Putting Your Fat Burning Furnace Into High Gear

Of the hundreds of strategies for burning fat, many which are complex and burdensome, some of the most effective have been the simplest to implement. One of the quickest and easiest strategies to crank up your fat-burning furnace is through interval training.

Regardless of what exercise you use, whether biking, running, weight training or basketball, if you add brief bursts of highly intense effort, the results will be dramatic. One recent study found that while a sustained workout is excellent for burning fat, the addition of quick bursts of effort, such as a 15 second burst of fast running added to your jogging, or 2 minutes of high-speed pedaling added to your cycling routine, followed by a 1-2 minute slowdown, jolted the fat burning furnace into high gear.

For example, incorporating 100 yard sprints with jogging (e.g., jogging 1/4 mile, sprinting 100 yards and returning to the jogging pace for another 1/4 mile and then adding 100 yards again, for 2 miles) can burn 3 times more calories than jogging the 2 miles without the added high impact sprint.

The most effective strategy is to follow this routine for 6-8 weeks, which should give you time to begin noticing that those tight jeans are now becoming looser. To mix it up, you can jog for ¼ mile, stop and do 10 quick pushups, 20 rapid sit-ups, 25 fast jumping jacks (all within 90 seconds or as quickly as possible) and then resume your jog for another ¼ mile, stop again and repeat the exercises above. Do this about 4 times. Be creative, confuse and shock your muscles and fat burning furnace by modifying repetitive movements (jogging, cycling, getting on the treadmill alone).

As always, be aware of your body, avoid injury by stretching and stay with it for several weeks to really appreciate the outcome.

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