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Say goodbye to long boring hours spent on cardio machines and get ready to tone up with interval training. And the best part is — if done correctly, it only takes 15 minutes after your resistance workout!

That’s right. Many studies indicate that the ideal order of things should be resistance first, followed by cardio. Read more below…

As I’ve been telling you, the new wave of cardiovascular exercise is interval training, and it is the most economical way to get results fast. According to researchers, intense cardio interval training is much more effective at improving aerobic capacity than long steady cardio training alone.

The key component is that interval training should ideally be done after a resistance workout because after a resistance training your body is in a state where glucose stores are nearly depleted and fat is the prime source for energy.

Now, let’s be clear. Intervals can be done with any cardiovascular workout. If you are walking, then what you do is walk for a minute, then increase your pace for 30 seconds, walk for one minute, then increase the pace for thirty seconds. The optimal number of intervals is six. If you really push hard, then your results will diminish if you have more intervals.

If you like cardio, then after your six intervals simply keep a moderate pace to complete the time you usually allot for your cardio. It’s just that researchers say that we do not need to spend hours on cardio like they originally recommended. It will not create any complications unless we’re talking about overuse injuries which would be the subject of another article.

Also, know that you can get very precise interval increases by using the percentage of your maximum heart rate. Or, you can use the perceived rate of exertion. This is a scale from 1 to 10. From very low #1 as if you’re sitting watching TV, to very high #10 this is not advisable. When we are exercising, we do not want numbers from 1-3 this is too low. And we do not want 10 or maybe even 9 unless you are a very well conditioned athlete.

BTW—Intervals should be done after about four weeks of beginner level training. After this period of time you can introduce some intensity training.

If you’re conditioned, then please intensify your short intervals to an 8 or perhaps a 9. An 8 would feel like you are very late for a flight. In fact, as you are approaching the aircraft, you can see the doors starting to close. Of course you’re sprinting to get there before the doors close and you are waving your arms. Can you imagine? You’d be out of breath by the time you crashed through the doors. Right? This is the intensity to work at when you are at the top of the interval.

In other words, when you increase the intensity of your work out your breathing increases, your heart rate goes up, and you begin to feel a bit uncomfortable. Or, very uncomfortable.

I’ll say this again. This is important. If you are sedentary, please get the green light from your physician to start an exercise program. But once you do, even a very unconditioned person can do an interval. It wouldn’t take much for an out of conditioned person to get out of breath and uncomfortable. On the other hand if you are conditioned to exercise, then just know that you can apply intervals to any cardio work out. Jogging, walking, elliptical, spin classes. Anything.

The key component is to make it a goal to perform your resistance training before the cardio if possible.

Researchers say that this may increase your fat burning capacity.

For more useful cardio and resistance training information from Craig Ballantyne, use the link below.
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