Summer is right around the corner. The weather is getting warm, the clothes are coming off, and that swimsuit is glaring at you from the closet. All those goals for weight loss and getting that summer body to flaunt on vacation are passing you by... or are they? I know you don't have much time, because I feel the time pinch too.
With work, kids, family and dogs taking up every last second of your time, you get the last remaining threads of minutes. By the time you have a few moments for yourself, you are too tired to go to the gym, or don't have a full hour to dedicate to exercise. The good news is you can maximize your time and effort with interval training. Interval training is a great way to get you bikini ready just in time for those beach days.
Interval training combines high intensity periods of exercise with bouts of rest, pushing the body to work harder than it's used to. Interval training burns more calories while building endurance and muscle. Lean muscle is metabolic active tissue, and the more you have, the more calories you burn, even at rest. This revs your metabolism throughout the day.
Adding interval training to your current workout plan with a mixture of strength and cardio drills can help you build that lean muscle that drives up your metabolism, meaning you burn more calories even when you are sitting on the beach with your friends. Win-Win! The harder you work, the more oxygen the muscles need to consume in order to function. This increased need for oxygen creates an effect called "the afterburn," which is the common name of a complicated process in which your body continues to burn calories long after the workout is over and your body comes back to rest. Burning while you rest?! Yes, I said it!
Interval training will get you the results you want. How long have you been wishing for that sculpted beach body but with receiving minimal results? Your body is smarter than you think. If you continue to do the same thing over and over, the body gets very efficient and utilizes the least amount of energy to do the same work. It's frustrating to put in so much work without seeing many changes! But, you have the chance with just a few tweaks to finally get that fit body you've been hoping and praying for. The ability to change the timing and format keeps the workouts interesting so both your mind and body do not get bored.
So how can you incorporate interval training into your current workout plan? It's easy to add this type of training to any exercise. Interval training can take many different forms. It can be in timed duration; for example 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest. Longer durations like 1 minute of work followed by 1 minute of rest can give you great results in as little as 15 minutes! You can interval train during your strength routine, as well as during your run outside.
If you regularly jog at a moderate pace as part of your fitness routine, how about adding 30 seconds of a running pace, and then recover in the jog? Repeat this every 2-3 minutes while you are starting out. Not only will you get a lot more work done in the same amount of time, you also will start to change your fitness level by putting the body out of its comfort zone.
There are many ways you can format interval workouts that you can do right in your living room, with or without equipment. DailyBurn.com offers a great program called DailyBurn 15 that gives a variety of 15 minute workouts to target your problem areas and light your metabolic machine on fire. There is something for everyone, including MMA, dance, a killer core set to get those nice beach abs, tabata intervals, and metabolic conditioning with my Inferno workout program. DailyBurn takes all the excuses out of your day by helping you to workout wherever you want, whenever you want.
Interval training maximizes your efforts and gets you results. Your health is your wealth! Feel good, look sexy. Give me 15 minutes, and I'll get you summer body ready.
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