Stay Fit in Less Time
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Stay Fit in Less Time 20-minute cycle workout 20-minute run Endurance Flexibility Strength << back to Work/Life Balance << back to ANF Women's Forum  |
Endurance Expert recommendations The Australian Heart Foundation prescribes 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity (brisk walking, running or a cardio-intensive class) on most days of the week to keep your heart and lungs pumping like champs. This can be accumulated in bouts of 10 minutes or more if this is more convenient. Less is more You can slice your usual cardio routine by up to half as long as you add intensity, according to a 2005 Canadian study. Researchers found that regular exercisers who cranked out 30-second, full-throttle sprints on exercise bikes – 15 minutes’ total training time, including rest – three times a week for two weeks as their sole source of training, doubled the time they could ride hard before hitting the wall. Follow-up research revealed that exercisers pumping out 10 minutes of sprints at a similarly high intensity three times a week for six weeks reaped identical fitness gains to those ticking off an hour a day of moderate-intensity exercise six days a week for the same period. The least you can do Climb. Gyms aren’t filled with StairMasters for nothing. “Stairs are the most convenient, and highly effective, training tool,” says Harvey Newton, owner of Newton Sports Consulting. There’s nothing like fighting gravity to add intensity. Duh, you say. But Newton suggests this twist on the standard stairwell slog: one-two stair repeats, which work your muscles harder. Start at the bottom of two to four flights of stairs. The first time up, take them one step at a time with quick, light foot strikes. The second, take two at a time. Walk down nice and easy and repeat for 10 minutes. |