Burn MORE calories in LESS Time

Burn MORE Calories in Less Time 

What’s harder than finding a four leaf clover in a desert? 



Finding an open treadmill during peak hours at a big box gym here in West Chester, PA 



When most people think weight loss, they immediately think about hours spent on a treadmill or elliptical and struggling through restrictive weight loss diets. 



When they follow a plan like that, they aimlessly pedal or stride for hours a week, and have little if any results to show for it.



Inevitably, they quit the gym only to repeat this dreadful cycle come the new year. 



I wish I could say this is an antiquated storyline, but unfortunately we just can’t kick our obsession with aerobic exercise and belief that it is the best workout for weight loss. 





How ironic, a country obsessed with speed and efficiency, from our internet speeds to the time we spend in a grocery store checkout line, can be so resigned to the fact that exercise and weight loss has to be a slow and mundane process!





Let’s put an end to this once and for all. 




If your main goal is weight loss and to get toned:

short, intense spurts of exercise followed by rest is the most efficient method of training. 



This is called HIIT, which stands for High Intensity Interval Training, and it is by far the most effective way to lose weight. 



HIIT consists of doing very high intensity (challenging) bursts of exercise for only a few seconds at a time and then resting for a certain period of time.




Benefits of High Intensity Training: 






1. Burn MORE calories in LESS time:


Get a great workout in a fraction of the time. If you’re crunched for time, as little as a 15-20min high intensity workout can effectively exhaust all your major muscle groups, and you can burn more calories in those 20 minutes than in an HOUR of cardio. 

 



2. Increase Your Metabolism:


High intensity workouts increase muscle size and strength. The more muscle mass you have, the more efficient your metabolism will be (AKA You’ll lose weight faster!)





3. “Afterburn” Effect:


High intensity workouts lead to something known as Excess Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption (EPOC). EPOC is the amount of oxygen needed to return your body to its resting rate. The higher your EPOC post workout the longer you continue to burn calories at a higher rate following an exercise session. High intensity training simulates higher EPOC because you consume more oxygen during your workout vs. a low intensity workout. 




So, how do you do a HIIT workout? 



Here are 3 of our favorite methods. 





Method #1: TABATA


Pick 3-5 exercises (Kettlebell Swings, Lunges, Push Ups, Medicine Ball Slams) and perform choose your work/rest intervals (for example: 20seconds of work/10second rest, 40s work/20s rest, etc…) for as many rounds as you can. (a good HIIT workout would be anywhere from 4-8 rounds)




Method #2: Interval Sprints


Using Running, Biking, Ski Erg: Perform a short burst of all out activity then rest until fully recovered

Sprint 20 Yards, Walk until fully recovered. Repeat 10-12x 

Bike: All out for 30s, coast for 90s repeat 8-12x 

Ski: Sprint all out for 200m, rest for 30-45s repeat 15-20x 




Method #3: Density Blocks


Pick 1 exercise and perform as many reps as you can within a certain time frame i.e. 1-3 minutes. 

Example Workout 

3min as many reps as possible (KB Swings, Lunges, Push Ups, MB Slams). That is a solid workout that only takes 12min 



Simplest way to start?

Click here to schedule a FREE WEEK of classes

at Gage where we specialize in HIIT style training to help you lose weight! 




PS. Did you know that Gage Strength Training was just voted BEST OF West Chester, Pa in 3 Categories? 


– Best Fitness Class 

– Best Personal Trainers

– Best Fitness Center 

We’d love to invite you to try us out, and see what makes us different!