Want to shorten your workouts while getting the same or even more benefits? Try interval training, a type of workout in which you alternate bursts of peppier exercise with slower-paced “recovery” periods.
Intervals make you work more efficiently; your overall intensity is greater, so the length of your workout can be cut by about 20 percent. Plus, that approach yields health benefits that are at least as good, and possibly better, than traditional exercise, research suggests. Those benefits include:
Start by replacing one or two of your regular aerobic workouts (such as cycling, swimming, or walking) with interval sessions of the same activity. You should get short of breath and feel a burning sensation in your muscles during the “speed” phases, and they should be intense enough that you can speak only a couple of words immediately after them, Bryant says.
As you become accustomed to the program, you can add more high-intensity segments while shortening both the speed and recovery periods. Eventually, you might be able to gradually adjust the length of the speed and recovery intervals until they’re equal. But experts suggest progressing slowly in the first month.
Note that high-intensity exercise of any type does increase the risk of having a heart attack or injuring your joints or muscles. But Bryant says that some adults with cardiovascular disease can safely do interval training in a supervised setting. But see a physician first if you’ve been diagnosed with cardiovascular disease or are at an increased risk. You may need a doctor-supervised maximal exercise test before starting.
Think of how hard you exercise on a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being at rest and 10 exerting yourself as as hard as you possibly can. Divide your workout into three chunks: warm-up, exertion and recovery, and cool down. For a basic program, try this:
You can adapt that basic program by pushing yourself harder during the exertion phase, but for a shorter period of time, and taking a longer time to recover. So you might alternate between, say, 30 seconds at a 9 on the intensity scale with four minutes at 4 to 5 on the intensity scale.
You can also use your heart rate as a guide to your interval workouts. First, calculate your maximum heart by subtracting your age from 220. During the exertion phase of your workout, aim for about 85 percent to 95 percent of your maximum, and during your recovery phase aim for about 50 percent to 70 percent of it.
For a 55-year-old, for example, the maximum heart rate would be about 165 beats per minute, the exertion phase would be about 140 to 157 beats per minute, and the recover phase about 85 to 115 beats per minute.
Bear in mind that those numbers are averages; the figures for you might differ. To get a more accurate estimate for you, consider talking with a an exercise physiologist or personal trainer. And see our Ratings of heart-rate monitors for our advice on accurate models and how to use them.
This article first appeared in the monthly newsletter Consumer Reports on Health.
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