Author: Mark Crabtree, Fitness Expert
Published on: November 11, 2016
Use interval training to burn fat and scorch calories all while improving your run!
The principle idea behind interval training is to get your heart rate up, and then let it come back down. It’s a very effective and very popular form of cardio, and for good reason. Interval training helps to burn fat and scorch calories in a short amount of time, giving you the biggest benefit in a shorter amount of time. The high intensity intervals should have your heart beating through your chest, but don’t worry – you get to recover right after. To really experience the benefit of this workout, heart rate monitoring is a huge help. This will help you make sure you’re reaching the right zones during your intervals!
Your heart rate response to exercise varies day to day depending on what else is happening in your life. During an intense run, you may feel your heart beating through your shirt late in the workout. On a different day when you are tired or extra stressed, your heart might start beating hard before you finish your warm-up.
Using a HR monitor during your training is an effective means of monitoring your progress as it provides instant feedback at all points during the run. You can use heart rate to dictate your pace, and as your fitness improves your heart rate stays lower during runs of similar duration and intensity. A chest strap heart rate monitor seems to provide the most accurate feedback.
Interval training has become a popular method for increasing the intensity of a workout and carries lots of benefits- like increased fitness, loss of body fat, and a way to increase speed. For interval training or metabolic conditioning, a heart rate monitor allows you to customize a training session to your current level of conditioning. A common interval choice for this type of training is 30 seconds of work followed by 30 seconds of rest. Intervals can be programmed by total elapsed time you want to train, or by the number of intervals you want to complete.
Go out and sprint for 30 seconds (really sprint- as hard as possible). Rest 30 seconds and then sprint for 30 seconds again. How did your second sprint feel? 30 seconds may not be enough recovery time after an all-out sprint. In that instance, your next sprint was probably slower than the first. By the 6th sprint interval, your sprint speed will be closer to a slow jog or walk and you might just find yourself lying underneath a tree.
Repeat the interval workout, and this time use a heart rate monitor. A solid goal for your intervals is to sprint until your heart rate hits 85% of its max, then rest until it lowers itself to 65%, and repeat. Early in the workout, your sprints may be long and your rests short. As the workout progresses the sprints get shorter and the rests longer.
By letting your heart rate dictate your rest interval you are giving your body enough recovery that it can then attack the next bout of exercise at a high intensity. Give the above workout a try. Following a thorough warm-up, sprint until your heart rate hits 85%, then rest until it lowers to 65%. Repeat for 10 rounds, or see how many rounds you can get in over a 20 minute time period.
Customizing a training plan to your individual level of fitness and conditioning will lead to better and faster results. Using a heart rate monitor allows you to track and monitor your progress on your longer runs to gauge your overall level of fitness. Adding in heart rate based interval training will allow you to individualize your intervals and insure that you get the most out of your training.
Mark Crabtree is the Founder and President of Ignite Fitness Inc. Mark has been in the fitness business for more than 17 years. Mark is a Certified Athletic Trainer, Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, and Certified with the Functional Movement Screen. Mark Crabtree has been featured on WGN Morning News, CLTV, in the Chicago Tribune and Suburban Life Newspaper.