Interval training: Can it boost your calorie-burning power?

Interval training is a powerful tool for novice exercisers and accomplished athletes alike. Here's how it works.

By Mayo Clinic staff

Are you ready to shake up your workout routine? Do you wish you could burn more calories without spending more time at the gym? Consider aerobic interval training. Once the domain of elite athletes, interval training has become a powerful tool for the average exerciser, too.

What is interval training?

It's not as complicated as you might think. Interval training is simply alternating bursts of intense activity with intervals of lighter activity.

Take walking. If you're in good shape, you might incorporate short bursts of jogging into your regular brisk walks. If you're less fit, you might alternate leisurely walking with periods of faster walking. For example, if you're walking outdoors, you could walk faster between certain mailboxes, trees or other landmarks.

What can interval training do for me?

Whether you're a novice exerciser or you've been exercising for years, interval training can help you jazz up your workout routine. Consider the benefits:

• You'll burn more calories. The more vigorously you exercise, the more calories you'll burn — even if you increase intensity for just a few minutes at a time.
• You'll improve your aerobic capacity. As your cardiovascular fitness improves, you'll be able to exercise longer or with more intensity. Imagine finishing your 60-minute walk in 45 minutes — or the additional calories you'll burn by keeping up the pace for the full 60 minutes.
• You'll keep boredom at bay. Turning up your intensity in short intervals can add variety to your exercise routine.
• You don't need special equipment. You can simply modify your current routine.

How will my muscles respond to interval training?

During intense exercise, muscles produce waste products that can contribute to muscle soreness. Too many accumulated waste products can make exercise painful and exhausting. But by alternating bursts of intense exercise with easier intervals, you'll help reduce the buildup of waste products in your muscles. The result is more comfortable exercise.

Are the principles of interval training the same for everyone?

Yes — but you can take interval training to many levels. If you simply want to vary your exercise routine, you can determine the length and speed of each high-intensity interval based on how you feel that day. After warming up, you might increase the intensity for 30 seconds and then resume your normal pace. The next burst of more intense activity may last two to three minutes. How much you pick up the pace, how often and for how long is up to you.

If you're working toward a specific fitness goal, you may want to take a more scientific approach. A personal trainer or other expert can help you time the intensity and duration of your intervals — which may include movement patterns similar to those you'll use during your sport or activity — based on your target heart rate, the ability of your heart and lungs to deliver oxygen to your muscles (peak oxygen intake) and other factors. This type of interval training also adds variety to your workout, but it requires more discipline and concentration.

Does interval training have risks?

Interval training isn't appropriate for everyone. If you have a chronic health condition or haven't been exercising regularly, consult your doctor before trying any type of interval training.

Also keep the risk of overuse injury in mind. If you rush into a strenuous workout before your body is ready, you may hurt your muscles, tendons or bones. Instead, start slowly. Try just one or two higher intensity intervals during each workout at first. If you think you're overdoing it, slow down. As your stamina improves, challenge yourself to vary the pace. You may be surprised by the results.

How Much Fat Can I Eat?

You will need to estimate your total calorie needs and the number of fat calories. Then figure grams of fat to eat daily. It is best to calculate a range of intakes instead of a single number so that you can have flexibility in your eating without freaking out if you eat 100 extra calories one day.

1. Multiply your present weight by the appropriate factor to estimate baseline calorie needs.

Men: _________ pounds x 11 = _________ (don't write on the screen when you do this).

Women: _________ pounds x 10 = _________

2. Multiply your weight by the appropriate activity factor* to estimate calories needed for activity.

Sedentary Light Moderate Heavy

Men: 3.2 6 7.2 10.5

Women: 3.0 5 6 9

_________ pounds x _________ (factor) = _________

*Sedentary = little exercise & sit-down job
Light = some exercise or standing job
Moderate = exercise 3 - 5 times a week and/or moderately active job
Heavy = exercise 5 or more times a week or very active job (construction work)

3. Add together the calories from steps 1 & 2 to estimate your total calorie needs per day.

_________ + _________ = _________

(Add 500 calories to total if currently underweight. Subtract 200 calories if currently overweight).

4. Multiply the total calories by .20 or .30 for 20% or 30% fat calories.
Eat approximately 20% fat calories to help lose excess body fat.

_________ x .20 = _________

_________ x .30 = _________

5. Divide the calories from fat by 9 to get your daily fat gram allotment.

20% = _________/9 = _________

30% = _________ /9 = _________

Alwyn Cosgrove – from Afterburn Extreme Fat Loss Training – Part II

by Stephen Holt, Stemulite Fitness Pro

Caloric expenditure

Fat loss is all about caloric expenditure. We must burn more calories than we take in, and the real key to doing this, as mentioned before, is not aerobic training, which will burn calories while you are doing it, its anaerobic training, which burns calories while you are doing it AND increases the calories burned for hours afterwards.

In the case of weight training, if we build muscle and keep it, that burns calories forever more. Even when you sleep!

The key with anaerobic training is what is known as EPOC. Anaerobic exercise burns a ton of calories while you are performing it. However, the metabolism remains elevated following this type exercise.

This was, at one time, referred to as the oxygen debt, but is now referred to as the excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC).

The recovery of the metabolic rate back to pre-exercise levels can require several minutes for light exercise (aerobic training), several hours for very heavy exercise (anaerobic cardio training), and up to 12 to 24 hours or even longer for prolonged, exhaustive exercise (interval training or circuit weight training).

The EPOC can add up to a substantial energy expenditure when totaled over the entire period of recovery. If the oxygen consumption following exercise remains elevated by an average of only 50 ml/min or 0.05 liter/min, this will amount to approximately 0.25 kcal/min or 15 kcal/hr.

If the metabolism remains elevated for five hours, this would amount to an additional expenditure of 75 kcal that would not normally be included in the calculated total energy expenditure for that particular activity.

This major source of energy expenditure, which occurs during recovery, but is directly the result of the exercise bout, is frequently ignored in most calculations of the energy cost of various activities.

If the individual in this example exercised five days per week, he or she would have expended 375 kcal, or lost the equivalent of approximately 0.1 pounds of fat in one week, or 1.0 pounds in 10 weeks, just from the additional caloric expenditure during the recovery period alone.

This is the key to maximizing the return on your exercise investment.

The next obvious idea is – if you trained the next day while your metabolism is still elevated, will we have an even higher return – is the effect accumulative? Is the whole greater than the sum of the parts? (these are great questions. where are the answers?)

Science has yet to give us an answer, however in the real world, I think so. I have seen amazing results with my clients using this exact protocol.

Interval training

So is there a better way of performing cardio workouts to prevent these adaptations, and rapidly improve fat loss results? Yes. The key is to perform what is known as interval training.

Interval training simply refers to a series of intense activity separated with short rest periods.

Through using interval training you are able to exercise at a higher intensity without getting tired. In other words – because we alternate the periods of high intensity work, with periods of lower intensity work – you are able to do much more work in the same time period than you were before.

The beauty of this is as you improve, the work intervals can get harder and harder, and the recovery intervals can be shortened, or performed at a higher speed.

In fact, there is no end in sight, and no downside to interval training (other than it is really hard).

Calories in Indian Food

If you wish to lead a healthy lifestyle, it is essential to eat nutrition rich food and exercise regularly. What you eat directly affects your body fitness, so it becomes all the more necessary to be aware about the number of calories in Indian food and the nutritional value of the food you are eating.

It is advisable to consult a dietitian and gather knowledge about the Indian food calories and then decide your meal. Eating high calorie food item is not recommended for the daily meal, but you can always relish them once in a month or so.

If you get lured into trying fad foods, which you know contain loads of fats, then you can consume it once in a while, but in moderate quantity. But then after that you have to gear up yourself for doing a vigorous workout, so as to shed off those extra calories that have got stored in your body.

It's all about maintaining a balance and you will never put on weight. If you've eaten more, so compensate it, by eating light food in the next meal and by working harder, while carrying out your workout. Keeping fit is in your hands, but all that is required is a sincere effort and then nothing can stop you from achieving success.

As vital is to eat healthy foods, that are low in calories, equally important is to apply the right cooking method. You should avoid items that demand deep-frying, because then that would involve extensive usage of butter and oil, that will shoot up your calorie intake, making you overweight.

Here is the calorie chart of Indian food, so keep a track of the calorie intake and adopt healthy eating habits.

Calories in Fruits per 100 Grams
Calories in Apple 56
Calories in Avocado Pear 190
Calories in Banana 95
Calories in Chickoo 94
Calories in Cherries 70
Calories in Dates 281
Calories in Grapes Black 45
Calories in Guava 66
Calories in Kiwi Fruit 45
Calories in Lychies 61
Calories in Mangoes 70
Calories in Orange 53
Calories in Orange juice 100ml 47
Calories in Papaya 32
Calories in Peach 50
Calories in Pears 51
Calories in Pineapple 46
Calories in Plums 56
Calories in Strawberries 77
Calories in Watermelon 26
Calories in Pomegranate 77

Calories in Vegetables per 100 Grams
Calories in Broccoli 25
Calories in Brinjal 24
Calories in Cabbage 45
Calories in Carrot 48
Calories in Cauliflower 30
Calories in Fenugreek (Methi) 49
Calories in French beans 26
Calories in Lettuce 21
Calories in Mushroom 18
Calories in Onion 50
Calories in Peas 93
Calories in Potato 97
Calories in Spinach 100g
Calories in Spinach 1 leaf
Calories in Tomato 21
Calories in Tomato juice 100ml 22
Calories in Cereals per 100 Grams
Calories in Bajra 360
Calories in Maize flour 355
Calories in Rice 325
Calories in Wheat flour 341
Calories in Breads per piece
1 medium chapatti 119
1 slice white bread 60
1 paratha (no filling) 280

Calories in Milk & Milk Products per cup
Calories in Butter 100gms. 750
Calories in Buttermilk 19
Calories in Cheese 315
Calories in Cream 100gms. 210
Calories in Ghee 100gms 910
Calories in Milk Buffalo 115
Calories in Milk Cow 100
Calories in Milk Skimmed 45
Calories in Other Items
Calories in Sugar 1 tbsp 48
Calories in Honey 1 tbsp 90
Calories in Coconut water 100 ml 25
Calories in Coffee 40
Calories in Tea 30

Adult Calorie Requirement

In the contemporary times, people are becoming very calorie conscious. Well, calories are like a must for the body, as it is the calories that the human body burns in order to produce energy. But as it said that excess of anything is bad, same applies to the intake of calories too. If there is an excess of calories in our body, it gets stored in the form of fats, thus making us overweight.

Adult calorie requirement differs from that of a child and in the same ways the daily calorie requirement of an athlete would be distinct from that of a person who doesn't have a very active routine because his entire day goes away sitting in the front of computer, doing desk job. Thus, the calorie intake requirement differs from person to person, depending upon several factors like age, body composition and level of physical activity on a daily basis and many more.

The general recommendation as far as the calorie intake is concerned is that men need about 2700 calories per day and women require about 2000 calories per day. But these recommendations are suggested for average body structure adults, who perform their usual day-to-day activities and do not follow a vigorous workout.

It is suggested by dieticians that your calorie intake should be such that 50 to 60% of the total calorie intake is contributed by carbohydrates, 20% by proteins and 15 to 20% should come from fat. It is advisable for expectant mothers to consume 300 extra calories per day, whereas lactating mothers require about 550 calories at the initial level and at gradual levels, their calorie intake should be about 400 calories per day. Well, as vital are calories for the body, equally important is to burn the extra calories through an active fitness workout.

Burn 2,000 Calories on the Treadmill

Stay slim on your treadmill all season with this 7-day plan from Jenny Hadfield, author of Running for Mortals.

By the editors of FITNESS

Here's a good workout plan you can try, if you like the treadmill.

Monday

• Power walk: 30 minutes
• Strength-train: 20 minutes

Total: 50 minutes

Tuesday

• Warm up: Walk easily, then briskly: 3 minutes
• Power walk: 2 minutes
• Run fast (but don't sprint): 2 minutes
• Repeat Steps 1 & 2: 10 times
• Cool down: Walk easily: 2 minutes

Total: 45 minutes

Wednesday

• Warm Up: Walk easily: 5 minutes
• Do your favorite strength-training move: 12 reps
• Power walk at 4% to 6% incline: 3 minutes
• Repeat Steps 1 & 2: 6 times
• Cool down: Walk easily: 5 minutes

Total: 40 minutes

Thursday

• Warm Up: Walk easily, then briskly: 3 minutes
• Power walk: 2 minutes
• Run fast (but don't sprint): 2 minutes
• Repeat Steps 1 & 2: 6 times
• Cool down: Walk easily: 3 minutes

Total: 30 minutes

Friday

• Repeat Monday's routine

Saturday

• Warm Up: Walk easily, then briskly: 5 minutes
• Power walk: 2 minutes
• Run fast (but don't sprint): 4 minutes
• Repeat Steps 1 & 2: 6 times
• Cool Down: Walk easily: 4 minutes

Total: 45 minutes

Sunday

• Rest

Originally published in FITNESS magazine, November/December 2008.

An Article from Men's Health

Is Exercise a Waste of Time?

By David Zinczenko

Sometimes, when a news report seems to defy logic, it’s because someone hasn’t done their homework. And that’s what’s happened over at Time magazine with its latest cover story, “Why Exercise Won’t Make You Thin.” The article claims that working out is not only useless for weight loss, but can actually lead to weight gain.

This contention hinges mostly on a recent study done at Louisiana State University. Scientists there divided sedentary women into four groups: One group didn’t exercise, and three others performed different amounts of physical activity. All of the groups were told to stick to their typical diet.

The results: The women who exercised the most didn’t lose any more weight than those who didn’t exercise at all over six months. How can this be?

Well, first understand how much exercise these women were doing. The group that exercised the most burned around 1000 calories a week, or about 140 calories a day. The other two exercise groups burned around 700 and 350 calories a week, respectively.

This isn’t a tremendous amount of exercise—you might burn around 140 calories vacuuming your house—so no one would anticipate a tremendous amount of weight loss. Even so, the researchers calculated how many pounds they would expect each woman to lose, and their predictions were spot-on for the two groups that did lesser amounts of exercise. For these ladies, the exercise did indeed work.

(Make the most of your workout, by tapping into the 100 Greatest Fitness Tips of All Time.)

However, the other group of exercisers fell about two-and-a-half pounds short of their predicted weight loss. The Time story states: “Whether because exercise made them hungry or because they wanted to reward themselves (or both), most of the women who exercised ate more than they did before they started the experiment.”

Not so, according to the published data. The writer of the Time story either misread the results, or conveniently skipped over the parts that didn’t support his assertion. The study authors clearly state that the women in all four groups ate fewer calories on average.

(For an easy way to cut your calories—even when you’re in a hurry—discover the 14 Best Fast Food Meals Under 500 Calories.)

To be fair, the calorie-intake numbers probably aren’t accurate. The study’s lead author, Timothy Church, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., admits that since this data was attained from a survey—and not measured directly—it’s not very reliable. We really do suspect .

This further muddles the findings. And given that the non-exercisers lost weight, too, one could conclude this study proves that sitting on the couch causes weight loss. But Time magazine isn’t reporting that. At least not this week.

Instead, the Time author tries to support his notion that exercise doesn’t help you lose weight by pointing out that some women gained more than 10 pounds over the six-month study. “What the article fails to report is that other women lost even more weight than we expected,” says Dr. Church.

Bottom line: Our responses to diet and exercise are all highly individualized, explains Dr. Church. Sure, some people might compensate for their exercise by eating more, but according to Dr. Church, this isn’t the fault of exercise. More likely, he says, it’s because people don’t realize how easy it is to consume 1,000 calories at the drive-thru compared to burning just 250 calories on a treadmill. “If your weight is a concern for you, exercise is important. But it doesn’t give you license to eat what you want,” cautions Dr. Church. “You still need to pay close attention to what you’re putting in your mouth.”

Even so-called “healthy” food can have a surprising number of calories. Check out our list of the worst salads in America, including a 2,115-calorie salad from California Pizza Kitchen.

As for exercise making you hungrier, Dr. Church doesn’t think that’s the case. And overall, the research is mixed on the matter. But even if exercise does stoke your appetite, you still have the power of choice. Are you going to reach for an apple—or a big bowl of ice cream?

Dr. Church insists that we have much to learn on this topic, and wants you to know this: “When you look at people who lose weight and keep it off, what you find is that almost 100 percent of them not only watch what they eat, but are also regular exercisers.”

Want even more reasons why Time is wrong about exercise? Keep reading.

• Exercise can protect your muscle. A Penn State University study found that people who lifted weights along with a program of diet and aerobic exercise had the same weight loss as those who only dieted (or who dieted and performed aerobic exercise). The difference? The lifters lost 5 pounds more fat because almost none of their weight loss came from muscle. Read: Resistance training didn’t improve weight loss, but it did improve fat loss. And isn’t that what really matters?

Want to lose more fat? Click here to instantly download more than a dozen fitness plans that you can take with you anywhere.

• Exercise may help you stick to your diet. University of Pittsburgh researchers studied 169 dieters for 2 years and found that the participants who didn’t follow a 3-hour-a-week training plan ate more than their allotted 1,500 calories per day. The reverse was also true—sneaking snacks sabotaged their workouts. “One healthy behavior without the other will not work—you need to diet and exercise to maintain long-term weight loss,” says lead study author John Jakicic, Ph.D. That’s because both actions can act as a reminder to stay on track.

• Exercise may target belly fat. While weight loss was similar among all four groups in the LSU study, only the groups that exercised saw their waist size decrease. The Time story downplays this finding, but isn’t it relevant? Think about it: This study actually shows that even a small amount of low-intensity exercise—performed in, say, just three 24-minute sessions a week—could help your jeans fit better. In other words, it makes you thinner. Doesn’t sound like a waste of time to me.

http://mhtoday.menshealth.com/2009/08/is-exercise-a-waste-of-time.html