According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 70% of the people in the U.S. are overweight or obese. These staggering numbers demonstrate the importance of taking action and implementing change immediately.
While there are many people, companies, products, and programs that claim to help you lose fat, the results are really more in your control than you might think. And, you do not need to spend a lot of money. In fact, you do not need to spend any money at all on any of those advertisements for products, programs, or memberships.
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Sprint interval training
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The experts from runrepeat.com believe that the most effective way to lose fat and lower that number on the scale is through sprint interval training. According to over 50 studies from accredited institutions such as the National Center for Biotechnology Information, sprint interval training is the most effective exercise for burning fat quickly and in the shortest amount of time.
What is sprint interval training
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Sprint interval training is running at a high intensity for 20-30 seconds, resting for 2 minutes, and continuing this rotation of sprinting and resting until you have run a total of 6 sprints. Sprint interval training is best done on a treadmill because you are able to set the intensity on the treadmill and you are held more accountable by being on a treadmill. Meaning, you do not have the option of stopping when you are tired like you would if you were just running somewhere outdoors. Until you can be disciplined enough, a treadmill is highly recommended. The intensity level should be no lower than 8, but ideally, level 10, which is a full capacity fast sprint.
The results
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Compared to other forms of cardio fat burning exercises like HIIT workouts and moderate continuous training, sprint interval training reduced body fat percentage by 40% more than HIIT workouts, and by 90% more than moderate continuous workouts.
Not only does sprint interval training burn the fattest, but is also does so in the least amount of time. Sprint interval training takes 60% less time than HIIT workouts, and 70% less time than moderate continuous workouts. This is very important to note because people commonly say that the reason they do not workout is that they do not have time.
How it is so effective
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When you are not doing anything, the body is at its normal, ideal, comfortable temperature. Exercise causes the body to deviate from this ideal temperature known as homeostasis. This triggers a bodily response of sweating. Sweating is an effort to bring the body back to that balanced norm, homeostasis.
Since sprint interval training pushes the body to be so far from its homeostasis level, the body has to work harder to regulate body temperature. This work is what allows sprint interval training to be so effective in such a shorter amount of time.
The higher the intensity of the workout, the more the body has to work, and the more calories are burned. Higher intensity means a shorter time frame that the high-intensity workout needs to be. Ideally, sprint interval training is perfect for people who have extremely busy schedules, but who are also accustomed to some form and some level of exercising.
Beginners guide
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If you have never done sprint interval training before, ease into it to get your body adjusted and not completely overwhelmed. A good rule is to start off by doing 10-20 second sprints, with 3 minute rests in between sprints, for a total of 4 sprints as one set, and doing at least one set, two times a week. Every two weeks, increase the number of sprints in one set and the duration of the sprint and decrease the amount of minutes to rest.
Make sure to stretch and take your time to warm up. Never try to immediate just start sprinting because you will have a high chance of injury. It is also very important to have proper supportive shoes, a drink that has electrolytes, and to fuel your body properly with nutritional foods.
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A very common mistake is that people think they can eat whatever they want because they worked out. The reality is, that even when you work out, you still have to refrain from foods and drinks that are high in sugars and fats. Weight loss and fat loss significantly relies on the things you consume. This entire weight journey is 80% nutrition, and 20% working out.
From a nutrition standpoint, this does not mean to starve yourself or eat just vegetables. You need food. Eating clean, small meals, every 3 hours really helps to fight those food cravings. Also, making sure that whenever you leave your home that you have your healthy foods or snacks on hand is important to avoid buying unhealthy foods and drinks when you are out and about. It is very easy to deviate from staying nutritionally on task because of the easy accessibility to foods and beverages with high sugar and fat contents. With keeping these things in mind, you can definitely achieve your ideal body through this regime.
