Although virtually every activity, from yoga to sleep, requires energy, research shows that heavier loads are especially effective at burn calories. It seems logical, doesn't it? The more intense your workout, the more calories you burn. But we are not only talking about the time while doing an exercise, but also about the hours after. This is where things start to get interesting.
What you should Know
The so-called "Afterburn effect" is the official term for additional post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC). This is nothing new in the world of fitness. Several studies have found a strong link between exercise intensity and the amount of burned calories after it ends. Simply put, the more intense the exercise, the more oxygen the body consumes after it is over to speed up its recovery.
In an experiment at the Appalachian State University in North Carolina, participants who rode a very high-intensity bicycle for 45 minutes burned an average of 190 calories more in the 14 hours after training than on their weekends. Another study by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology shows that in people with metabolic syndrome (a combination of factors that increase the risk of a number of diseases) EPOC has a significant positive effect. This means that this type of exercise can be especially helpful in combating health problems such as obesity and diabetes.
Although the "afterburn effect" is enhanced by increasing the duration and intensity of the load, you do not need to train long to benefit from it. Short and high-intensity training intervenes here. The Tabata method, in which a 20-second load of maximum intensity alternates with 10-second breaks, is one way to induce this effect. Another option is high-intensity interval cardio training (VIICT) or the 10-20-30 method (30 seconds of jogging, 20 seconds of running at a medium pace, 10 seconds of sprinting at maximum intensity). Whichever program you choose, the important thing is to put in a lot of effort. We are talking about exercises performed with 70-85% of your maximum heart rate.
There is no need to stick only to cardio training. Research from the State University of Colorado and the State University of Appalachian shows that weight training can boost EPOC and even be more effective than cardio under certain conditions.
How to benefit
If this type of intense training is something new for you, start with a ratio of 1: 2, advises coach Matt Miller, a specialist in strength and fitness training and an expert at Greatist. This means, for example, a 60-second load, followed by a 2-minute break. An example of a 30-minute workout looks like this - 5 minutes of warm-up, 60 seconds of high-intensity running, 2 minutes of recovery walking, repeat 6-8 times and finish with 5 minutes of warm-up.
An added bonus is that after this type of workout is the best time for some of your favorite foods that you try to limit. "After intense exercise, such as sprints, glycogen stores in skeletal muscle are depleted. Glycogen is what muscles use as fuel. Therefore, at this point, foods rich in simple carbohydrates or starch are more likely to be used to replenish depleted glycogen than stored as fat, ”explains biologist Jason Edmunds.
However, there is a catch. The better you are in shape, the faster your body returns to its normal state and the smaller the "afterburn effect". In other words, experienced athletes will not reap the same benefits from EPOC as overweight people.
The conclusion
Heavy loads cause the body to burn calories hours after the end. And there are other benefits of intense training - you can lose weight faster, build muscle faster and increase your endurance. So it's worth giving them a chance. Keep in mind, however, that you should not include more than 2-3 such workouts in your weekly plan, and they should be on non-consecutive days.
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