Grae Gram

GraeGram.com’s resident fit-freak, Sheena Foster, tells us each week how to drop those lbs.

Article written by Sheena Foster

In nearly all walks of life, working smarter, not harder, is key—and working your body right at the gym is no different. Chances are, if you’re not engaging in interval training, you’re not pushing your body to the limit and therefore you’ll be left with little or no results.

Interval training is defined as cardio that includes intense bursts of energy, such as sprinting, followed by periods of rest, or, low activity, such as slow jogging or walking. The benefits include blasting fat, faster and stronger performance and a more time-efficient workout.

“You see all those people over there?” asked Dan, one of my favorite personal trainers at Equinox, while pointing to the cardio section, “They’re all wasting their time!”

I turned again to the zombie-like group who seemed more preoccupied with the TV, than their cruise-control cardio.

“Your body acclimates very quickly when you don’t challenge it. Plus, why spend an hour running when you can run intervals for 20 minutes and burn more fat and calories?!”

You may have already tried interval training without knowing. Intervals are what makes spin class so legendary with its series of hills and sprints. It’s what has helped J.Lo get her pre-baby body back. It’s what marathoners and sprinters, like Usain Bolt, partake in to boost performance.

Here’s how to take advantage:

First remove the idea that running, biking, swimming, ellipticling (new word) or anything for more than 30 minutes is better. Quality over quantity is your new mantra. Try hopping on a stationary bike and do a five-minute warm-up at a steady state. After warm-up, pump your resistance up to as high as you can comfortably go for one minute. Then drop down to a low resistance (keep it above a zero resistance to mimic real surface) and sprint for another minute. Repeat this for 25 minutes. You can try this technique in all kinds of cardio including swimming, running, walking, stair climbing and ellipticaling on the elliptical. 

If you’re feeling rockstarish, skip the manual stuff and select the cardio machine’s pre-set interval program.

I promise you that your gym buddies won’t sweat half as hard as you do. (Usually my shins and elbows and other areas not discussable on a family blog are drenched in sweat after variations of this workout.) So kick the norm to the curb, ignore the stares, and ignite your fat burn. 

Note: You should always consult a physician before starting any fitness program.

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