Would you like to burn more calories in less time? Here are 10 tips for you. 1. Pyramid Training Many strength training programs encourage you to perform a set of exercises, then rest the muscles before repeating. Pyramid training exhausts your muscle groups without stopping for a rest. You start off with lighter weights and more repetitions, then increase your weight gradually by about 15 percent while decreasing the number of reps, until your muscles are exhausted. 2. The Tabata protocol Dr. Izumi Tabata’s high-intensity interval-type training (HIIT) protocol calls for just 20 seconds of all-out drop-dead effort, followed by a mere 10 seconds of rest. This intense cycle is repeated eight times. This protocol reduces your risk of diabetes, increases your maximal aerobic power and anaerobic capacity 3. Interval Cardio Ditch your hour-long jogs for a shorter, more intense workout, such as sprinting for 30 seconds alternated with a minute of recovery. My Peak Fitness workout, which involves 30 seconds of maximum effort followed by 90 seconds of recovery, is the HIIT approach I personally prefer and recommend. 4. Mix Cardio and Weights There’s no rule that says you have to do weights one day and cardio the next. You may want to try an upper body exercise, such as chest flies, followed by squats for your lower body and then finish with a quick HIIT activity. Personally, I typically finish my Peak Fitness HIIT workout with Power Plate stretches, 10 pull-ups, 10 dips and 20 inverted pushups, and call it a day. 5. Drop Sets With drop sets, you start with your typical weight then gradually drop the weight in each following set. The secret is to perform the sets immediately after each other, with no rest in between, as this will increase your EPOC (your calories burned after your workout). Try dropping the weight by 20 percent after each set, and by 50 percent for the last set. 6. Plyometrics Plyometrics are quick, explosive types of movement that can help you burn large amounts of calories in minimal time. Consider adding plyometric drills that last for 5-10 seconds to your workouts for added calorie burning. To do a plyometric push-up, for instance, once your sternum touches the floor, hold your position and breathe for about three seconds, then perform an explosive push upward. You can also try jump squats or jumping on and off a small box or even a low chair if you’re advanced. Because plyometric exercises are so intense, you should only do 2-3 sessions a week to give your body time for adequate rest and recovery. 7. Super Sets Super setting refers to performing exercises on opposing muscle groups, such as back and chest or biceps and triceps, with no rest in between. This saves time and allows you to stimulate more muscle growth. Try alternating dumbbell chest presses with close-grip pull-downs, for instance. 8. Compounds Sets These are similar to super sets, but instead of working opposing muscle groups you do two sets of exercises on the same muscle group, such as tricep extensions followed by tricep kickbacks. This saves time while giving your muscles a powerful workout; you only need to do one or two sets and you’ll be done. 9. Giant Sets Build lean muscle and lose body fat quickly with giant sets, which entail three exercises for the same muscle group completed all in a row (just 10 seconds of rest should be included in between each set). This will effectively strain and challenge your muscles in a short period of time, allowing for muscle growth and saving you time. 10. Combine Two Moves Into One When you incorporate two moves into one, you get a total body workout in a shorter amount of time. For instance, try a squat with an overhead press or a lunge with a lateral raise. Enjoy sweating and burning more!!!
Posted on: Mon, 02 Sep 2013 00:52:52 +0000
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