So we all know that there are tons of exercises that we can do each day; walking, running, elliptical, yoga, sports...the list goes on. But what exercise is there that will benefit you the most? They all have their claims of "I'm the best workout. Choose me!"
When we look at exercise, we need to look at it for what it really is. There are two classes of exercise: 1) Low Intensity 2) High Intensity. Some examples of low intensity exercise are: walking, elliptical, even running. The reason being is that when we do those exercises, our heart rate only gets to about 60% - 75% of it's max capacity. Ideally, you want your heart rate to get up to 75% - 85% when exercising.
Example
The average 40 year old has an average maximum heart rate of 180 beats per minute. So if they wanted to hit 80% of their max heart rate, they'd need to keep it around 144 beats per minute.
I don't know about you, but my heart rate doesn't get up that high by walking on a treadmill! Another difference between low intensity and high intensity exercise is that low intensity exercise is often done for a long time, meaning between 30 minutes and an hour and a half. High intensity training only requires 10 - 15 minutes! No more waking up at 4 in the morning!
So all of this is fine and dandy, but how do you actually do the high intensity stuff? It's actually easier than it sounds. The concept is this, to alternate between short bursts of active exercise and active rest. One example for people who like to run is to do about 20 second intervals of running a race-like pace and then scaling down to a jog. Do that for 10 - 15 minutes and you'll be more than good for your exercise that day!
I've got more examples of the High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) in my free downloadable e-book. Go ahead and e-mail me for your copy! As an added bonus it's got some other information about foods to avoid and foods that are good. It's also got information on the best ways to lose weight.
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