Quick push
Short, intense exercise may be just as good as going for a long jog
No time to exercise? No problem. Researchers from McMaster University in Ontario, Canada, say that short bursts of intense exercise are equally beneficial as 45 minutes of continuous moderate exercise. The study involved 27 inactive men who were assigned intense or moderate exercise three times a week for 12 weeks, or to a control group that didn’t exercise. The intense group’s workout comprised three all-out sprints on exercise bikes for 20 seconds; including warm-up and cool-down periods, the group’s workouts lasted a total of 10 minutes. The moderate group did 45 minutes of continuous cycling at a steady pace, along with the same warm-up and cool-down times. At the end of the study period, the two groups had similar measures of heart and lung fitness as well as insulin sensitivity. “Brief bursts of intense exercise are remarkably effective,” the researchers concluded.
Source: WebMD.com
