minutes. Oh yeah, and if that wasn't enough to make you fall in love with Tabata, it also raises your metabolism for the next 24 to 36 hours so you burn an additional 100 to 150 calories watching Emily take down the Graysons on Revenge (my new obsession) or someone start a fight on Real Housewives (my forever obsession). Who doesn't love that?

Get the workout breakdown and video after the break.

7 Reasons to Try Interval Training

FitSugar — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 08:11:00 PDT

Interval training is the ultimate fitness mashup, blending the speeds of both the tortoise and the hare. The benefits of this workout - pushing your pace, then slowing down to recover just so you can push your pace again - will certainly motivate you to play with your speed. If you haven't already added them to your cardio workouts, here are seven benefits of interval training.

Whittle your middle
While cardio exercise is necessary to lose fat all over your body, according to research published in the International Journal of Obesity interval training targets your waistline. Adding bursts of speed can help you lose stubborn abdominal fat, which is a boon for bikini season and your overall health. Having a waist size over 35 inches if you're a woman puts you at a higher risk for heart disease and some cancers. Curious how your middle measures up? Check your waist-to-hip ratio here.

Got a need for speed?
The most obvious benefit, but still worth noting, is interval training will make you faster. Picking up your pace when training with intervals helps to increase your speed whether you run, bike, or swim. If you're working towards a personal record for an upcoming race, don't skip your speed work. Here are interval workouts for biking, swimming, and running. Triathlon anyone?

Keep reading to learn five more reasons to kick it up a notch.

7 Reasons to Try Interval Training

FitSugar — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 04:30:12 PST

Interval training is the ultimate fitness mash-up, blending the speeds of both the tortoise and the hare. The benefits of this training are enough to motivate you to pick up your pace. Learn why you should play with your speed.

Exercise, Weight Loss, and the Fat Burning Zone

FitSugar — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 05:50:01 PST

Much has been made of late about exercise and its relation to weight loss. There was the Time cover story The Myth About Weight Loss and a recent article on the topic in the New York Times, which recommended working out in the fat burning zone.

You see the phrase on all types of cardio machines: the fat burning zone, aka the "weight loss zone," means working out at a lower intensity to burn fat as fuel. But these workouts also burn considerably fewer calories. I was confused about how we should all be spending our cardio time, so I took my questions to exercise physiologist Jason Karp, who also happens to be an avid runner.

When I asked him if we should all be scaling our workouts back and aiming for the fat burning zone, Karp explained that it's not the type of fuel your body is burning, but the overall calories that count. "It doesn't matter if you're using fat or carbohydrates. In order to lose fat from your waistline you don't have to be using fat as fuel during workout," he said. He offered up the example of sprinters; they don't train in the fat burning zone, but they're mighty trim in the torso. Losing weight comes down to math - you want to be in a calorie deficit to shed pounds and body fat. Higher intensity exercise puts you at a higher burn rate. To burn the most calories in a cardio workout, skip past the fat burning zone and work out with more intensity. To really burn up calories, Karp recommends intervals. To learn why,

read more. Essentially, interval workouts give you the most bang for your sweat buck. Karp explains that with "intense exercise you're pushing your body more out of homeostasis," that is, the equilibrium of energy the body prefers to maintain. During the few hours after an interval workout, the body must go through a recovery period, and a lot needs to happen to return to the body to pre-exercise levels. "You've got to drop the heart rate, synthesize glycogen for the muscles, remove lactate from muscle and take it to the liver," says Karp. All these actions require energy, which raises the metabolic rate for many hours after exercising. Thirty minutes of exercise at a low intensity doesn't place nearly as much stress on the body as intervals, so you burn fewer calories both during and after the workout. Before you hit the track and start running intervals, Karp recommends building a strong cardiovascular fitness base and working with a trainer for guidance. Even if you're not ready for sprints, play with your speed during your next cardio session. Slow and steady might win the race, but intervals will burn more calories. Source: Flickr User pistoldrawn

Fit Tip: Attach Your Workout to Your iPod

FitSugar — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:45:48 PDT

Are you hooked on my printable workouts yet? If so, make sure you keep up with them using this simple trick. If you keep your iPod with you at the gym, just tape your printout to the music player. If it's an interval program for the elliptical or treadmill, just cut out the workout you want and tape it to the back. Then, you can balance the iPod on your reading rack so it's easy to follow.

Or if you've got a longer regimen, like my all abs workout, fold it up and tuck it under the clip you use to affix the iPod to your waistband until you're ready to use it. That way the workout will move with you around the gym.

Fit Tip: Tape Your Workout Plan to Something Sturdy

FitSugar — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 16:00:02 PST

The gym can be a distracting place to work out, and it's easy for your mind to wander from the task at hand when you're chugging away on a cardio machine. This is one reason I like to print my interval routines before heading to the gym - it forces me to stay alert and I get a better workout. However, one thing has become clear: Placing my flimsy paper on the machine's minishelf just doesn't cut it.

Your movement causes vibrations in the machine, which can result in your printout falling to the floor. Rather than risk interrupting a killer workout, consider taping your sheet to something sturdy to eliminate the chances of this happening. Attach the sheet to the back of your iPod if you use one, affix it to your water bottle, or tape it to your magazine. Problem solved!

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Holiday Survival: Make More of Your Workouts

FitSugar — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 05:00:09 PST

Extra calories can sneak into our day without us realizing it, especially during the holiday season, but the good news is we can sneak in additional exercise, too. I know that working out might drop a few notches on your priority list this time of year, so make more of your regular routine when you do make it to the gym.

Add a couple of extra sprints into your interval workouts, and extend the time you usually spend doing your favorite form of cardio by five or 10 minutes so you have enough recovery time between sprints. Pushing yourself harder than usual will challenge your fitness and help you burn more calories.

You may find yourself going into post-holiday workouts with a whole new attitude from pushing yourself through those sweaty December sprints. Not only will you survive the holidays more successfully, but the slight change in intensity might just give you a head start on your New Year's fitness resolutions.

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Get It Up, Your Heart Rate That Is: Intervals For Treadmill

FitSugar — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 05:30:00 PST

There are a thousand and one ways to work out on a treadmill, but my favorite is intervals. Once you set your pace on the treadmill, you can't really cheat and slow down since the speed is constant. The set speed helps me push myself out of comfort zone, which is one of the elements of interval training. I like the following workout because the recovery time of a minute, at a slow speed, is just enough for my heart rate to go down and for me to rev myself for the next interval. We all know that interval training can help you lose belly fat.

To check out the treadmill workout, just

Get It Up, Your Heart Rate That Is: Elliptical Intervals

FitSugar — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 09:30:00 PDT

The elliptical is a great way to get in a good workout, especially for anyone looking for something a little more low-impact on your joints. Try out this interval workout I've put together and, for an added benefit, hold on to the handles for one minute and let go for the next. Continue to do so through the entire workout.

00:00-05:00 Level 3, Warm-up
05:00-06:00 Level 5
06:00-07:00 Level 10
07:00-09:00 Level 6
09:00-11:00 Level 10
11:00-14:00 Level 7
14:00-17:00 Level 10
17:00-21:00 Level 8
21:00-25:00 Level 10
25:00-30:00 Level 9
30:00-35:00 Level 12
35:00-40:00 Level 3, Cool-down

You can also do this on a Precor Trainer; just try to keep the ramp at a moderate level. Try it out and let me know what you think in the comments section below. Enjoy!

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Get It Up, Your Heart Rate That Is: Shorty Intervals

FitSugar — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 08:45:00 PDT

Recent research out of Australia has found that eight seconds of intense cardio followed by twelve seconds of moderate cardio for twenty minutes enabled women to lose three times as much fat than those who went about their cardio at a steady pace. It's basic interval training, but in very, very short intervals.

When doing interval training, you need to work with your own Rate of Perceived Exertion or RPE and work between easy (1-3), medium (4-7) and hard (8-10) amounts of exertion. Since I am a numbers gal I like using a heart rate monitor more. For these Intervals you're going to be working between intensity levels of Fat Burning, Endurance and Performance Training. To find your heart rate zones check out Fit's Calculator.

So try it out on the stationary bike, treadmill, rowing machine or in the pool:

00:00-05:00, Warm-up, RPE 1-3
05:00-05:08, RPE 8-10
05:08-05:20, RPE 4-7
05:20-05:28, RPE 8-10
05:28-05:40, RPE 4-7
05:40-05:48, RPE 8-10
05:48-06:00, RPE 4-7
06:00-25:00, Repeat step two 19 more times
25:00-30:00, Cool-down, RPE 1-3

All the switching is a sure way to keep you busy throughout your workout. So try it out and let me know what you think.

Enjoy!

Source

Time	Speed	Incline
0:00-5:00	3.5	1.0
5:00-10:00	4.0	2.0
10:00-12:00	6.5	1.0
12:00-13:00	3.5	1.0
13:00-15:00	6.6	1.0
15:00-16:00	3.5	1.0
16:00-18:00	6.7	1.0
18:00-19:00	3.5	1.0
19:00-21:00	6.8	1.0
21:00-22:00	3.5	1.0
22:00-24:00	6.9	1.0
24:00-25:00	3.5	1.0
25:00-27:00	7.0	1.0
27:00-28:00	3.5	1.0
28:00-30:00	7.1	1.0
30:00-40:00	3.5	2.0