Weight Loss for Idiots - Why People Looking to Lose Weight Should Do Interval Training

Not to sound rude by calling it weight loss for idiots, but if you’re looking for a simple way to lose weight then you need to be doing intervals.

When you realize why you need to workout, how well intervals work and how easy it is to do them then you’ll never have an issue with losing weight.

By the end of this article you will be ready to start stripping the fat off your body.

Why Workout?

You can lose weight by modifying your diet but if you want to speed up the process then you need to start being more active. Losing weight all comes down to how many calories you burn and the more active you are the more calories you end up burning. If you’re already modifying your diet so that you take in a little less calories and then you start working out on top of that then you’re going to supercharge your weight loss efforts!

And gauging your progress by the numbers on your bathroom scale isn’t always the best method either. Muscle and water aren’t weightless and your body is full of both of them! So if you gain muscle it might cause a tear to build up in your eye as you look down at the scale. Sure, you can measure your waist and other places but what if there was another way to gauge your progress? When your body is improving and you’re exercising you’re going to see your progress through better workout results. Trust me, this is a more rewarding way of noticing your progress. When you push yourself hard and realize that you just ran faster or lifted heavier than you have before then something’s going to click in your mind. You’re making progress!

But in order to notice your progress you need to have structure in your workouts and track your results. If you know what your workout is going to be before you start then you’re going to save a lot of time and be more efficient. And when you write down your results you can look back and see how far you’ve come. Then you can feel free to pat yourself on the back. But you’re probably wondering why I recommend interval training.

What’s So Good About Interval Training?

Interval training is when you break your workout into varied levels of intensity. For instance, with running you would have a set amount of time or distance where you sprint or run hard and then a set amount of time where you walk. The frequent changes make it harder for your body to get use to the tempo and in return you see greater results from this type of workout. How great of results?

A study conducted by Jason Talanian, a PhD student from the University of Guelph in Ontario, proved that interval training can increase the amount of fat burned in an hour of continuous cycling by 36%! He had eight women in their 20s take part in this test and it didn’t matter how fit they were, interval training boosted all of their fat burning capabilities. Not only did they burn more fat but they also had an increased aerobic capacity and an increase of enzyme activity in their muscle. And this is just one scientific study that proves intervals work; there are TONS of studies out there with similar results.

Need more convincing? I’m sure it’s hard for you to fit in a workout, but with intervals you can get a good workout in less time because of the increased intensity. And your body is going to continue to burn fat even after you’ve stopped working out! So it’s easier and more efficient to do intervals, but it’s also fun. If you’ve ever done cardio for a long period of time at a steady pace, you know how boring that can be. In fact, most people that do that have to stare at a TV, listen to music or read a magazine to keep from boring themselves while they just go through the motions. But if you change the levels of intensity then you’re always "on your toes" getting ready to do something different.

Different Ways to Perform Intervals

Just be sure that you’re not limiting yourself to only one type of interval training. Keep things exciting by implementing intervals in different ways. The obvious choice might be to run intervals on a treadmill. It’s pretty simple to do with the speed and incline controls right in front of you. Find a good walking pace and a good sprinting pace and then decide on how long each interval will be. For instance, you could set the incline to 1% and walk at 3 MPH for 1 minute and then sprint at 10 MPH for 30 seconds. Do that back and forth for something like 15 minutes straight and feel the fat burning power of intervals.

You can also run intervals outside but it might be a little harder to keep looking at your watch to know when to switch intensity. So what you can do is make an interval training song and listen to it through an MP3 player for an audible cue for when you should start or stop running. Choose a slow-paced song for your walking interval and a fast-paced song for your sprints, chop the MP3s up into the right lengths and alternate back and forth between the songs. This is a really handy method for interval training that I’ve been using for years.

But interval training isn’t just for running; you can incorporate intervals into your weightlifting too. You could choose 3 exercises that you’re going to do back to back, nonstop and then rest after that 3-way superset. So you could do something like chin ups, bench presses and then squats. Do a set of 5 chin ups then quickly lie down on the bench without taking a break. Bench press for 5 reps and then quickly go over to the squat rack without taking a break. And then finish up with a quick set of 5 squats before taking a one or two minute break. Now you’re building muscle AND burning fat! Repeat that circuit 6 times and you’ve just finished a killer, total body workout that incorporates interval training and weightlifting. If you start using interval training in addition to eating a healthy diet, I guarantee that you will lose more weight than the people jogging at a steady pace on a treadmill for hours on end.

This truly is weight loss for idiots; anyone can do intervals and they’re proven to boost your fat loss efforts. When you create a structured workout based around interval training and you implement a variety of workout methods then you can expect fat to start melting off your body. Now you can have the sexy body you always wanted!