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Cardio Workouts: Interval Training
The Best Interval Training Technique for You
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Max Out Your Cardio Workout
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1
You want to brush up on the basics
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2
You need to lose weight
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3
You want to run or cycle faster
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4
You’re conditioning for a sport
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5
You want to take your workout to the next level
You want to brush up on the basics
If you're bored with your morning jog or seeing zero results after logging hours on the treadmill each week, introduce your body to something new. To ease into interval training, Raffle suggests this basic 2 minutes on, 2 minutes off routine, which can be performed while walking, running, cycling, swimming, rowing, or using the treadmill, versa climber, Spinning bike, stair climber, or elliptical. The bottom line: Any cardio workout can be adapted.
Begin with a 5-minute warm-up. Then alternate for 20 to 30 minutes between 2 minutes at high intensity (increase speed, incline, or resistance so that you're working at 75 to 85% of your maximum heart rate, or at a difficulty level of 8 or 9 on a perceived exertion scale of 1 to 10) and 2 minutes of recovery (reduce speed, incline, or resistance so that you're working at 60% of your maximum heart rate, a difficulty level of 5 or 6). End with a 5-minute cooldown.
To determine your target heart rate zones, Raffle suggests using the Karvonen formula:
Target heart rate = ((maximum heart rate – resting heart rate) x % intensity) + resting heart rate
Suppose someone has a resting heart rate (find yours by taking your pulse for 1 minute when you first wake up) of 65 beats per minute and a maximum heart rate (estimate by subtracting your age from 220) of 190 bpm and wants to perform the interval training routine above, using 75% intensity for "on" intervals and 60% intensity for "off" intervals. The calculation would look like this:
Target heart rate for "on" intervals = ((190 – 65) x .75) + 65 = 159 bpm
Target heart rate for "off" intervals = ((190 – 65) x .60) + 65 = 140 bpm
To measure your heart rate during exercise, wear a heart rate monitor if running or cycling outdoors, or use the built-in monitors on most pieces of indoor cardio equipment.
More: Looking for a new exercise routine? These five practically scream summer.
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