Extreme workouts aren’t the only way to improve your physical health. Learn how interval training helps make physical activity more fun while offering a variety of health benefits.
What are your reasons for not exercising? If “no time” and “too tired” top your list, interval training can be a great option for you. Interval training means alternating bursts of high-intensity exercise with periods of low-intensity exercise, back to back in the same workout session. It can involve switching between muscle groups, using the same muscles in different ways or simply varying your speed.
Recent studies suggest that it is possible to participate in interval training safely and gain health benefits well into our 50s and beyond. That’s because interval training can be tailored to any fitness level.
According to a 2005 study by Dr. Darren Warburton of the University of British Columbia, heart patients who engaged in high-intensity interval training saw similar improvements in their aerobic fitness and completed daily activities more easily compared to heart patients who engaged in traditional aerobic exercise training. Once you get your physician’s OK, interval training can be a great boredom buster by mixing up your regular routine.
There are many benefits to varying your routine. First, you may be working more and different muscle groups by switching things up. Second, by varying your speed, you may give your metabolism a jolt that assists fat-burning.
Physical activity is categorized according to its intensity: light, moderate or vigorous. Slow walking, light housework and leisurely gardening are examples of light activity. Moderate physical activities might include slow cycling and swimming, yoga, golf or dancing – where you can carry on a conversation while in motion. Vigorous activities leave you little breath for discussion and could include tennis, basketball, aerobics or jogging 10-minute miles.
According to Dr. Barbara Bushman, of Missouri State University, most forms of exercise – jogging, biking, walking – can be woven into interval training. Jog in short bursts, from one street corner to the next. Or switch back and forth from a vigorous sidestroke in the pool to a nice, lazy crawl. Runners and walkers – toss in some hills. In addition to switching intensities, you can also use different skills during the same mode of exercise.
For example, a 30-minute interval training session could start with 15 minutes of walking, a faster jog for the next 5 minutes, then walk again for 10 minutes. Think about running in an area that offers more than flat ground because hills work your leg muscles differently. If swimming laps is your exercise of choice, alternate strokes from breaststroke to front crawl, making one more intense than the other.
For seniors, activities that don’t put stress on the joints, like bicycling and swimming, are good options, but so is walking. Spinning classes allow people of different fitness levels to do the same basic workout during a group session.
Interval training works by stimulating muscle fibers that don’t get much of a workout during exercise routines that feature steady, continuous activity. This increases fat burning capacity and oxygen intake.
Dr. Martin Gibala of McMaster University points to studies showing that working out at a higher intensity in a shorter amount of time seems to improve a person’s overall capacity to exercise. People who practice some form of interval training appear to get fit more quickly. The reason, Gibala says, is simple: Interval training is efficient. You achieve more, in less time.
But the most important thing to do is to start by picking an activity you truly enjoy, says Bushman. If you don’t like it, you won’t do it. And when it comes to physical activity, doing something – no matter how you go about doing it – is better than doing nothing.
The American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) is the only major cancer charity focusing exclusively on the link between diet, nutrition and cancer. The Institute provides a wide range of consumer education programs that help millions of Americans learn to make changes for lower cancer risk. AICR also supports innovative research in cancer prevention and treatment at universities, hospitals, and research centers across the U.S. The Institute has provided more than $70 million in funding for research in diet, nutrition and cancer. Visit AICR’s Web site. AICR is a member of the World Cancer Research Fund International.